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Lottery
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Vol. 35 No. 10 Monday June 12, 2006 |
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GTECH Shareholders Approve Merger Agreement with Lottomatica S.p.A. WEST GREENWICH, Rhode Island, USA (June 7, 2006) - GTECH Holdings Corporation (NYSE: GTK) announced that its shareholders have voted to approve the previously-announced merger agreement providing for the acquisition of GTECH by Lottomatica S.p.A., at a special meeting of shareholders held at GTECH’s corporate headquarters today. Subject to the satisfaction or waiver of the remaining conditions set forth in the merger agreement, the proposed merger is expected to be completed in mid-2006. If the proposed merger is completed, GTECH will become an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Lottomatica and each outstanding share of GTECH common stock will be converted into the right to receive $35.00 in cash, without interest.
“We are pleased with the outcome of today’s vote and appreciate the support of our shareholders,” said GTECH President and CEO W. Bruce Turner. “We believe that this transaction will position us well for continued growth in the global gaming markets. Upon completion of the transaction, we look forward to working with Lottomatica to continue to meet the needs of our worldwide customers.” About GTECH SOURCE: GTECH Corporation. Georgia Lottery Sponsors "The Year of Your Life" Promotion ATLANTA, Georgia, USA (June 2, 2006) -- In conjunction with the new game Win for Life, the Georgia Lottery Corporation is launching the exciting statewide promotion "The Year of Your Life." Georgia Lottery players can enter a second chance drawing for the chance to win a free car, free gas, free groceries, a free cell phone and cell phone service, free air travel, free dining, free tickets to sporting events and concerts, and free Win for Life tickets for an entire year. Georgia Lottery President and CEO Margaret DeFrancisco will introduce "The Year of Your Life" promotion at the Atlanta Braves game at Turner Field on June 2. The promotion starts on June 3, and all entries must be received by July 28.
During the month of July, "The Year of Your Life" Street Teams will be traveling around the state of Georgia. Players will be able to enter any non-winning Win for Life ticket with a minimum $5 purchase on a single ticket by mail, at www.galottery.com, or at Street Team events. Ten contestants will be randomly drawn from all entries received to participate in "The Year of Your Life" Grand Prize Event at the August 12 Atlanta Braves game. One lucky contestant will walk away with "The Year of Your Life" Grand Prize and the other nine participants will receive an amazing consolation prize. "The Year of Your Life" Grand Prize
Package includes: The nine finalists will each win the
consolation prize including: Win for Life is an exciting new game that offers a lifetime of security with a $1,000 a week for life top prize that equals $52,000 a year for life.
To date, there have been five Win for Life top prize winners including Georgia Lottery player William Rowe, who purchased his winning ticket in West Point. Win for Life has an incredible second prize of $1,000 a week for a year that adds up to $52,000. To date, 20 Georgia Lottery players have won the game's second prize. Win for Life drawings are held every Wednesday and Saturday at 11:00 p.m. Each Win for Life ticket costs $1. Win for Life is a multi-state game played in Georgia, Virginia and Kentucky. As with all other Georgia Lottery games, proceeds from Win for Life will benefit education in the state of Georgia. Since its first year, the Georgia Lottery Corporation has returned over $8.2 billion to the state of Georgia for education. All Georgia Lottery profits go to pay for specific educational programs including Georgia's HOPE Scholarship Program and Georgia's Pre-kindergarten Program. More than 900,000 students have received HOPE Scholarships, and more than 700,000 4-year-olds have attended the statewide, voluntary pre-kindergarten program. For more information, please visit the Media Center on the GLC Web site at: www.galottery.com CONTACT: Georgia Lottery Corporation Media Relations Department, Voice: 404-215-5062, Fax: 404-215-8983, Email: media@galottery.org SOURCE: Georgia Lottery Corporation. Kansas Lottery Introduces New Electronic Lottery Product TOPEKA, Kansas, USA (June 1, 2006) -- The world’s first electronic version of a lottery instant scratch ticket is now available in Kansas. Starting this week, players can purchase the Kansas Lottery’s new battery-powered Electronic Game Card, a product that combines digital technology with features of traditional games. The new game is called “Super 7’s.” Each $20 Electronic Game Card uses an electronic read-out to display the play area of the game. Instead of scratching a ticket, a player reveals points as he moves through a series of 80 electronic plays – the higher the points, the higher the prize. Each card is a guaranteed winner, with prizes ranging from a minimum of $3 to a maximum of $500. As with any instant game, all prizes are pre-determined.
“The Electronic Game Card is an evolution of the lottery product,” said Kansas Lottery Executive Director Ed Van Petten. “Players are looking for additional entertainment value with their lottery games, and the Electronic Game Card delivers that.” At $20, Super 7’s is the highest price point game the Kansas Lottery has ever offered its players. The game is available to all of the Lottery’s approximately 1,900 retailers. The initial release includes 120,000 cards, each individually sealed along with directions on how to play the game. The guaranteed $3 minimum prize is to encourage players to redeem their cards so they can be recycled. “We hope our players will find the game as exciting as we do,” said Van Petten. “So far it appears the game will be very well received by players and retailers, who are excited about this new and innovative product.” The Kansas Lottery is the second in the nation to offer the Electronic Game Card to its players. The Iowa Lottery began selling the product last year. The Electronic Game Card, developed by Scientific Games International, was named the 2005 Lottery Product of the Year by the Public Gaming Research Institute. The award recognizes the importance of new products to the growth and continuing success of lotteries worldwide. SOURCE: Kansas Lottery. Lottery Corp. Announces Agency Roster RICHMOND, British Columbia, Canada (June 2, 2006) -- British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) has selected five advertising and marketing communications partners to support it in a wide range of business and marketing opportunities.
Cossette Communications Group, DDB Canada, TBWA/Vancouver, SplashDot and Phoenix Group were selected for the agency roster through a Request for Proposal procurement process that closed on April 28, 2006. “The Corporation is looking for new ways to market the gaming entertainment experience. These agency partners will bring additional strategic value, creative services, and novel ways to reach our customers,” said Kevin Gass, Vice-President, Corporate Communications and Marketing. BCLC’s marketing communications needs include destinations like casinos, community gaming centres and the PlayNow website, mature brands like Lotto 6/49 and new brands like SportsFunder offered in retail and hospitality locations. BCLC also places high value on its public accountability and wants to inform and educate the public about how revenue from lottery, bingo and casino gaming is distributed and how B.C. communities benefit. SOURCE: British Columbia Lottery Corporation. SCHENECTADY, New York, USA (June 2, 2006) -- New York Lottery Director Nancy A. Palumbo today announced the launch of $3,000,000 Jubilee, an Instant scratch-off ticket that will produce an amazing thirty-five new millionaires.
“The new $3,000,000 Jubilee scratch-off, launched to celebrate the 30th birthday of the Instant game ticket, offers New Yorkers numerous chances to win $1 million or more! With 25 different prize levels, this ticket alone will create 35 new millionaires,” said Palumbo. “In addition to launching this incredible new ticket, we will also hold a number of second-chance promotions across the state throughout the summer.” The new $10 ticket, available at Lottery retailers today, offers players 15 chances to win one of the five $3 million jackpot prizes and thirty $1 million second prizes. Odds of winning the top prize of $3 million are 1 in 4.28 million. Odds of winning the $1 million second prize on this game are an incredible 1 in 705,000! The odds of winning any of the 25 different prize levels are 1 in 4.27. “Instant scratch-off tickets were introduced in New York State 30 years ago and their popularity has grown tremendously. Today they represent more than half of total New York Lottery sales,” continued Palumbo. “As the nation’s leader in the Lottery industry, we are continuously giving New Yorkers new opportunities to win even bigger with a wide variety of games so that we can continue to raise even more money for education,” continued Palumbo.
The New York Lottery offers approximately 40 different Instant games at any given time. The popularity of the Instant scratch-off game has been growing since the first Instant ticket, New York Scenes, was introduced by the New York Lottery on September 8, 1976. Since their introduction 30 years ago, sales on Instant tickets have gone from $186.9 million in 1976 to over $3 billion in 2005, representing nearly 50% of traditional Lottery sales. In 1976, the New York Lottery contributed $90.7 million to education. Today, the Lottery provides over $2 billion annually to primary and secondary education in New York State, with a good portion of that amount coming from sales of Instant games. The New York Lottery, the largest lottery in the country and the sixth largest in the world, has generated more than $29 billion in revenue to help support education in New York State, including a record $2.2 billion in fiscal year 2005-2006 on revenues of $6.8 billion. For more information, contact the New York Lottery Press & Community Relations office at 518-388-3415 or email here. SOURCE: New York Lottery (www.NYLottery.org). Revolutionary Change to Lottery, Replay Every Ticket, Every Time NEW HAMPSHIRE, USA (May 2006) -- NH Lottery Replay is the first Lottery program to give our players the chance to “replay” your non-winning New Hampshire lottery tickets on the Web…free. This new program allows players to enter “Replay Codes” from their non-winning tickets (instant tickets, Powerball, Megabucks and more) at www.nhlotteryreplay.com. Sign up for a replay account!
Once signed up, players accumulate Replay Points for each ticket entered. In general, points are earned in increments equal to five times the dollar value of a non-winning ticket. For example, a $1 Powerball ticket is worth 5 points. A $5 instant ticket is worth 25 points and so on. A .50 cent Pick 3 bet will earn 3 points. Replay members can earn points in several other ways as well, including referring a friend to the program and signing up to receive lottery emails. There are three ways to win through New Hampshire Lottery Replay. Players can win prizes instantly when they enter a “Replay Code” from a non-winning ticket. These Instant Replay prizes, which are awarded randomly, can be accepted or traded in for 250 points. Players can also win prizes by entering points into monthly drawings, or into the Ultimate Replay drawing, which is held every three months. Hundreds of prizes will be awarded, including a new car. The first Ultimate Replay prize, which will be awarded in September 2006, is a 2007 Dodge Caliber RT, stacked with great features and valued at approximately $20,000. Monthly Replay prizes that will be awarded in July include gift certificates and prize packages from La-Z-Boy/Fallon’s Furniture, the Manchester Wolves, Shorty’s Mexican Roadhouse, the Nashua Pride, E&R Cleaners, Canobie Lake Park, Best Buy, New England Dragway, Merry Maids, Daddy’s Junky Music stores, T-Bones/Cactus Jack’s, Isles of Shoals Steamship Company, and WOKQ-FM to name a few.
NH Lottery Replay members must have a residential and mailing address in New Hampshire and they must be 18 years of age or older. Recently purchased non-winning instant tickets are eligible to be “replayed”. Non-winning Powerball, Megabucks, Pick 3, Pick 4, Hot Lotto, and Triple Play tickets with a draw date on or after the start date of the Replay program are eligible to be “replayed”. Non-winning Add A Play tickets are eligible to be “replayed” the day after they are purchased. Remember, for non-winning Powerball, Megabucks, Hot Lotto, Pick 3, Pick 4 tickets – players must wait until 9 AM the day after the last drawing on the ticket to enter them in the Replay program. Add a Play tickets may be entered after 9 AM the day after they are purchased. Check out NH Lottery Replay today! SOURCE: New Hampshire Lottery. MDI Extends License to Offer NASCAR® Drivers; Sport’s Top Drivers Make Thrilling Lottery Games ALPHARETTA, Georgia, USA (June 1, 2006) -- NASCAR’s top drivers remain available to lotteries now that MDI Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Scientific Games (NASDAQ: SGMS), has extended its agreement with Roush Racing to exclusively offer lotteries the rights to the sport’s superstars.
The drivers include Greg Biffle, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth and Mark Martin, all of whom are considered top contenders in the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup. And just last week at the Coca Cola 600, all of the Roush NEXTEL Cup teams finished in the top ten. "NASCAR is hands down one of the most popular sports today, and these drivers have some of the most loyal fans in the industry,” said Steve Saferin, MDI president. "Lotteries can build on that fan base by offering their players instant games featuring these drivers and that loyalty will translate into strong sales while still attracting new players.” Since 2000, more than 20 lotteries have offered games featuring the race car numbers and autographs of the sport’s rising stars and as of 2004, the NASCAR brand itself became available to lotteries along with an expanded NASCAR merchandise portfolio from which to build NASCAR-themed game prize structure. In addition to the four Roush drivers, MDI also continues to offer lotteries the rights to NASCAR drivers Kasey Kahne and Jeremy Mayfield through an exclusive agreement with Evernham Motorsports and drivers Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson through an exclusive agreement with Hendrick Gordon Licensing.
“Games that feature NASCAR drivers do well on their own,” Saferin said. “But what makes these games really appealing to players is the unique merchandise that can be offered and promotional opportunities to help bump up sales.” NASCAR is the second-highest rated sport on network television. Among all major sports, NASCAR ranks number-one in corporate involvement, fan loyalty and at-event attendance. Along with NASCAR and its drivers, MDI also includes Major League Baseball, the NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, PGA/LPGA golfers and MotoGP motorcycle racing in its growing library of major sports properties. About Scientific
Games SOURCE: MDI Entertainment media
release. Lottery Launches Musical Talent Search for Powerball Television Commercials ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, USA (June 5, 2006) – The New Mexico Lottery has launched a statewide search for musicians to be featured in a new series of Powerball television commercials. “Our first two sets of Powerball jackpot commercials have been very positively received by the public and the New Mexico music industry,” said Adriana Binns, the Lottery’s director of marketing and communications. “Featuring new groups is a great way to help promote the New Mexico Lottery and the Powerball jackpot.”
In order to be considered, musicians must be at least 18 years of age and be based in New Mexico. Complete details are posted on the New Mexico Lottery’s website, www.nmlottery.com. A profile on the website should be filled
out, printed and mailed along with an audition VHS tape or DVD.
Music talent in English and Spanish will again be featured. Previous commercials have included jazz artist Cathryn McGill and her band, Syd Masters and the Swing Riders, Juntos Unidos, barbershop quartet The Summit, opera singer Jacqueline Zander-Wall and Latin band Nosotros. Examples of the past Powerball musicians are available for review on the Lottery’s website. Powerball sales are one component of New Mexico Lottery revenues. Since inception in April 1996, the New Mexico Lottery has raised more than $280 million for public education in the State. SOURCE: New Mexico Lottery.
Bingo Joins Lottery’s Instant Game Roster! TENNESSEE, USA (June 6, 2006) --The instant ticket Bingo joins the Tennessee Lottery’s instant game roster this week. With four Bingo “cards” and four chances to win up to $50,000 on every ticket, players will find this newest game exciting and fun to play. Here’s how it works:
On each $3 Bingo ticket, scratch-off the CALLER'S CARD to reveal 24 Bingo numbers. Rub corresponding numbers of Cards 1 – 4. The numbers on CARDS 1 – 4 will turn dark blue when rubbed. Match 5 numbers in a complete horizontal, vertical or diagonal line to win $4 - $30. Match all numbers in all four corners to win $30 - $60,000. Match all numbers to make a complete “X” to win $3,000 - $50,000! Also available this week, the instant tickets Doubling Red 8s and $20,000 Moneybags. Details include: Doubling Red 8s – There are four chances to win up to $8,800 instantly on each $1.00 ticket. Get a black “8” symbol in any game and win the prize shown for that game. Get a red “8” symbol and win DOUBLE the prize shown for that game. $20,000 Moneybags – Win up to $20,000 instantly on this $2 ticket. Match any of your numbers to either winning number and win the prize for that number. Reveal a “$ Bill” symbol and automatically win the prize shown. Reveal a “2X” symbol and win DOUBLE the prize shown. SOURCE: Tennessee Lottery. SCEL’s Million Dollar Second-Chance Summer Promotion COLUMBIA, South Carolina, USA (June 2006) --The South Carolina Education Lottery (SCEL) and Pulliam Ford, based in Columbia, will hold a Mustang® Classic Car Rally on Saturday, June 10, at 1:30 p.m. to celebrate the launch of SCEL’s 2006 Million Dollar Second-Chance Summer Promotion. To help launch the Lottery’s summer promotion, all classic car owners are invited to bring their finest to Pulliam Ford for prizes, entertainment, and fun. The event will be held at Pulliam Ford, 2800 Two Notch Road, in Columbia. The person with the vehicle judged the “classiest” will win $500 in Ford® merchandise. There will be other prizes for other categories. The Million Dollar Second-Chance Summer launches on Tuesday, May 23, 2006.
Players must collect any $20 combination of non-winning qualifying tickets to qualify to enter the second-chance drawing where two SCEL players will win a convertible Ford Mustang® vehicle and a third SCEL player will win both $1 million dollars and a convertible Ford Mustang® vehicle. Players must also fill out the back of at least one ticket and mail them in an envelope to the designated post office box listed on the back of each ticket. The second-chance drawing will be held in the fall. A statewide radio promotion, incorporating Mustang® Trivia, will also take place throughout the summer months. A Mustang® convertible will be awarded to a radio listener. SCEL will host events across the state in conjunction with the South Carolina Mustang Groups all summer long. For more information on SCEL’s Million Dollar Second-Chance Summer Promotion, log onto the Lottery’s website at www.scedcationlottery.com SOURCE: South Carolina Education Lottery.
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