Prediction Markets: New Gambling Addiction Trap

0:00It's April 30th. Welcome in. This is Canada News Today, where local news meets AI. I'm Corey with the story. Two gambling addicts, a soccer coach and a tax accountant, self-excluded from sportsbooks to fight their habits, but they relapsed hard on prediction. Markets like Kalshi and Polymarket. These platforms lay users bet on yes or no outcomes for events, from elections to sports, and both guys said it gave them the same rush as traditional betting. The coach blew through $2,000 paychecks and days, while the accountant chased losses after personal setbacks. Prediction markets are exploding, especially with sports bets. Kalshi saw over $2 billion in volume, on this year's NCAA man's basketball, tournament alone. Unlike sportsbooks, where the house sets odds, these are peer-to-peer trades with fees on contracts, and operators push for stock-like regulation under federal law. But states and sportsbooks want them treated as gambling, sparking lawsuits nationwide.

1:02Experts treating addicts see no real difference in the therapy room. The anticipation, chasing losses, secrecy, it's all the same cycle. One doctor called it, different doors to the same addictive room. Treatment pros note younger folks, even 18-20-year-olds, face big risks since these markets are open in states without legal sports, betting, like Texas and California. Officers are stepping up with voluntary opt-outs. Kalshi launched one this March, and polymarkets joining a national self-exclusion push. But it's, fragmented, no tie-in with state systems, no solid research yet, on addiction impacts, but docs report more patients hooked on multiple sites, easy access fueling the fire. As legal battles rage and volumes could hit $1.1 trillion yearly in sports contracts, these guys are rebuilding through groups like gamblers, anonymous, staying vigilant against the pool. The wild west feel leaves everyone watching close for better safeguards.