The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) is making it easier for Ontario casinos to put self-serve lottery terminals on gaming floors at casinos.

The AGCO added an amendment to its Registrar’s Standards for Gaming: Lottery Sector effective April 1 to specify that the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation can install self-serve lottery terminals on casino floors without being subject to existing surveillance requirements.

In effect, the change of language cuts red tape and means that casinos can more freely add lottery self-service terminals (SSTs) across their floors.

While casinos were already entitled to add lottery SSTs to their floors, it was difficult in a practical sense due to the AGCO’s monitoring requirements, which are primarily intended to ensure safety and security in retail environments. In November 2023, the Standards were amended to enable SSTs in select retail locations.

The Standards state that OLG must ensure that when a self-serve lottery terminal is installed within a retail store, it must be in the direct line of sight of the seller and employees on the premises for monitoring purposes. In casinos, that would require the SST machines to be close to a lottery kiosk or for an attendant to be near the machine at all times.

In its update, the AGCO noted that as casinos have “a high degree of control and surveillance” and already must meet other regulatory requirements, they will not need to meet the same line-of-sight surveillance standards as retailers.

“In order to facilitate the inclusion of the same model of SSTs in casinos, the AGCO amended the requirements for casinos to reflect the fact that, unlike retail environments, casinos prohibit entrance by minors and employ comprehensive security and surveillance programs,” an AGCO spokesperson told Canadian Gaming Business.