Lottoland has today re-entered the Australian lottery sector with the launch of the world’s largest keno jackpot, according to WAtoday.
The Western Australia news outlet has reported that the Gibraltar-based firm is introducing a $20m jackpot in Victoria as part of its attempts to revive its brand in Australia.
In February, Lottoland and Tabcorp – before the latter’s demerger with The Lottery Corporation – were awarded dual 20-year licences to offer keno games in Victoria.
The new licences, which took effect on April 15, 2022 and run to 2042, are a return to the pre-2012 structure of two authorised operators in the Australian state.
Crucially, it breaks the stranglehold of The Lottery Corporation after 10 years of keno exclusivity, brought about after Tabcorp paid $60m in 2012 to hold a retail-only licence.
Lottoland beat off competition from four other operators to receive the 20-year licence, and CEO Luke Brill has hailed the state government’s decision as a “major show of faith” in the group’s new strategy as it moves away from traditional, foreign-focussed betting products to a locally registered keno product offering with big jackpots.
“We’re one of the biggest gambling companies in the world but Australia’s regulatory environment has largely hamstrung us here,” said Brill.
“We’ve done our arduous due diligence, we’re now licensed in Victoria and the Northern Territory, and we’re back better than ever to give customers more choice.”
Lottoland is active in 15 markets and has more than 16 million customers worldwide.
According to Brill, the business has more than 800,000 registered customers within Australia.
“This is more of a soft launch to get some consumer feedback and increase competition before 2023,” added Brill.
“Previously, the keno market in Victoria has hovered around $10m. We’re insurance backed and think it’s time this number increases.”