The province is providing $1,015,000 for a collaborative project between the Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre and Canadian Bank Note, which develops online lottery systems.
“Our government’s investment in the innovative and digital technology sector through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund is creating well-paying jobs in our city,” Sault MPP David Orazietti said in a news release. “This partnership is a unique opportunity to support the diversification of our local economy in innovative and new technologies and builds on the progress we are making in this sector.”
The project will see the development of an e-bingo platform, as well as the creation of a game development kit that will allow third-party vendors to develop play-on-demand (PoD) games that operate on the e-bingo platform; the creation of three PoD games for Ontario Lottery and Gaming; and the creation of three PoD games for SSMIC.
Total funding for the project is $2,085,510. The breakdown includes $1,015,000 from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corp., $854,377 from Canadian Bank Note, $150,000 from the City of Sault Ste. Marie, $56,133 from the Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre, and $10,000 from Destiny Sault Ste. Marie.
"We are excited to collaborate with a global company like Canadian Bank Note and greatly appreciate the support from NOHFC for this project," said Tom Vair, the innovation centre’s executive director. "It is great to see the expansion of Sault Ste. Marie's digital gaming sector and we hope to build on this momentum in the future."
Ten new local jobs will be created through the collaboration, and there is potential for additional jobs in the future.
