It seems nothing fun ever happens in Utah. There’s skiing and hiking, but not much else, so the idea of a Utah lottery almost seems like the plot for a “Footloose” sequel. But hold on a moment… there is actually a small movement to establish the lotto there… from an actual Legislator none the less! What a way to start the year! Yes, the state of Utah has outlawed or forbidden most everything fun and enjoyable. That’s why their only professional sports team is the Jazz (insert rim shot here). But in these tough economic times, it seems there is…

Scientific Games has joined forces with JSC Satty Zhuldyz to launch the Kazakhstan Lottery. JSC Satty Zhuldyz will operate the lottery, while Scientific will serve as exclusive supplier of all games, technology and services. Lottery instant ‘scratch’ games and draw games, such as numbers and Keno, will be going live across a network of approximately 3,000 retailers in Kazakhstan. “We are excited to work with Scientific Games to launch a socially responsible lottery in partnership with the Kazakhstan government,” JSC Satty Zhuldyz president Alexandr Ten said. More about the Kazakhstan Lottery at iGaming Business

The lottery as a game has changed drastically since the early days when it was used as a mechanism by the authorities to raise money for education, health care or infrastructure needs. Nowadays, people are willing to pay lottery fees for much more selfish reasons – instead of contributing to a common cause, their money goes into the prize pool which is ultimately won by a lucky few. There are many different lotteries worldwide, each offering a different prize pool and an odds estimate of your chances to become the next jackpot winner. For those of you who wish to…

Lottery is a game in which a participant pays a small amount of money which gives him/her an opportunity to get an ultimate prize. The amount raised by different participants is used to award the ultimate winner, to cater for the administrative expenses and the remaining amount of money is the profit that the organizer enjoys. The American lottery culture is not exclusive, for lotteries are practiced in very many countries legally. Initially, lotteries were raffle tickets which one had to buy to participate. These would take weeks for a final draw to be held. Today, nearly all states lotteries…

The Sheldon Adelson-inspired Restoration of America’s Wire Act, introduced in the House of Representatives by Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), would deal a severe blow to the fight for online poker regulation in the US if it were to be enacted. Just how severe depends largely upon the final language itself, as there are expected to be several ‘carve outs’ before it could pass. But could an anticipated exemption for state lotteries leave a large door open for hopeful online poker players? Delaware was the first state to enact online gaming, and by approaching it through their state lottery, it would seem…

iGaming Business – Turkish mobile phone operator Turkcell has announced it will not participate in a tender for the country’s national lottery despite having reportedly considered a joint proposal with gaming and lottery operator Intralot. Turkcell’s majority-owned subsidiary Inteltek and fully-owned subsidiary Talih Kuşu had made a prequalification application for the tender, in partnership with Intralot. The mobile phone operator confirmed in a statement that following an evaluation of the proposal, its board of directors had decided not to give a bidding offer. However, according to the Paralimani.com website, Intralot will now seek a new partner to submit a bid…

iGaming Business – Swedish national state-owned lottery Svenska Spel has become the first operator to offer the latest solution from online gambling player protection software developer Playscan. Customers of Svenska Spel will now have access to Playscan 4.1, a software product that helps to protect players. The latest version includes additional input from gambling addiction support groups and usability research, in additions to a new risk scale and an in-depth view of the risk analysis. The design, which Playscan said helps the player understand and further reflect on the risks associate with gambling, runs on multiple platforms including desktop, mobile…

  iGaming Business – Gaming solutions provider Scientific Games has agreed a deal with the North Dakota Lottery to implement and operate an online lottery system. The deal, which also includes the provision of services and marketing support, will begin in July this year and run for an initial eight years with the option of an additional two-year extension. Under the deal, Scientific Games will provide the Lottery with its Sciplay interactive platform, which will include systems for internet subscription, player registration and player rewards programs. In addition, Scientific Games will also be responsible for the installation and support of…