In an interview with International Gaming & Wagering Business magazine (IGWB), Guy Simonis, head of the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, intimated that online lotteries are probably the way of the future, but they'll only work if there's international regulation.
Simonis' company is spearheading the formation of an association, the World Lottery Association (WLA), to which more than 140 lotteries will belong. One of the WLA's first challenges, according to Simonis, will be dealing with Internet lotteries, most of which are unregulated. The solution: global regulation.
"I think government organizations worldwide banding together can have a very strong impact," he told IGWB. "I think we should try to get some control on the Internet, but not individually. … What the United States is doing is laudable, but it doesn't mean a damn thing if Canada doesn't do the same thing. There has to be much lager control."
He also said that Internet lotteries must be regulated to survive, and that the WLA would likely play a major role. "In the end, I think there will be some licensing, either at the destination or the origination level. I suggest at the origination level, because that's where the effective control comes from, not from where the ticket is bought."