State officials across the US are being called upon by lottery operators to digitise the sales of lottery tickets, with Spinola Gaming CEO Ade Repcenko stating his belief that the online shift is the only forward for the industry.
The rallying cry for an industry migration towards online comes amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic which has resulted in decreased retail figures in towns and cities, with shutdown measures biting into the sector’s bottom line profits.
Repcenko stated: “Retail operators need to take a look at the post-Covid19 world and its impact on player needs and expectations, and think about what it means for the future of lotteries.
“Digital is the way forward and is set to play a huge part in our industry over the coming years. Solutions like the ones offered by Spinola Gaming provide land-based operators with a holistic solution that helps operators make the move to digital, while still maintaining their traditional retail operations through one seamless interface.
“The software allows operators to monitor all lottery ticket sales and track all online and offline purchases in real-time, complete with a myriad of marketing functions and analytics available at the touch of a button. The system is available across all markets, currencies and languages and is fully customisable.”
During the COVID-period several states were able to legally offer digital lottery ticket sales during their respective lockdowns. Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, North Dakota and Virginia. All other states, which required players to purchase a lottery ticket in person from a retail outlet, have seen sales and revenues decline exponentially during the pandemic.
As a result of the shift to online, many of the states offering the digital vertical have since revealed that they experienced a surge in online ticket sales, with New Hampshire in particular registering a 38% increase in first-time online players during this period.
Gordon Medenica, director of the Maryland Lottery, added: “We’ve been pushing a digital transformation and online selling ever since I’ve been in this industry, over the past 10 to 15 years. In Maryland, they passed a law three years ago banning sales on the internet. I think we’ll see a dramatic change and I’m looking forward to it.”
Despite the seemingly overwhelming desire for the industry to embrace the digital evolution, state operators still require regulatory changes to take place before they can make the shift. Due to this, the US market now faces falling behind the rest of the world unless these regulatory changes happen fast.
The results witnessed during the COVID period have resulted in tangible data now being available to support the argument in favour of the lottery’s digitisation, with many State lottery operators now seeing the switch as long overdue.
Barry Pack, director of the Oregon State Lottery, concluded: “The recovery from this pandemic is going to force a digital transformation in our industry a whole lot more quickly than we might normally have seen it come. When the legislature reconvenes next week, they’re facing a billion-dollar shortfall. Their opinions about mobile gaming will change. I think there will be less resistance.”