Sri Lanka Government Trying to Revoke Licenses
Members of Parliament in Sri Lanka are trying to revoke two lottery licensees issued by the previous government regime, but their efforts may be fruitless. Members of the UPFA party are reportedly lobbying the government to cancel licenses issued by the UNF government when it was in control. Chief Government Whip and Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle told Parliament that it would be nearly impossible for the government to revoke the contracts. He said the Finance Ministry is in collaboration with a Norwegian firm to implement one of them. He also said that he had attempted to stop the other lottery being launched by GTech Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. The American government interfered, and the Sri Lankan government was told it could incur a damages claim of around US$100 million if it stops the lottery.
UK Bill Could Change Lottery Bidding Process
If proposals in the new U.K. Gambling Bill are passed, British companies would compete for a single National Lottery operating license in hopes of adding competition to the licensing process. Minister for Culture Media and Sport Tessa Jowell said the plan would create a clear and single lottery operating licensee, but include a reserve power that enables the National Lottery Commission to offer for competition a small number of licensees to run different parts of the lottery in the extreme circumstances of an unsuccessful competition. The National Lottery Commission has already begun designing the next competition and is committed to full and open consideration of all the options to encourage a successful competition for a single operating licensee, officials with the NLC said.
Heritage Lottery Fund Could Lose Revenue
The Heritage Lottery Fund warned that passage of the U.K. Gambling Bill could cost it as much as £15 million a year. The bill would empower the government to raid non-distributed funds and redistribute interest from them. The Heritage Fund is a leading grant writer for theaters in the United Kingdom. In recent years, it has become an increasingly important source of capital funding for theaters--particularly those with historical interest--with the Arts Council England reducing the number of capital grants it awards. To date the HLF has awarded £11.5 million to historic theater buildings and arts centers across Britain. Like its fellow lottery distributors, the HLF cannot release cash until certain requirements have been met, such as submitting feasibility studies or securing matching funds. While the cash is being held back, it accrues interest, providing further income for the distributor. The government is concerned that this also generates what it calls a "perverse incentive" that makes it more attractive for distributors to hold on to the cash rather than pay it out.
Online Lottery Sales Outpace Paper Tickets in India
News sources in India are reporting that the sale of paper lotteries have declined by at least 40 percent during the early stages of the lottery season. One lottery agent in Mulund told the Business Standard that he sold only 7,000 tickets this season, just 2,000 more than what he sells on normal trading days. Another agent in south Mumbai said he had to cut costs by releasing staff and reducing the number of lottery ticket draws. Nationwide, paper lottery tickets are declining in popularity. Dealers say that overall sales of paper lotteries during the year have declined by 50 percent. Industry sources claim the paper lottery business is facing serious competition from online lotteries that have sprung up in the last two years. They say that online lotteries such as the Subhash Chandra-promoted by Playwin, the south India-based Martin group's Smartwin and Shapoorji Pallonji's Dhan Dhana Dhan are overtaking paper lotteries.
ECJ Rules In Favor of Online Lottery Operators in Rights Case
The European Court of Justice handed down a favorable ruling last month to a British bookmaker and three lottery/gaming operators in a case involving the use of horseracing and football fixtures. The case was brought before the ECJ after the owners of the databases that maintained the fixtures argued that their information was being used by companies that weren't paying a license fee. The Luxembourg-based Court of Justice dismissed arguments that the companies compiling the databases put in a "substantial investment," saying that this doesn't mean the database creators were protected under E.U. copyright laws, which prevent others from using the data for free. The four companies using the horseracing and football databases were Britain's William Hill, Oy Veikkaus of Finland, Svenska Spel of Sweden, and OPAP of Greece.
Japan's Soccer Lottery under Fire
Japan's soccer lottery operation has again failed to meet sales projections and will likely run into a deficit for its second consecutive year; the operation will be unable to provide grants to sports organizations, which is its primary purpose. Total sales have declined from 60.4 billion yen in 2001 when the Toto soccer lottery was launched to 40.8 billion yen in 2002 and 20.2 billion yen in 2003. Sales this year have slumped to 15.5 billion yen. In line with that drop, grants have shrunk from 5.8 billion yen to 2.6 billion yen. When the operation edged into the red in 2003, the National Agency for the Advancement of Sports and Health (the operator) saved 600 million yen through unclaimed prize money and by cutting spending. The agency could not pay 7 billion yen in commissions to its agent bank last year, and the same is expected this year.
Gleason in Line to Head WLA
Arch Gleason, president of the Kentucky Lottery Corp., was elected senior vice president of the World Lottery Association, a trade group that represents 144 government-controlled lotteries worldwide. Gleason is in line to assume the association's presidency next November. The association provides education and other services to members, promotes standards for lottery management and security and promotes responsible gambling.