• Lottomatica’s GTECH Subsidiary Notified By The New Jersey Division Of Purchase And Property Of Its Intent To Award GTECH New Online/Instant System Lottery Contract. Full Story
• Report: French Betting Privatization. Full Story
• Lottery To Celebrate 23rd Anniversary. Full Story
• Florida Lottery's Holiday Millionaire Raffle Makes Nine New Millionaires Before 2009! Full Story
• Simulated Version of Hold-Em Scratch Game Available Online Free to Play. Prizes Awarded Daily. Full Story
• Florida Lottery Congratulates Universal Orlando Resort on Becoming The New Home For Powerball Drawings. Full Story
• Lottery Celebrates 5th Anniversary With New Games, More Prizes. Full Story
• Lottery Receives Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. Full Story
• WMS Secures Nevada Regulatory OK for Wage-Net Networked Gaming System. Full Story
• IGT Names New CFO. Full Story

Lottomatica’s GTECH Subsidiary Notified By The New Jersey Division Of Purchase And Property Of Its Intent To Award GTECH New Online/Instant System Lottery Contract

Expected Revenues To GTECH Of Approximately $105 Million Over The Seven-Year Contract Term

ROME, Italy – PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island (December 29, 2008) – Lottomatica S.p.A.’s wholly-owned subsidiary GTECH Corporation was notified by the New Jersey Division of Purchase and Property of its intent to award GTECH a new contract to provide a new online/instant lottery system, terminals, a variety of self-service products, an IP-communications network, and ongoing services, following a competitive procurement. The proposed seven-year integrated services contract includes three one-year extension options.

The New Jersey Lottery estimates the total value of the contract to be approximately $105 million over the contract period. GTECH expects to finalize a contract with the Lottery in January 2009, subject to a protest period which ends on January 15, 2009.

GTECH President and CEO Jaymin B. Patel.

“New Jersey is one of the top-performing lotteries in the world, and we are pleased to be able to continue the partnership we began with them nearly 25 years ago,” said GTECH President and CEO Jaymin B. Patel. “Over the next several years, GTECH looks forward to working together with the Lottery to apply industry-wide best practices, provide added convenience for players and retailers through additional self-service lottery products and the benefits of evolving technology that includes further enhancement of their lottery system, terminal offering, and communications network, and the deployment of new electronic POS messaging devices.”

“All of this combined gives players better access to the games they like to play, a more efficient lottery environment for retailers, and maximizes revenues for education for a Lottery that has done an outstanding job with online lottery and instants portfolio growth, making them one of the most profitable lotteries in the world,” continued Mr. Patel.

Under the proposed new contract terms, GTECH expects to provide the New Jersey Lottery with a comprehensive set of solutions including a central system conversion to GTECH’s Enterprise Series™, approximately 6,200 new online lottery terminals, and an IP-communications network. In addition, the Company expects to install 4,100 Ticket-Scan™ machines, GTECH’s self-service ticket checkers allowing players secure access when identifying winning tickets; deploy its Enterprise Series MultiMedia player messaging and transition display technology with 1,500 flat-panel monitors; and install 1,500 Instant Ticket Vending Machines, 500 of which will be GTECH’s Lottery to Go™ and 1,000 Instant to Go™ 24-bin units. Additionally, GTECH will provide telemarketing, warehousing, and distribution services for the Lottery’s instant tickets.

GTECH will continue to provide ongoing services including installation and maintenance of the central system, terminals, and communications network, as well as field service and retailer training.

GTECH will also provide the Lottery with a full range of marketing consultancy services in game product planning, sales analysis capabilities, and through market surveys and research, and retailer network reviews.

“GTECH is privileged to work hand-in-hand with the Lottery providing a holistic approach to the marketplace, through player and retailer trend analyses, and learning from our global footprint and our New Media subsidiaries who are well-versed in interactive offerings and exciting new game content,” said Mr. Patel.

GTECH has been the online lottery technology and services provider to the New Jersey Lottery since 1984. The New Jersey Lottery ranks eighth in the world in terms of total lottery sales. In its most recent fiscal year, the New Jersey Lottery recorded sales of more than $2.5 billion. Since its inception in 1970, the New Jersey Lottery has contributed more than $16.4 billion to state education and institutions.

About Lottomatica S.p.A

Lottomatica is a market leader in the Italian gaming industry and one of the largest Lottery operators in the world based on total wagers and, through its subsidiary GTECH Corporation, is a leading provider of lottery and gaming technology solutions worldwide. Together, the Company is the only vertically integrated full service lottery company. Lottomatica is majority owned by De Agostini, which belongs to a century-old publishing and media services group. Lottomatica is listed on the Stock Exchange of Milan under the trading symbol “LTO”. In 2007, the Company had approximately €1.7 billion in revenues and 5,900 employees in over 50 countries when combined with GTECH.

For further information:

Report: French Betting Privatization

THE NETHERLANDS (December 29, 2008). All you have to know for the privatization of the two French betting monopolies.

The new privatization report "All you have to know for the privatization of the two French monopolies - PMU for horse racing and Francaise des Jeux for the lotteries" is now available.

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The basic information will be continuously updated by our researchers Rob van der Gaast and Jolanda van Til. This new process, of daily updates about the latest developments, has proven to be very popular with buyers of our previous reports, such as the "Privatization of the National Lottery – Milli Piyango", and "Fixed Chance Betting Tender".

GamblingAnalysts.eu will again supply buyers of the new privatization report on the French monopolies with complete and updated information. If you have any special requests, please do not hesitate to contact us.

For all legal matters we cooperate with ULYS, the international Law Firm with offices in Belgium and France. The well known lawyers firm, managed by Thibault Verbiest and his associates Anouk Hattab-Abrahams and Perrine Pelletier, are also partners of the reputable "International Masters of Gaming Law" network.

France will begin issuing authorization for online betting operators from the second half of 2009 on.Van der Gaast is co-author of MECN’s “Privatisation of state-controlled gambling operators' - Only hype or a reality in the near future?" which has been recognized by the international gambling industry as the leading report on gambling privatizations.

The last privatization report on the Turkish Lottery had more than 90 pages. This will be also the case for the French privatization, as we are the leader in privatizations.

Rob van der Gaast may be contacted via: Robvan@GamblingAnalysts.eu,

http://www.GamblingAnalysts.eu, http://www.Gambling-Privatisation.com

About GamblingAnalysts.eu

GamblingAnalysts.eu is member of the Primary Insight Expert Consulting Network, a wholly-owned subsidiary of JPMorgan Chase & Co. We advice and work for companies as, Majedie Asset Management, Global Betting and Gaming Consultants, Novamedia (Postcode lottery), QLot Consultants, Media & Entertainment Consulting Network (MECN), Privatization Information Center (PIC), da ma cai, Pan Malaysian Pools Sdn. Bhd, etc.

The last eight years Rob and his team have executed all the major scientific gambling researches on Europe. Rob van der Gaast with his crew publicized hundreds of articles on the gambling industry in Europe. For the Privatization of the Turkish National Lottery and the ten year Sports betting license in Turkey, Rob van der Gaast and Jolanda van Til, wrote two in-dept reports. Direct and indirect GamblingAnalysts.eu was involved in the Turkish Privatization.

Van der Gaast is co-author of the 'Privatisation of state-controlled gambling operators' and was co-author of several versions of the 'Internet Gambling Report'. Above that he conducted the reports: 'The Gaming and Lottery Files', 'European Research Report: Internet Gaming in Europe' and the '4th Edition of the Global Gambling Report’ (European segment), the most authoritative source of information in the gambling industry'.

Rob is also co-author of MECN’s “Local expert insights - “The Balkan Gambling Markets Report on the gambling markets in Greece, Turkey, Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Serbia, and Montenegro.

Above that, Rob van der Gaast writes articles for IGamingNews (the gambling industry's premier e-magazine) as European correspondent, Lottery Insider, ISA-CASINOS, etc.

Lottery To Celebrate 23rd Anniversary

Official Says W.Va. Lottery Sales Have Topped $735M

CHARLESTON, West Virginia (December 29, 2008) -- The West Virginia Lottery plans to celebrate its 23rd anniversary on Jan. 9 with cumulative sales of more than $13 billion since the first ticket was sold in 1986, according to Lottery Director John Musgrave.

He said more than $4.5 billion in profits has been transferred to state programs receiving appropriations from the Legislature; more than $3 billion of that figure was generated by Racetrack and Limited Video Lottery games.

Musgrave said traditional game sales total $3.4 billion of cumulative sales, with players receiving $1.95 billion, a figure representing 58 percent. “The law governing traditional games stipulates that players receive at least 45 percent of total revenue.

Approximately $735 million represents sales for the current fiscal year through December, with more than $249 million in profits transferred to the State, Musgrave said. He said that figure would move to $290 million by the end of January, when transfers are completed.

Musgrave announced at the close of the 2008 fiscal year on July 1 that sales had again broken the $1.5 billion sales mark. The figure included $198 million from traditional games, $898 million from Racetrack Video Lottery, $412 million from Limited Video Lottery games, and $45 million from table games.

SOURCE: West Virginia Lottery.

Florida Lottery's Holiday Millionaire Raffle Makes Nine New Millionaires Before 2009!

-- More than 1,000 players win prizes of $500, $5,000 and $50,000

TALLAHASSEE, Florida (December 31, 2008) – The Florida Lottery today held the Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE drawing, randomly selecting 1,031 winning numbers for a total of more than $10 million in prizes. Lottery players with the first nine numbers drawn will receive $1 million each. In addition to the nine one-million-dollar jackpots, the Lottery will also award 10 prizes of $50,000, 12 prizes of $5,000 and 1,000 prizes of $500.

Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE sold out on Wednesday, December 24. The $20 tickets went on sale Friday November 14, and were to remain on sale through Tuesday, Dec. 30 or until the limited number of tickets sold out.

All Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE winning numbers will be available on the Florida Lottery’s Web site, floridalottery.com, by approximately 3 p.m. today, by telephone at (850) 921-PLAY and at Florida Lottery retailers statewide.

Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE prizes must be claimed within 180 days from the draw date. Players must have their winning ticket or cash prize coupon in hand to claim a prize. The $500 prizes may be claimed at any Florida Lottery retailer and the $5,000 and $50,000 prizes may be claimed at any Florida Lottery district office; however, the $1 million prizes must be claimed at Lottery headquarters in Tallahassee. Information about filing a claim may be obtained by calling (850) 487-7707 or visiting www.flalottery.com.

This year’s Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE is the fourth MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE™ game offered by the Florida Lottery. The odds of winning $1 million in the MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE game were 1:111,111 – the best ever in Florida Lottery history.

This year’s Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE generated $7.9 million in transfers to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF).

Since 1988, the Florida Lottery has contributed more than $19 billion to the EEFT, benefiting our students and schools, as well as funding more than one million Bright Futures scholarships. By two-to-one margin, Florida voters in 1986 approved a constitutional amendment authorizing the state to operate a lottery for the purpose of generating significant additional moneys for education.

CONTACT: Connie Barnes, (850) 487-7727.

Simulated Version of Hold-Em Scratch Game Available Online Free to Play. Prizes Awarded Daily

MINNESOTA, USA (December 29, 2008) -- Fans of the Lottery’s popular Minnesota Hold-Em Championship Poker scratch games will soon be able to play a simulated version of a Hold-Em game against computerized players for free!

The newest version of the Minnesota Hold-Em Championship Poker scratch game launches on Dec. 30. On that same day, a simulated version launches on the Lottery’s Players Club Web site (luckymn.com).

From Dec. 30 – June 8, 2009, when players log on and play the virtual Hold-Em game, they are automatically entered into the grand prize drawing for the chance to win a trip to Las Vegas — valued at more than $4,500. Players also have the chance to win poker packages, which include a Hold-Em poker table and poker chip set valued at more than $400 each.

The player who has the highest chip total at the end of every day (midnight) during the promotion will win a Lottery prize pack (in the event of a tie, a drawing will be conducted to determine the winner). Players may only win a prize pack once per week and no more than three times for the duration of the promotion.

“Our virtual online Hold-Em game is a fun way to teach players how to play this popular card game — and to help them know if they have won a cash prize on their Minnesota Hold-Em Championship Poker scratch ticket,” said Sales and Marketing Director John Mellein.

Official rules are available at luckymn.com. Registration for the Players Club is free and takes just a couple of minutes.

Lottery players must be 18 years of age or older. Please play responsibly. If you or someone you know needs help with a gambling problem, call (800) 333-HOPE.

Visit www.mnlottery.com for more information about the Minnesota State Lottery. Players can also get the winning numbers 24 hours a day by calling (651) 634-1111.

SOURCE: Minnesota Lottery.

Florida Lottery Congratulates Universal Orlando Resort on Becoming The New Home For Powerball Drawings

TALLAHASSEE, Florida (January 2, 2009) -- Beginning Wednesday, January 7, 2009, POWERBALL® drawings will be broadcast from Sound Stage 19 at Universal Orlando Resort - just in time for the launch of the multi-state lottery game in the sunshine state. The POWERBALL drawings will continue to take place at 10:59 p.m., Eastern Time on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

"We are excited that Florida will host the POWERBALL drawings from our very own Universal Orlando Resort," said Governor Charlie Crist. "The Florida Lottery's participation in this exciting multi-state game is another important step in furthering Florida's commitment to advancing the educational opportunities for all of Florida's students."

The January 7th POWERBALL drawing will be the first to include the Florida Lottery. The agency announced the decision to join the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) and add POWERBALL to its portfolio of games in July 2008, making it the 30th state to join MUSL and the last state lottery to join a multi-state game. POWERBALL sales in Florida are expected to raise millions of additional dollars for education. Tickets go on sale in Florida on Sunday, January 4, 2009.

"The Florida Lottery congratulates POWERBALL and Universal Orlando for this unprecedented partnership within the lottery industry," said Florida Lottery Secretary Leo DiBenigno. "Universal Orlando has been a great partner to the Florida Lottery in the past, and now lottery players across the country will benefit from the partnership between these two mega entertainment brands."

Universal Studios Florida Production Group, in conjunction with MUSL, will produce the twice-weekly drawings, which will be broadcast to nearly 100 television stations nationwide. MUSL is a government-benefit, non-profit association entirely owned and operated by the 32 member lotteries, including the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Its Board of Directors is comprised of lottery directors from each of the member lotteries. POWERBALL is the association's best known game.

"This is a great opportunity for Universal Orlando's production group and for the entire Central Florida production community to showcase our ability to produce a national-level show," said Universal Studios Florida Production Group General Manager and Vice President Pamela Tuscany-Warren. "We look forward to working with POWERBALL to elevate the show to an entirely new level."

Universal Orlando Resort has created some of the world’s most innovative theme park attractions based on pop culture's most compelling films and stories. Guests experience two exciting theme parks - Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure as well as Universal CityWalk, a 30-acre restaurant, shopping and nighttime entertainment complex; and three magnificently themed on-site Loews hotels - the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel and the Loews Royal Pacific Resort.  Flagship experiences featured in the theme parks include "The Simpsons Ride," "Revenge of the Mummy - The Ride," "The Incredible Hulk Coaster" and "The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man." More information is available at www.universalorlando.com.

For information about the Universal Studio Florida Production Group, visit the Web site at www.universalstudios.com/studio/florida

About the Florida Lottery (www.flalottery.com)

Florida voters, by a two-to-one margin, approved a constitutional amendment in 1986 authorizing the state to operate a lottery for the purpose of generating significant additional moneys for education. Since the Lottery's inception, the agency has contributed more than $19 billion to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund. Today, Floridians continue to show their support by purchasing in excess of $4 billion in Lottery products per year. For more information about the Florida Lottery, its games and its contributions to education, visit www.flalottery.com.

CONTACT: Jacqueline Barreiros, (850) 487-7727.

Lottery Celebrates 5th Anniversary With New Games, More Prizes

“FreePlay” will give free LOTTO PLUS quick pick ticket with every Powerball ticket purchase of $5 or more!

NASHVILLE, Tennessee (January 2, 2009) -- The Tennessee Lottery is celebrating its fifth anniversary this month with a variety of new ways for players to have fun, win prizes … and add to the $1.3 billion generated for education.

The anniversary menu includes:

Sunday, Jan. 4: Changes to Powerball that will mean bigger jackpots and more cash prizes.

Monday, Jan. 5: A “FreePlay” promotion that will run through Jan. 31. Players will receive a free LOTTO PLUS Quick Pick ticket with every Powerball ticket purchase of $5 or more.

Tuesday, Jan. 6: “5th Anniversary Celebration” instant ticket game that offers a chance to win up to $100,000 in addition to other cash prizes.

Tuesday, Jan. 20: Official five-year anniversary of the Tennessee Lottery.

“What better way to celebrate five great years than by continuing the momentum that has helped us raise $1.3 billion for education,” said Rebecca Hargrove, President and CEO of the Tennessee Lottery. “We’re proud of how far we’ve come and are looking forward to another five years of creating a brighter future for all Tennesseans.”

Beginning Monday, the Lottery is offering a “FreePlay” promotion that will run through January 31. Players will receive a free LOTTO PLUS Quick Pick ticket with every Powerball ticket purchase of $5 or more. LOTTO PLUS is Tennessee’s own lotto-style game with a jackpot of $11.2 million for tonight’s drawing.

To play LOTTO PLUS, just select any six numbers from 1 to 44, or choose Quick Pick to let a computer randomly pick any or all of the numbers. Each play is $1. If 3, 4, 5, or 6 of those numbers are drawn in any order, the player wins. If no ticket matches all six numbers drawn, the jackpot increases a minimum of $100,000 for the next drawing. As with Powerball and Pick 5, if more than one ticket matches all of the numbers drawn, the jackpot will be split among the ticket holders.

Lotto Plus also has a Plus Feature, which will multiply any non-jackpot winnings by 2 to 5 times for an extra dollar per play. Drawings are held every Tuesday and Friday at 10 p.m. CT/11 p.m. ET. Please note that FreePlay is unavailable during the LOTTO PLUS draw break on Tuesdays and Fridays from 8:59 p.m. CT until 10 p.m. CT

In addition to FreePlay, the Lottery is announcing changes to the popular Powerball game, which were made after Florida chose to join the multi-state game. With the addition of millions of players, the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) and its member states created changes to the game that will result in the following features:

• Starting jackpot of $20 million (largest in the world)
• Average jackpot is expected to increase from $95.5 million to $141 million
• Any winner who plays Power Play and matches all five white ball numbers will win $1 million, regardless of the multiplier selected. In Tennessee alone, there have been 181 tickets sold since inception that matched all five white ball numbers. (As always, all set prizes and Power Play prizes may be reduced if claims exceed available prize fund.)
• Four white ball numbers will be added, which means players will select five numbers from 1 to 59.
• Three red Powerball numbers will be subtracted, which means players will choose one red number from 1 to 39.
• The overall odds of the game have been reduced to add more than 3 million extra prizes won per year.
• Overall odds to win a prize are 1 in 35.
• Odds to win the jackpot are 1 in 195.2 million

For more details about these and other games, see your nearest Lottery retailer, visit www.tnlottery.com or call Player Services at 1-877-7TN-PLAY. In the Nashville area, call 254-4946.

About the Tennessee Education Lottery

The Tennessee Education Lottery operates entirely from the revenue it generates through the sale of its products. Net proceeds from sales of Lottery tickets, currently averaging over $5 million per week, fund specific education programs, including college scholarships, pre-kindergarten and after-school programs. Since the Tennessee Lottery began selling tickets on Jan. 20, 2004, it has raised more than $1.3 billion for these programs, and returned to Tennessee communities more than $2.7 billion in prizes and nearly $308 million in retailer commissions. For more information, please visit www.tnlottery.com.

CONTACT: Kym Gerlock, 615-324-6556 Office, 615-604-2827 Mobile.

Lottery Receives Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting

LOUISIANA, USA (December 29, 2008) -- President Rose Hudson announced the Louisiana Lottery Corporation has received the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting in recognition of the Lottery's Basic, Supplemental and Optional Savings Retirement Plans by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA). 

"This is a tremendous accomplishment for a corporation that has built its foundation on maintaining public trust and integrity," said Hudson. "I sincerely appreciate the Lottery's accounting team for continuing to reach these high standards of excellence."

According to the GFOA, the Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting.  This recognition represents a significant accomplishment by a government entity and its management.

The association is a nonprofit group with offices in Chicago and Washington, D.C., and serves about 16,000 government financial professionals.

About The Louisiana Lottery Corporation

The Louisiana Lottery Corporation was created in 1991 as a quasi-state entity to generate revenue for the state through the sale of a variety of entertaining lottery products.  According to the Louisiana constitution, 35 percent of all sales are transferred to the state treasury to be used for the Minimum Foundation Program that funds public education in Louisiana. The Lottery's 2008 fiscal year revenue topped $376.7 million with more than $131.8 million transferred to the state.  Current financial statements are available on the Lottery's Web site, www.louisianalottery.com.

SOURCE: Louisiana Lottery.

WMS Secures Nevada Regulatory OK for Wage-Net Networked Gaming System

OAKLAND, California (December 30, 2008) -- WMS Industries Inc., a company in the design, manufacture and marketing of gaming machines to the global gaming and casino industry, said that it has become the first company to receive approval from the Nevada Gaming Commission for a networked gaming system and remote configuration and download application utilizing the Gaming Standards Association's (GSA) G2S protocol.

The approval for WMS' Wage-Net (Wide Area Game Enhanced Network) system follows completion of a successful Nevada field trial at the Bellagio Las Vegas casino and hotel that began on July 31. At its public meeting in Las Vegas, the Nevada Gaming Commission accepted the recommendation for Wage-Net's approval from the Nevada Gaming Control Board. The Commission now is expected to issue a letter of notification of its approval to WMS.

The Wage-Net networked gaming system, designed to comply with GSA's standards, is a suite of multiple system applications and platform technologies that will increase the operational efficiency and revenue generating capabilities of gaming floors at casinos.

Justin Beltram, Vice President of Slot Operations at the Bellagio said, "WMS's Wage-Net system was intuitively easy to install and performed all the capabilities that were expected. The WMS team provided excellent support and service throughout the entire field trial. We look forward to participating with WMS in future trials as they enhance the system and add new features and functionality."

"To be the first company to receive this approval from the Nevada regulators for a networked gaming system based on open architecture and that is fully compliant with GSA's G2S standards is a testament to WMS and our employees' extraordinary commitment to innovation and development excellence. With this approval, WMS takes another important step in leading the industry into the networked gaming future," said Orrin J. Edidin, President of WMS. "Working collaboratively with the forward-thinking and totally supportive team at the Bellagio during the successful field trial was an outstanding experience.

"This approval represents the first component in our Wage-Net system," Edidin added. "We are readying additional capabilities to offer customers an even richer solution of applications and products for their gaming floor, including our Portal Technology Platform and Account Based Wagering System, both of which were demonstrated last month in Las Vegas at the Global Gaming Exposition, as we proceed on our path to ultimate commercialization of the Wage-Net system in fiscal 2010."

Edidin continued, "The Wage-Net system is designed to be fully interoperable with all other systems applications that use the GSA protocol and that are based on open system architecture. We reaffirm and continue to demonstrate our support for Freedom of Choice by our customers and the benefits derived from a truly open systems architecture and standards-based interoperability at the protocol, application and hardware level. Importantly, the Wage-Net system demonstrates yet another WMS innovative product offering that highlights our long-term dedication and passion to creating products that deliver heightened entertainment experiences for casino patrons and high-earning solutions for casino operators."

Going forward, WMS expects to engage in additional field trials of the Wage-Net system in Nevada that will include unique platform technologies and suite of applications that focus specifically on players' gaming experiences and how the use of network architecture can enable whole new levels of player excitement and personalization.

WMS is engaged in serving the gaming industry worldwide by designing, manufacturing and marketing video and reel-spinning gaming machines, video lottery terminals, and in gaming operations, which consists of the placement of leased participation gaming machines in legal gaming venues.

The Gaming Standards Association (GSA) is an international trade association that creates benefits for gaming manufacturers, suppliers, operators and regulators.

SOURCE: WMS Industries Inc.

IGT Names New CFO

LAS VEGAS, Nevada, USA (December 30, 2008) -- International Game Technology (NYSE: IGT) has announced the promotion of Patrick W. Cavanaugh to the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. The promotion will be effective upon receipt of any required regulatory approvals. Cavanaugh was most recently IGT's Vice President of Corporate Finance and Investor Relations.

"Pat brings to the table a unique combination of extensive gaming industry experience as a financial executive, familiarity with Wall Street, and intimate knowledge of IGT," said TJ Matthews, IGT Chairman and CEO. "He has played an integral role in the financial management of the Company since the departure of the previous CFO in 2007, and I look forward to Pat's future contributions and leadership in his new role."

Cavanaugh, age 48, joined IGT in April 2004. Prior to joining the Company, he was Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Acres Gaming, Incorporated, a slot information systems company acquired by IGT in October 2003. Cavanaugh also previously served as Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer for Oasis Technologies, Inc. and Casino Data Systems, both of which were focused on supplying the gaming industry with innovative systems solutions.

Cavanaugh is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Nevada Society of Certified Public Accountants. He began his career with the international accounting firm of KPMG where he rose to the position of Senior Audit Manager. He holds a B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting from Montana State University.

International Game Technology (www.IGT.com) is a global company specializing in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and sales of computerized gaming machines and systems products.

SOURCE International Game Technology

CONTACT: Ed Rogich, VP Marketing of International Game Technology, +1-702-669-8777