I-Lottery Update - July 2005

Finnish Lottery Introduces Age Limits to Games

Veikkaus, the Finnish National Lottery, announced last week that it will introduce age limits to all its games by September of this year.

The general age limit for buying Veikkaus' games will be 15 years, while the age limit for playing via the Internet, will be 18 years.

The company said it was introducing the age limits to stay in line with changes taking place in the gaming industry.

"Our objective is to protect consumers, especially children and young people, in a situation where the risks of gaming are increasing, as the game supply and event frequency are growing and electronic gaming channels are used more and more widely," the company said in a statement.

UK Lottery Winner Back in Court

Michael Andrew Carroll was back in court last month, for the fifth time in two weeks, just two and half years after winning one of the richest jackpots in UK Lotto history.

Carroll grabbed tabloid headlines as the King of Chavs after winning £9.7 million on the national lottery.

The money didn't escape him from the UK legal system though as last month he became the richest man to be given an Asbo (Anti Social Behaviour Order).

Since he won the jackpot two-and-a-half years ago wearing an electronic tag, Carroll bought 80 cars, several mansions, and invested £1 million in Rangers football club.

His latest visit to the courthouse came after he decided to cruise through Downham Market in a black jeep lit by blue neon lights taking pot shots at cars and shops with a ball-bearing loaded catapult.

When he was arrested, Carroll admitted he had done the same thing on 29 other occasions, and wrote "sorry" on his police form. He was given 240 hours community service, ordered to pay £3,628.97 compensation and put on his first Asbo.

Branson Contemplating Third Bid for National Lottery

Richard Branson is reportedly planning a third bid to run the UK Lottery.

The billionaire Virgin chief hopes to win the next lotto license in 2009 after failing in 1994 and 2002.

Branson's 'Peoples Lottery' was beaten by Camelot when the first lottery license was granted in 1994. He spent £20 million trying to win the second license in 2002. But Camelot won the day again.

In an interview with London's 'Mirror' newspaper Sir Richard said he now believes that a new licensing system will help him triumph when the lottery next comes up for auction in 2009.

Irish Lottery Going Mobile

The Irish National Lottery announced last week plans to introduce a mobile version of the lottery in the near future.

The company said it would also look at creating a interactive Web site where tickets can be sold and redeemed. The National Lottery is required to prohibit anyone under the age of 18 to play.

Lottery director Ray Bates said they are security systems and procedures in place to cover the issue of "physical access," based on best practices in successful state lotteries worldwide to prevent minors from accessing the games online or via mobile phones.

Intralot's Profits up 19 Percent for Quarter

Intralot, a supplier for online lottery systems, said its first quarter profits for the year were up 19 percent from 2004 levels.

Net profit, calculated under international financial reporting standards, rose to $26.12 million, up 19 percent from the first quarter of 2004.

Revenue jumped 57 percent to euro117.5 million, from euro74.7 million, with help from foreign subsidiaries.

Total international revenue rose to euro87.5 million, or 74.4 percent of total group sales.

Greek Lottery Placement on Hold

Hoping to have OPAP, the Greek lottery, placed by mid-July, officials with the Greek government, the largest shareholder in the firm, put the placement on hold after hitting some snags.

At the center of the issue is whether or not Greek football teams will participate in Stihima, the leading product for OPAP. The snag could postpone the placement until this fall, once it is clear if the football teams will be participating, which the state is hoping to achieve by 2007.

Mobile Services Added in China

The Guangdong Welfare Lottery started telephone services last month in Guangzhou.

The new addition means that Guangdong "Go Tone" users of China Mobile can buy lottery tickets through their mobile phones.

The telephone services are widely used in Europe, Hong Kong and some provinces in China.

The operator is hoping that the better and faster service will attract more people to buy tickets.

Czech Lottery Profits Fall

The biggest lottery and betting company in the Czech republic, Sazka a.s., saw its revenues fall to Kc8.5 billion last year from Kc9.3 billion in 2003.

Net profit was also down in 2004, dropping to Kc1.32 billion from Kc1.42 billion the year before. But funds to support sports and other events were no affected, according to spokesman Zdenek Zikmund.

Lower revenues resulted from lower demand for the Sportka lottery. Rising debts of households have also an adverse effect on Sazka's performance, the company said.