Toronto, ON – OLG has put a new spin on traditional INSTANT games with THE BIG SPIN. Launching September 4, 2017, this exciting new $5 game combines popular scratch play with prizes revealed in-store by an animated spinning wheel on the lottery terminal screen and potentially, an in-person spin on The BIG SPIN Wheel at the OLG Prize Centre in Toronto.

THE BIG SPIN INSTANT game has three fun ways to win:

1. SCRATCH – To win an instant cash prize of $5 to $100,000 or a SPIN prize.
2. WATCH – If the prize won is SPIN, visit any OLG retail location to validate the ticket and watch the animated wheel spin on the lottery terminal screen. Every “SPIN” is a guaranteed win! SPIN prizes range from $10 to $10,000 or a BIG SPIN.
3. SPIN – If the animated wheel stops on “BIG SPIN,” the prize won is an actual spin on The BIG SPIN Wheel at the OLG Prize Centre for a guaranteed prize of $100,000 to $500,000!

“We’re excited to introduce this fresh, innovative INSTANT game to our players,” said Wendy Montgomery, OLG Senior Vice President, Lottery & iGaming. “The anticipation has been building at OLG since the arrival of The BIG SPIN Wheel. For the first time, we’ll actually be able to see a top prize winner when their winning moment happens. We can hardly wait for that first winner to take a spin to see just how BIG their prize really is!”

Odds of winning any prize with THE BIG SPIN are 1 in 3.98. Odds of winning a BIG SPIN are 1 in 1,034,075.

THE BIG SPIN is only available in Ontario beginning September 4, 2017.

For full details on THE BIG SPIN and complete odds of winning, go to olg.ca or visit your lottery retailer.

OLG is the Ontario government agency that delivers gaming entertainment in a socially responsible manner. OLG conducts and manages gaming facilities, the sale of province-wide lottery games, PlayOLG Internet gaming, the delivery of bingo and other electronic gaming products at Charitable Gaming Centres and is helping to build a more sustainable horse racing industry in Ontario. Since 1975, OLG has provided nearly $44 billion to the Province and the people of Ontario. These payments to the province support the operation of hospitals, amateur sport through the Quest for Gold program, local and provincial charities and problem gambling prevention, treatment and research.

All for Here – 100 per cent of OLG’s proceeds are invested in Ontario
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THE ONTARIO PROBLEM GAMBLING HELPLINE 1-888-230-3505

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The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) today released its Corporate Social Responsibility Report (CSR) for fiscal year 2015-16. The CSR report serves as a measure of OLG’s contribution and impacts that make life better for people across Ontario.

“Corporate social responsibility has been a part of OLG’s culture for over four decades,” said Paul Pellizzari, Executive Director, Policy and Social Responsibility at OLG. “OLG’s 2015-16 CSR report demonstrates how OLG makes Ontario a better place to live and our commitment to offering great games and destinations.”

OLG delivered more than $2.2 billion in net profit to the Ontario government in 2015-16 – money the government uses to support vital services Ontarians rely on. The report highlights OLG’s accomplishments in key areas of social responsibility including building public trust; addressing social impacts of gambling; supporting OLG employees; strengthening Ontario’s communities; and reducing OLG’s environmental impact. It also highlights the development and launch of PlaySmart, OLG’s education and player support program, which builds positive play habits into the gaming experience of every player.

OLG’s full 2015-2016 CSR report is available on OLG.ca.

GAMING ZONE	CURRENT OLG GAMING SITE	HOST COMMUNITY
C2	OLG Slots at Woodbine Racetrack	City of Toronto
C3	OLG Slots at Ajax Downs	Town of Ajax
C8	Great Blue Heron Casino	Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation

 

 

C2 Gaming Zone

OLG Slots at Woodbine Racetrack opened in 2000. The site has more than 3,000 electronic games and employs 744 people (as of June 16, 2017).

The City of Toronto received more than $15 million in 2015-16 for hosting the Woodbine facility.

Since March 2000, the City of Toronto has received more than $240 million in hosting fees.

OLG’s procurement process outlined a maximum of 5,000 electronic games and up to 2,400 live table gaming positions (up to 400 tables) for the C2 Gaming Zone. The site currently does not have any live table games.

On July 7, 2015, Toronto City Council passed a resolution granting conditional approval to expanded gaming—including the addition of table games—at Woodbine Racetrack, subject to the fulfilment of 21 conditions.

Council’s resolution includes a compulsory report back from the City Manager. The City Manager will prepare a report that assesses how the service provider has met, or will contractually commit to meeting, the City’s conditions. The City Manager will provide the report to City Council. Once Council receives the report, it will vote on whether to approve gaming expansion at Woodbine.

 

C3 Gaming Zone

OLG Slots at Ajax Downs opened in February 2006. The site currently has 800 electronic games* and employs 359 people (as of June 16, 2017).

The Town of Ajax received more than $7.3 million in 2015-16 for hosting the Ajax facility.

Since February of 2006, the Town of Ajax has received more than $61 million in hosting fees.

OLG’s procurement process outlined a maximum of 2,500 electronic games** and up to 1,200 live table game positions (up to 200 tables)** for the C3 Gaming Zone. The site currently does not have any live table games.

There are three willing host communities in the gaming zone: Ajax, Pickering and Whitby. Each municipality has passed a resolution indicating their interest in hosting a gaming site located within their borders.

*The Town of Ajax’s current by-law only allows for 800 slot machines at the site.  Although the Town has rezoned for the lift of that cap and the addition of table games, that decision is currently being appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board.

**For the C3 Gaming Zone and the C8 Gaming Zone there is an aggregate cap: between those two zones there can be no more than 3,100 slot machines and 1,560 live table game positions (up to 260 tables).

 

C8 Gaming Zone

he Great Blue Heron Casino opened in 1997 on the lands of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation (MSIFN). The site houses more than 500 slot machines, 60 live table games and employs 1100 people (as of June 16, 2017).

Great Blue Heron Casino is currently operated by a third party gaming operator, Casinos Austria International and its local partners.

In August 2016, OLG announced that a number of agreements had been reached between the Government of Ontario, OLG, MSIFN and other parties. Great Blue Heron Casino was then added to the GTA Gaming Bundle during the procurement process.

OLG’s procurement process outlined a maximum of 2,500 electronic games** and up to 1,200 live table game positions (up to 200 tables)** for the C8 Gaming Zone.

**For the C3 Gaming Zone and the C8 Gaming Zone there is an aggregate cap: between those two zones there can be no more than 3,100 slot machines and 1,560 live table game positions (approximately 260 tables).

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For more information contact:
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Modernization progress

OLG’s modernization of land-based gaming is nearing completion.

In the last 18 months, OLG has transferred the day-to-day operations of 11 gaming facilities to the private sector. Service providers now operate gaming in the East, North and Southwest and are investing in sites so that ongoing and new costs are borne by private capital, not public dollars.

Modernization is bringing new jobs and investment to communities across the province.

In May 2017, OLG announced HR Ottawa, LP as the service provider for the Ottawa Area Gaming Bundle. HR Ottawa LP’s vision includes a potential investment of more than $320 million to support major expansion of the site. If approved, the plan will create up to 2,000 permanent jobs and 1,900 construction jobs.

Last December, the service provider for the East Gaming Bundle, Ontario Gaming East Limited Partnership (OGELP), opened a new site, Shorelines Casino Belleville. OGELP invested $40 million in new capital in the project, which created 300 jobs. OLG made its first payment under the Municipality Contribution Agreement to the City of Belleville for $575,000 last April. These payments will continue on a quarterly basis as long as gaming remains in Belleville.

In the Southwest Gaming Bundle, the service provider, Gateway Casinos and Entertainment Limited recently announced a $26 million capital refresh of an existing casino in Point Edward.

By the end of 2018, the remaining Gaming Bundles will be awarded.

With returns of more than $2 billion every year, OLG provides the Ontario government with its largest source of non-tax revenue to fund provincial priorities such as health care. These returns will grow under modernization to nearly $3 billion annually.

Modernization will deliver more jobs, more investment in communities, and more revenue to the Province.

Service Provider for the GTA Gaming Bundle

OLG is continuing its procurement process to modernize gaming in Ontario by selecting Ontario Gaming GTA LP (OGGLP) as the service provider for the GTA Gaming Bundle.

OLG has entered into a Transition and Asset Purchase Agreement with OGGLP, which sets out the customary closing conditions to be satisfied for OLG and OGGLP to enter into 22-year Casino Operating and Services Agreement (COSA) for the GTA Gaming Bundle.

Under the COSA, OGGLP will take over day-to-day operations of the gaming sites in the bundles.

What is the Casino Operating and Services Agreement?

Currently, OLG and OGGLP are operating under a temporary transitional agreement that allows the two parties to work together to share knowledge and help position OGGLP for success. This transition period is expected to end in early 2018.

Once the transition is complete, OLG and OGGLP will sign the Casino Operating and Services Agreement (COSA). This agreement allows OGGLP to assume responsibility for the day-to-day operation of the sites.

OGGLP is the service provider for the GTA bundle, subject to customary closing conditions and pending the execution of the COSA.

What are Gaming Zones?

In order to effectively manage gaming in Ontario, OLG identified Gaming Zones where existing or new gaming facilities would be permitted, subject to required approvals, including the provincial government.

Gaming Zones are geographic areas where a single gaming facility may be located. The location and design of these Gaming Zones is intended to ensure a sustainable and efficient gaming market in Ontario.

The boundaries of Gaming Zones across the province were determined by a gravity model—an analytic tool commonly used for modeling supply and demand within a given geographic area. The model looked at a number of factors to determine where there is customer demand for a gaming facility, including:

• Proximity of a Gaming Zone relative to other Gaming Zones and gaming facilities
• Proximity of a Gaming Zone to current and potential customers
• Distance a customer is willing to travel to reach a gaming site

Within each Gaming Zone, service providers will assume day-to-day operations for an existing facility and may propose expand the site, establish a new facility if one does not currently exist, or relocate the existing facility within the boundaries of the Gaming Zone, all subject to approvals.

Only one gaming facility is permitted within each Gaming Zone.

What are Gaming Bundles?

To enable OLG to more effectively manage gaming in Ontario, OLG grouped some Gaming Zones into Gaming Bundles—each representing a separate bidding opportunity.

Gaming Bundles are intended to create opportunities for service providers to be more efficient by operating multiple facilities in a given region.

Communities and OLG’s Modernization

Municipal and community choice is an important element of OLG’s modernization. OLG will only locate gaming facilities where there is support to do so from the municipal Council or the First Nation Band Council, as applicable. OLG respects decisions of municipalities or First Nation Band Councils regarding hosting a new gaming site or relocating a gaming site, as well as adding table games to a site that currently has none.

When it comes to gaming facilities, OLG’s approach to potential and current host municipalities and host reserves across Ontario has been consistent.

The municipal Council or First Nations Band Council must pass a resolution confirming their interest in hosting a gaming facility.

Where a municipal Council or First Nations Band Council has included conditions as part of its resolution for gaming in its community, such as restrictions on the movement or expansion of a gaming site, OLG has ensured that proponents are aware of such conditions during the RFP phase of the procurement process.

The municipal Council or the First Nations Band Council then works with the selected service provider to determine the location of a new gaming site, if one is proposed and permitted.

Adding table games at a gaming site that currently has none, relocating a current gaming site or building a new gaming site can only occur where there is municipal Council or Band Council consent. Also, a viable business case must be put forth by the service provider and subsequently approved by OLG.

Any new gaming site, introduction of table games at a gaming site that currently has none, or proposed relocation of an existing gaming site is subject to final approval from the Ontario government.

Leading Responsible Gambling Program

OLG will continue to work within the Province’s overall problem gambling strategy to contribute to the prevention and mitigation of problem gambling through its Responsible Gambling program, which was ranked number one in the world by the World Lottery Association in 2014.

OLG will also require service providers to follow the Responsible Gambling policies and program that OLG has developed.

Horse Racing

OLG is working with the horse racing industry and the Ontario government to build the foundation for a more sustainable industry in Ontario.

OLG is supporting the horse racing industry by:

• Helping the industry become self-governing
• Providing responsible gambling expertise
• Providing marketing strategy expertise
• Measuring key performance indicators to help the industry make fact-based decisions
• Providing advice to the Province of Ontario regarding horseracing

In addition, OLG is distributing around $93 million in funding from the Government of Ontario to racetracks to support close to 950 race dates in 2017-18.

OLG is also continuing to work with the Ontario government and the industry on a funding arrangement that will help to build a sustainable future for horse racing in Ontario.

OLG’s Conduct and Manage Role

OLG will continue its role in the conduct and management of land-based gaming in Ontario.

To fulfill this role, OLG will retain control over gaming, but will expect service providers to deliver many of the services related to the day-to-day operation of gaming.

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For more information contact:
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SAULT STE. MARIE, ON – Time is running out to claim a PICK 4 prize worth $20,000 for a ticket sold one year ago in Brampton. Players have one year from the original draw date to claim their prize.

The winning numbers for the Sunday, August 21, 2016 PICK 4 – EVENING draw were 4 – 7 – 3 – 0.

Anyone possessing this ticket should fill in the back portion, sign it and contact the OLG Prize Centre at 20 Dundas Street West in Toronto before 6 p.m. on Monday, August 21, 2017.

The OLG Prize Centre is now open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., unless Saturday is a statutory holiday or if there is a statutory holiday on the preceding Friday or the following Monday. For full details on Prize Centre hours and services, please visit the How to Claim Prizes page on olg.ca.

Winners of up to $250,000 also have the convenience of dropping off winning tickets for processing at any OLG Casino or at several of OLG Slots at Racetrack facilities. Winning tickets of less than $999.99 can be cashed at these sites. Please call 1-800-387-0098 for more details or for a list of locations.

Information about this and other unclaimed tickets is available by visiting the Unclaimed Tickets page on olg.ca.

OLG reminds players that they can check their tickets for winners in a number of convenient ways:

• Check the winning numbers on olg.ca.
• Call our WIN! Line at 416-870-8946 (Toronto area) or toll free at 1-866-891-8946 (outside Toronto area).
• Use the easy self-serve Ticket Checker at your lottery terminal retailer. Simply insert the ticket, barcode side up, and wait for the message to appear on the Ticket Checker’s screen.
• Sign up on olg.ca for winning numbers to be emailed to you.
• Pick up a winning numbers printout from your lottery terminal retailer.
• Sign your ticket and ask a lottery retailer to check it for you.

OLG is the Ontario government agency that delivers gaming entertainment in a socially responsible manner. OLG conducts and manages gaming facilities, the sale of province-wide lottery games, PlayOLG Internet gaming, the delivery of bingo and other electronic gaming products at Charitable Gaming Centres and is helping to build a more sustainable horse racing industry in Ontario. Since 1975, OLG has provided nearly $44 billion to the Province and the people of Ontario. These payments to the province support the operation of hospitals, amateur sport through the Quest for Gold program, local and provincial charities and problem gambling prevention, treatment and research.

All for Here – 100 per cent of OLG’s proceeds are invested in Ontario
olg.ca
Follow on Twitter @OLGtoday

PlaySmart.ca
“Know your limit. Play within it.”
Follow on Twitter @PlaySmartOLG

THE ONTARIO PROBLEM GAMBLING HELPLINE 1-888-230-3505

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CONTACT:
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1-888-946-6716

 TORONTO, ON – Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has selected Niagara Falls Entertainment Partners to design, build, finance and maintain a new Niagara Falls Entertainment Centre (NFEC).

This is another important step as OLG continues to partner with the private sector to enhance the entertainment experience for customers.

On July 11, 2017, OLG announced that Niagara Falls Entertainment Partners was the preferred proponent for the project, pending the close of financial and commercial transactions. Those transactions were completed today.

The entertainment centre will be located adjacent to Fallsview Casino Resort, next to the Hilton Hotel and connected to the casino by an enclosed pedestrian walkway.

The project is expected to result in an initial capital investment of over $130 million and create more than 800 direct jobs associated with the construction and ongoing maintenance and operations of the facility.

The NFEC is a critical part of the modernization of the Niagara casinos. The facility will accommodate larger concerts, shows and attractions and is expected to draw more visitors to the City of Niagara Falls and OLG’s Niagara casinos.

OLG expects the new entertainment centre to open in mid-2019. It will be operated by the service provider OLG selects for the Niagara Gaming Bundle.

OLG is the Ontario government agency that delivers gaming entertainment in a socially responsible manner. OLG conducts and manages gaming facilities, the sale of province-wide lottery games, PlayOLG Internet gaming, the delivery of bingo and other electronic gaming products at Charitable Gaming Centres and is helping to build a more sustainable horse racing industry in Ontario. Since 1975, OLG has provided nearly $44 billion to the Province and the people of Ontario. These payments to the province support the operation of hospitals, amateur sport through the Quest for Gold program, local and provincial charities and problem gambling prevention, treatment and research.

All for Here – 100 per cent of OLG’s proceeds are invested in Ontario
olg.ca
Follow on Twitter @OLGtoday

PlaySmart.ca
“Know your limit. Play within it.”
Follow on Twitter @PlaySmartOLG

THE ONTARIO PROBLEM GAMBLING HELPLINE 1-888-230-3505

Disponible en français

CONTACT:
OLG MEDIA RELATIONS
1-888-946-6716