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LOTTERY
INSIDER
is brought to you with the compliments
of
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| Vol. 30 No. 7 -- Monday February 14, 2005 |
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MASSACHUSETTS, USA (February 3, 2005) -- State Treasurer Timothy P. Cahill today announced that the Massachusetts State Lottery’s sales for the first half of Fiscal Year 2005 rose 5.9% over the same six month period in Fiscal Year 2004. The Lottery had sales of $2.2 billion for the months of July through December, surpassing FY04 mid-year revenues of $2.1 billion. The Lottery enjoyed a record-breaking year in FY04 with $4.3 billion in revenues.
"The Massachusetts Lottery is on pace to have its best year ever," said Treasurer Cahill. "The true winners are the 351 cities and towns of the Commonwealth which directly benefit from Lottery sales. In FY04, the Lottery returned more than $700 million in local aid to the Commonwealth, and I have every indication to expect that number to rise in FY05." Treasurer Cahill, who serves as the Lottery Chairman, credits a number of factors for the successful start in FY05, including an increase in instant ticket sales. So far this fiscal year, instant ticket sales have grown by more than $183 million. He also noted that Mega Millions, the new Cash WinFall game, the Numbers Game and Megabucks have enjoyed robust sales this year. The Lottery posted its highest-ever sales of $4.38 billion in FY’04 after launching several lucrative initiatives which included the successful release of two new $10 tickets and enhancements to Keno operations, as well as the return of Lottery advertising after a seven-year absence. Additional sales-focused initiatives in FY05 are helping fuel the impressive sales numbers this year. The current Lottery sponsorship of the Red Sox World Series Tour is also expected to help the Lottery not only communicate its mission to support local aid, but also attract new players. "We are extremely pleased with the revenue figures for the first six months of FY05," said Massachusetts Lottery Executive Director Joseph C. Sullivan. "Increases in Lottery sales translate into more local aid dollars that can be used to enhance the overall quality of life in the Commonwealth’s 351 communities. We will continue to focus on offering exciting games that our players will enjoy and further bolster our sales." SOURCE: Massachusetts Lottery.
SEATTLE, Washington (February 7, 2005) -- Maravilla Software has announced the availability in the market of Loteria Workshop, it is a solution that allows to create and print the game of the traditional Loteria Mexicana and bingo. Loteria Workshop extends the Mexican tradition to the personal computer adapting it to the creativity of the user and the new technology.
The Loteria Mexicana is a game that arrived to Mexico from the Iberian Peninsula in the middle of the XVIII century, in the beginning the loteria was a pastime of the well off classes but as time pass it became a tradition of the Mexican fairs. At present time more than a pastime the loteria has been adapted as a didactic tool and every day more and more artists are using the loteria as a base for their art projects. "The Loteria is a beautiful tradition and one of my objectives is to help to preserve it" said Gilberto Padilla developer of Loteria Workshop who in 1996 developed the Traditional Loteria Mexicana for the Internet a software to chat and to play the game through the network. "This tool promotes the tradition and creativity, and is easy to use" He ad. One of the characteristics of this software is the automatic generation of unduplicated playing boards sets of more than 500 , which assure that each player of Loteria uses a unique playing board, Loteria Workshop is an excellent tool for those who organize matches of Bingo in churches, fairs or kermeses. Besides of having an image editor and a Bingo card generator, it includes 54 images of the traditional Loteria like the mermaid, the rose, the brave one, the watermelon, the barrel, the rooster and more. The capability to integrate one's own images open the possibility to educators to create didactic material based on the Loteria game. Maravilla Software is an emergent software development company. SOURCE: Maravilla Software media release distributed By PRWeb. Loterias PeruGana and D’ Onofrio Present Their New Product for the Summer 2005 in Peru PERU (February 7, 2005) -- Loterias PeruGana (the operator of "La Tinka" the most popular game in Peruvian market) and Helados D’ Onofrio (an ice-cream company which joins Nestle since 1997) presented in common, "D’ Onofrio Rapitinkas" the new product for the summer 2005 at a press conference in Peru, the last week of January. With an investment of US$ 1 million, Helados D’ Onofrio and La Tinka have joined efforts to organize the largest promotion for this summer, which will reward the consumers with instant cash prizes of up to US$8.650. More than 300.000 instant prizes are available while the winners will have a second chance by winning six double (all inclusive) packages to travel to the Carribean Islands, through the draw of Frecuencia Latina (the TV program of La Tinka) every Sunday.
Mr. Pierre Gaillard, the General Manager of Helados D’ Onofrio, stated that: "This promotion seeks to boost the consumption of these traditional brands, now fully renewed, and place emphasis on the single and unique flavour that meets the approval of all the Peruvians. We have chosen Loterias PeruGana, the leader in the Peruvian lottery market, to carry out this ambitious project and I promise that we will continue to impress our consumer with more exciting and innovative products". Mr. Dimitris Karagounis, the CEO of Loterias PeruGana, pointed out that: " The two forces have worked very hard the last four months in order to launch successfully this unique project. I would like to assure our customers that La Tinka will continue to be on the top of the Peruvian lottery market offering fun and great prizes." Helados D´Onofrio for over 107 years, has captivated all Peruvians with a single and unequivocal flavor. And, ever since 1997, the company joined forces with Nestlé, the world’s leading food producer, to offer a product of insurmountable quality. In year 2004, Helados D’Onofrio received the Effie Award to the Classic Trademark, and became one of the three brands most wanted by Peruvians. Loterias PeruGana has 96 % share of the lottery market in Peru and is a major contributor of good causes in the country. SOURCE: Loterias PeruGana. For more information Svenska Spel Goes International STOCKHOLM, Sweden (February 3, 2005) -- Following a board decision Svenska Spel has established a new business area as of this year. Svenska Spel International will focus on commercial cooperation with state controlled or regulated lotteries and gaming operators in Europe and later in other parts of the world. Svenska Spel International will also be responsible for all international contacts and affairs, business visits and contacts with WLA and EL.
The new department will be headed by Mr Jan Stocklassa, who at present lives in the Czech Republic. He has previously worked with MTG AB, Metro AB and the Swedish Trade Council. He will be assisted by Mrs Monica Medvall, who has more than 20 years experience from the Swedish lottery and gaming business and Mr Göran Wessberg, who for many years have been working with international contacts at Svenska Spel. Svenska Spel is a world leader in product development e.g. in sports betting, VLTs and internet/mobile gaming. For further information, please contact: Mr Jan Stocklassa, Vice President International, e-mail: jan.stocklassa@svenskaspel.se or Mrs Monica Medvall, Project Manager, e-mail: monica.medvall@svenskaspel.se SOURCE: Göran Wessberg, editor and consultant to Svenska Spel, e-mail: goran.wessberg@svenskaspel.se EssNet Interactive System Now in Live Operation at Casino PAF on the Åland Islands STOCKHOLM, Sweden (February 8, 2005) -- Ålands Penningautomatförening (PAF) has started commercial operation with new Interactive Video Terminals (IVTs) from EssNet Interactive AB. The terminals are installed at the international Casino PAF in Mariehamn and they are loaded with world leading slot and casino games. Both the modern cabinets and the graphically superior games seem to have appealed to the casino customers, who had very positive comments after the first encounter with the new machines. The progressive jackpot, linked to the EssNet Interactive games, presented on large plasma screens throughout the casino, also attracted a lot of attention and the hunt for the big wins started right away. The pilot implementation of the IVT System in Mariehamn is hopefully a step towards a full-scale launch onboard cruise liners during the fall of 2005. "The contract with EssNet Interactive was signed less than two months ago, and I’m very happy that we have come so far in such a short time. We are in the first phase of this very exciting project and I hope that we will see a fruitful cooperation between our two companies," says Karl Gustaf Pietilä, Vice President of Ålands Penningautomatförening.
"Our IVT System has been customized and configured with the help of PAF’s experienced personnel in order to meet the tough demands onboard cruise liners. We have in a very short time accomplished a lot together and I’m looking forward to a long-term business relation with the most powerful gaming operator in the Baltic Sea. The PAF project is a good example of how fast we can adopt our system to a customer's unique requirements," says Jan Bohult, Managing Director of EssNet Interactive AB. Ålands Penningautomatförening, founded in 1967, is an association governed by public law and with the goal to raise money for the public good by offering gaming to the public. PAF has the licence to arrange gaming on the Åland Islands, on board ships and on the Internet. The gaming operation of PAF includes service of slot machines, casino gaming, betting, bingo, lottery, tote betting and amusement games. EssNet Interactive AB is a joint venture between EssNet AB (55%), Boss Media AB (35%) and Tattersall's (10%). EssNet Interactive provides turnkey Interactive Video Terminal (IVT) Systems and world leading products for client server based gaming operation. SOURCE: EssNet media release. For additional information please contact: Jan Bohult, Managing Director, EssNet Interactive AB, telephone: +46 8 702 57 00 or +46 70 530 10 75, e-mail: jan.bohult@interactive.essnet.se Mega Millions is Coming to California SACRAMENTO, California, USA (February 8, 2005) -- Today the California Lottery Commission approved the California Lottery entering a multi-state lottery game and selected the multi-state lottery game known as Mega Millions. The Commission voted 3-0 to approve joining Mega Millions. "Today we become part of Mega Millions," said Chon Gutierrez, Interim Director of the California State Lottery. "We are excited to enter into this partnership and look forward to providing our players with what they have asked for, jackpots in the $200-$300 million range." California has been considering joining a multi-state lottery game for more than a year. Exploring joining a multi-state game was an integral part of the Lottery's 2004/05 Business Plan and the California Performance Review also recommended the state join a multi-state game. The California Lottery Commission and executive staff came to the consensus that joining a multi-state game would be in the best interest of the California Lottery, its players, retailers and the state of California.
Mega Millions was the best match for California because of several reasons: Most importantly there will be more frequent big jackpots including a greater probability of jackpots greater than $200 million. Also, there will be a better chance of increasing Lottery sales because joining this game would double the number of days with a big jackpot game. In researching states that have recently joined Mega Millions, sales are up 20%. Finally, the other members of Mega Millions are more similar to California as they are also large, urban states that already have a strong in-state Lotto game. Mega Millions' draws occur on Tuesday and Friday nights. It was originally called The Big Game and the first draw was on September 6, 1996. It was one of the first multi-state lotteries to be introduced and it was created by smaller states to generate large jackpots but currently, many larger states are part of Mega Millions' 11 states that take part, including New York, Texas, Ohio and Georgia. The other states involved in Mega Millions are Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia and Washington. Multi-state lotteries usually offer larger jackpots than most individual state lotteries, as evidenced by the numerous media stories highlighting the enormous jackpots won by players of multi-state lotteries across the country. Mega Millions' highest jackpot occurred in May of 2002 when it reached $363 million. In comparison, the California Lottery's highest jackpot to date has been $193 million. California Lottery sales figures have shown that sales dramatically increase when jackpots in California reach $100 million or higher, which would happen more frequently with Mega Millions. In fact, research shows that California could expect several jackpots of $100 million or more per year, if a multi-state lottery such as Mega Millions was joined. SOURCE: California Lottery media release. Svenska Spel Sales Up 3.5% for 2004 SUNDBYBERG, Sweden (February 8, 2005) -- Svenska Spel, the Swedish National Lottery, had another record year with gross sales of 20,2 billion SEK (2.2 billion Euro) for 2004. This was an increase of 3.5%. The preliminary revenue was 4.8 billion SEK (530 million Euro), up 2.7% compared to the previous year.
This increase was mainly due to growth for the casinos ( + 18.6%) and Internet gaming. Internet sales were up from 495 to 777 million SEK (85 million Euro) in 2004 which meant an increase of 56.8%. Traditional retailing was down by 0.8%. It will however be difficult to match these figures next year says CEO Jesper Kärrbrink since there were 53 rounds last year compared to 52 this year and the competition, especially for sports betting, from foreign operators increases all the time. Gross sales for 2004:
SOURCE: Göran Wessberg, editor and consultant to Svenska Spel International Palmetto Cash 5 Offers Lottery Players Both More Chances to Win and Bigger Prizes COLUMBIA, SC (February 7, 2005): By now, you have probably seen or heard South Carolina Education Lottery’s (SCEL) latest commercial about a new game coming to town, Palmetto Cash 5. On February 12, 2005, SCEL will begin another chapter for lottery historians with the launch of Palmetto Cash 5! For the first time in lottery history, this five-digit game will be introduced to players as a $2 price point including the Power-Up option.
"Power-Up is the South Carolina version of PowerPlay," said Pat Koop, marketing and sales director for SCEL. "We launched Powerball with PowerPlay in fall 2002 as a $2 price point. We have been very successful with PowerPlay. From a marketing stand point, we plan on doing the same with this Power-Up feature." Palmetto Cash 5 is a new $1 online game that gives players the "power" to win big. For an extra $1, the five-of-five multiplier game offers a new style of play and prizes up to $500,000 with the "Power Up" option. Players have several ways to win. For example, a player pays $1 for the Palmetto Cash 5 ticket and $1 for the "Power-Up" option, the player matches all five numbers, he/she wins $100,000. If during the drawing, the "Power-Up" number randomly selected is 5, the player’s $100,000 winnings automatically will be multiplied by five for a total of $500,000! "The other unique play style with Power-Up is that all winnings, including the top prize, can be multiplied," said Koop. How to play:
What players can win:
Players who match the winning numbers in any order win the set prize amount in that category. A winner might be awarded less, depending on the number of winners in a particular draw. Drawings for Palmetto Cash 5 will be televised live at 6:59 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Players can purchase up to 10 consecutive drawings in advance. Palmetto Cash 5, which will replace Carolina 5, joins the online mix of Pick 3 and Pick 4. Carolina 5 is now a $5 instant ticket, and players still will have a chance to win $100,000 taxes paid! Last week, ending on February 5th, SCEL had its highest instant sales week of more than $13 million. Carolina 5, the instant ticket, helped lead the way to a record-breaking week. SOURCE: South Carolina Education Lottery. EssNet to Deliver E6 Terminals to Lotto Rheinland-Pfalz STOCKHOLM, Sweden (February 9, 2005) -- EssNet today announced that the company has finalised a contract under the cooperation agreement signed in 2004 with Lotto Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. Under the terms of the contract, EssNet will supply 1,150 E6 lottery terminals, including project management and training. In addition to the standard E6 reader and printer, the terminal includes an IBM main unit, IBM infrared touch screen and IBM customer display. The terminal operates with the ETS Open™ terminal software, the latest software generation designed for open integration of standard software applications. Roll-out of terminals will start in June and will be completed by the end of 2005. The E6 terminal is EssNet's top-of-the-line terminal, now selected by Norsk Tipping, Tattersall’s and five German lotteries. Commenting on the agreement, Mr Hans-Peter Schössler, Managing Director of Lotto Rheinland-Pfalz, said: "We are confident that our retailers will benefit from the new E6 terminal with its increased reliability and retailer service efficiency."
"We are proud that Lotto Rheinland-Pfalz continues to show confidence in our products and services," said Helge Krüger, Managing Director of EssNet Deutschland GmbH, "and we are convinced we will deliver a terminal that fully meets their expectations." About EssNet EssNet is one of the leading suppliers in the lottery
industry. Based in Stockholm, the company provides a full suite of lottery and
gaming products - from new games, a variety of terminals and integrated
solutions for Internet and mobile telephones, to the installation of turnkey
systems. SOURCE: EssNet (www.essnet.se). Lottery Executive Earns Certificate As A Senior Professional in Human Resources
The certification, awarded by the Human Resources Certification Institute (HRCI), signifies that Hudson possesses the theoretical knowledge and practical experience in human resource management necessary to pass a rigorous examination demonstrating a mastery of the body of knowledge in the field.
"Certification as a human resource professional clearly demonstrates a commitment to personal excellence and to the human resource profession," said Susan Meisinger, SPHR, President and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). HRCI awards two levels of certification: Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). To become certified, an applicant must pass a comprehensive examination and demonstrate a strong background of professional human resource experience. HRCI is the credentialing body for human resource professionals and affiliated with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the world's largest organization dedicated exclusively to the human resource profession. The Institute's purpose is to promote the establishment of professional standards and to recognize professionals who meet those standards. SOURCE: Louisiana Lottery Corporation media release.
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BATON ROUGE, Louisiana
(February 9, 2005) -- Rose Hudson, senior vice president of human resources,
legislative relations and community events for the Louisiana Lottery
Corporation, recently earned certification as a Professional in Human Resources
(SPHR). 
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