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[Thailand] PM's support 2-,3-digit lottery: Sangsit

[US] Lottery’s $20 gamble

[Nigeria] Fed Govt pledges to support lottery business

[Karnataka] HC upholds ban on lotteries

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[nationmultimedia.com / The Nation 05 Oct 07]

Sangsit Piriyarangsan, chairman of the finance committee of the National Legislative Assembly, claimed Friday that Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont supported the call for the government to sell 2- and 3-digit lottery.

Speaking to reporters after meeting the prime minister, Sangsit said Surayud wanted the government to sell the special lottery as soon as possible to prevent the use of proceeds from underground lottery to buy votes in the general election on December 23.
Sangsit said he informed the prime minister that Assumption University had carried out a survey and found that some 35 million people wanted the government to sell the lottery.

Sangsit said Surayud promised to talk to the finance minister and speed up the enactment of the bill to allow the government to sell the special lottery.

The NLA was initially scheduled to deliberate the 2- and 3-digit lottery bill on Thursday but the bill deliberation was postponed.
 

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$1M-for-life ticket starts to hit paydirt
[Scott Van Voorhis, news.bostonherald.com 04 Oct 07]

The Massachusetts State Lottery rolled the dice when it launched its first ever $20 instant ticket, the most expensive new product in its history.

A week after its big rollout, the gamble already appears to be paying off, with sales of the Billion Dollar Blockbuster off to one of the fastest starts of any ticket in Lottery history.

Nearly 2 million tickets have been sold so far, ringing up more than $40 million in sales. That edges two other tickets that in recent years got off to fast starts, the $800 Million Spectacular and the $5 million Jackpot, both $10 tickets.

The new $20 ticket is the latest in a national trend that is seeing state lotteries across the country turn to higher-priced products to keep revenues growing.

“We are talking about an amazing number of tickets,” said Dan Rosenfeld, the Lottery’s spokesman.

The initial success of the ticket could not come at a better time for the Lottery, which is coming off a year in which it saw its first decline in revenues in decades.

The drop has sparked concern because the Lottery is a key source of state aid to cities and towns. Last week, House Speaker Sal DiMasi (D-North End) even called for a review of the Lottery.

So far, Lottery revenues are up significantly this year, and the new ticket is expected to play a key role. Sales from the Billion Dollar Blockbuster are projected to generate $154 million in local aid for cities and towns, Rosenfeld said.
“It’s in keeping with the national trends,” said Clyde Barrow, a gambling industry expert and professor at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth.“One of the ways lotteries are trying to reinvigorate their revenue streams is not only diversifying their offerings, but also by increasing the price point of their products.”

Still, the trend toward more expensive scratch tickets is raising concerns at the Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling. The $20 ticket means it will be that much easier now for people with gambling addiction problems to get into serious financial problems, said Margot Cahoon, a spokeswoman for the council.

“We are expecting people to call the hotline and say the $20 ticket has been a problem for them,” Cahoon said.
 

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[vanguardngr.com 0-1 Oct 07]

The Federal Government has promised to provide an enabling environment for lottery practice to succeed in the country.

Speaking in Lagos at the first seminar organised by the National Lottery Regulatory Commission since the enactment of the National Lottery Act in 2005, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe, Secretary to the Government of the Federation said National Lottery Practice falls within the seven-point economic agenda of President Umaru Yar’Adua administration, which is wealth creation and employment generation.

“Many countries have put in place legislations to regulate lottery practice, and used the proceeds from the industry for development process. Thus, the National Lottery Act, 2005 is not only about regulating lottery practice in Nigeria but also an avenue to explore how the proceeds from national lottery can be effectively channeled to good causes as well as protect the interest of the players from both the legal and illegal operators,” he said.

He acknowledged that government would need the support of all stakeholders to realise its objectives in the lottery business in view of the fact that regulated lottery business is a new phenomenon in the country. “On its part, government will continue to create an enabling environment for lottery practice to succeed.”

While congratulating the commission for taking the bold step in bringing together various players in the emerging industry, to fashion out how best to contribute to the economy, he acknowledged the collaboration of the National Sports Lottery Plc for sponsoring the seminar that was graced by Chief Executive of the UK National Lottery Commission and the Director-General of the South African National Lotteries Board.

“This commitment is symbolic and demonstrates that both regulator and operator can work together for the achievement of a common goal,” he said.

Speaking at the forum, the Legal Adviser to National Lottery Practice in Nigeria, Mr B.N Udonsi, described the operations of lotteries by banks and the GSM operators as illegal.

He said the banks and the mobile phone companies were operating without licence as mandated by the National Lottery Practice Act 2005.

He said the affected companies had been warned to desist from illegal operations, while the commission would soon sanction them.
Dr Kanu Agabi, former Chairman of National Lottery Trust Fund who was also at the forum called on government to fund NLRC for it to effectively carry out its regulatory activities.

He said if the commission was well funded, it would have been able to clamp down on several agencies that are operating illegal lotteries without committing anything to good cause.

Mr Udonsi who read the provisions of the National Lottery Act said a minimum of 50 per cent of national lottery proceeds should be paid as prize while 20 per cent should be transferred to the Trust Fund.

Dr Odunlami Kola-Daisi, Chief Executive of National Sports Lottery Plc in his presentation lamented the harsh business environment in the past which had frustrated the take-off of lottery business in the country.

He said NSL which had sunk N10 billion into the business lost several opportunities to bring foreign investors that would have injected millions of dollars into the sector.

He described the passing of the National Lottery Act as a positive development as many illegal lottery operators are reaping billions of naira from the system without returning anything for good cause.

 

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[Hindu, Bangalore 28 Sept 07]

The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday upheld a single judge order on the ban on lotteries in the State and also the notification declaring Karnataka a lottery-free zone.

Dismissing appeals against the single judge order of May 8, 2007, by Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, All India Federation of Gaming and Allied Industries and others, a Division Bench comprising Justice K. Sreedhar Rao and Justice L. Narayanaswamy agreed with the contentions of the Government that the ban is a result of a policy decision and that it was included in the Budget which was subsequently passed by both the Houses of the Legislature.

The Bench also upheld the validity of the State’s March 27, 2007, notification issued under Section 5 of the Lottery (Regulation) Act banning all kinds of lotteries and declaring Karnataka a lottery-free zone.

Citing several Supreme Court judgments, including the case of B.R. Enterprises versus the State of Uttar Pradesh, it said that many of the contentions relating to the validity of Section 5 of the Act had already been gone into in the case and that the Supreme Court had upheld its validity.

The appellants had challenged the notification and Arunachal Pradesh had said that it is a small state and its main source of revenue was organising lotteries.

It said large infrastructure had been set up in Bangalore for distributing lotteries and that it would suffer irreparable harm if an interim order staying the notification is not continued.

Appearing for the State, Advocate-General Uday Holla, said that the decision to ban lotteries was first made when the State’s Budget was presented on March 16. Subsequently, the State issued a notification under the provisions of the Lottery (Regulation) Act on the ban of lotteries.

With this, the sale of all lotteries — paper, Internet and online, had been banned.

Assailing this notification, the appellants claimed that lakhs of people, including the physically challenged, are dependent on lotteries and the ban would affect their livelihood.

They said that the notification is illegal and that it violates Articles 14, 301 and 304 of the Constitution.
 

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