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| Vol. 34 No. 11 -- Monday March 20, 2006 |
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GTECH Board of Directors Named the Best in Gaming Industry for Second Year in a Row WEST GREENWICH, Rhode Island, USA (March 15, 2006) -- For the second consecutive year, GTECH Holdings Corporation's GTK Board of Directors has been named the Top Performing Board of Directors in Gaming by HVS Executive Search, a global consulting and services organization focused on the gaming, lodging, and leisure industries. The Board Performance award is presented each year to the Board of Directors in the gaming industry that exercises diversity and discretion in its handling of corporate governance. HVS uses a broad range of criteria to judge the boards of 45 publicly-traded gaming companies, including size, makeup, and independence of the board; committee structure and effectiveness; presence of interlocks, insider participation, and related transactions; and fundamental commitment to pay-for-performance.
"On behalf of the Board, GTECH is honored to, once again, be recognized as the top-performing board in the gaming industry," said Robert M. Dewey, Jr., GTECH Board Chairman. "The broad range of expertise our directors bring to the board has been invaluable in guiding GTECH through a period of growth and change. Their sound guidance, rigorous governing principles, and strong business ethics have helped make GTECH a success, and I am particularly pleased they are receiving this well-deserved honor." GTECH received perfect scores in three of the four categories. Other top performers in the 2005 study included Harrah's Entertainment, Wynn Resorts, and Shuffle Master. About GTECH CONTACT: Robert K. Vincent, Public Affairs, 401-392-7452 SOURCE: GTECH Corporation media release.
Kansas Lottery to Launch New Game with Ticket Giveaway! TOPEKA, Kansas, USA (March 10, 2006) -- The Kansas Lottery will introduce players to its newest game by giving away thousands of free Hot Lotto tickets at designated retail locations throughout the state. The statewide ticket giveaway will be March 15, the date of the first Hot Lotto drawing in Kansas. The free tickets will be for that night’s drawing. Besides picking up their free Hot Lotto tickets, players will also have a chance to win Kansas Lottery promotional prizes by participating in wheel spins and other on-site games. In addition, some of the participating stores will be offering “hot” in-store specials and promotions in celebration of the new lotto game. At each of the
18 designated locations, Kansas Lottery staff will be on hand to show players how Hot Lotto is played and to answer questions from players and the news media. The Kansas Lottery will give away one free $1 Hot Lotto Quick Pick ticket per person, up to the predetermined amounts at each location. Persons must be 18 years of age or older to receive a free Hot Lotto ticket or prize from the Kansas Lottery. Sales for Hot Lotto start March 12 in Kansas, with the first drawing on March 15. Hot Lotto will be sold at all of the Kansas Lottery’s approximately 1,900 retailers. Kansas is the ninth lottery jurisdiction to offer Hot Lotto. The game is also played in Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, West Virginia and Washington, D.C. Hot Lotto is administered by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), which also operates Powerball and 2by2. SOURCE: Kansas Lottery media
release. NEW YORK, USA (March 13, 2006) -- Scientific Games (Nasdaq: SGMS) has been awarded the primary contract to supply instant tickets and related services for Washington State's Lottery. The contract runs for four years, with options for extensions up to a maximum of four additional years. It is valued at approximately $12 million and takes effect March 18, 2006. "Washington's Lottery has been a great partner for us, and we are happy to extend this relationship," said Lorne Weil, Chairman and CEO of Scientific Games. "The lottery plays a role in supporting education construction projects for K-12 and higher education schools, stadium debt reduction for the Seahawks and Mariners stadiums, and other important programs. We hope to help it play an even bigger role over the life of this contract." "We've been very happy with both the quality and variety of Scientific Games products and services," said Lottery Director Christopher Liu, "The new contract provides good value to the citizens of Washington State."
Since it was established in 1982, Washington's Lottery has contributed $2.3 billion to the state's general fund, including education. In the 2005 fiscal year, more than $100 million was dedicated to education, especially education construction. In addition, Lottery revenues have helped reduce the public debt on both Safeco Field for the Seattle Mariners and Qwest Field and Event Center for the Seattle Seahawks. Revenues from Washington's Lottery also support economic development and other important state programs. About Scientific Games Scientific Games Corporation is the leading integrated supplier of instant tickets, systems and services to lotteries, and the leading supplier of wagering systems and services to pari-mutuel operators. It is also a licensed pari-mutuel gaming operator in Connecticut and the Netherlands and is a leading supplier of prepaid phone cards to telephone companies. Scientific Games' customers are in the United States and more than 60 other countries. For more information about Scientific Games, please visit our web site at http://www.scientificgames.com. SOURCE: Scientific Games
Corporation. Szerencsejáték Zrt Releases New Scented Instant Ticket 
BUDAPEST, Hungary (March 13, 2006) -- Szerencsejáték Zrt., The national Lottery of Hungary, is launching a new instant ticket called Virág (Flower) in April 2006. The die-cut ticket was printed by Oberthur Gaming Technologies (OGT)in 5 million pieces. The design is made by the supplier and most of the photos are taken by one of the Szerencsejáték Zrt.’s employee. The main attraction on the ticket is that after scratching off the latex (the flower on the ticket) a discrete rose scent can be smelt.
The ticket costs 150 HUF (appr. 0,6 €) and its top prize is 5 million HUF (appr. 33 000 €).The odds of winning is 1: 3,19. The game rule is very simple, after scratching off the play area on the ticket, a 3 out of 6 game can be found. The player wins if three identical amounts can be found. His winning is this amount. If three identical numbers and a flower appear, the player doubles his winning. The Szerencsejták Zrt. is targeting with the Virág ticket mainly the female customers and those, who prefer to give instant tickets as a present to the beloved one, to relatives and friends, as it can be a nice gift for birthday, name day, mothers day, etc. SOURCE: Szerencsejáték Zrt.
Sales of Pull-Tabs Red-Hot Across Texas in 2005, Post Largest-Ever Receipts AUSTIN, Texas, USA (March 9, 2006) -- Sales of pull-tabs, the instant tickets of charitable bingo, sizzled during 2005, bringing in a record $222,880,635, a 22 percent hike over 2004.
“The Texas bingo industry has never seen players respond to a product as favorably as they have to event style pull-tabs,” said Billy Atkins, director of the charitable bingo division of the Texas Lottery Commission. “Players speak with their dollars, and what they’re telling us is that they think pull-tabs are a fun way to play bingo because pull-tabs are exciting, fast to play, and players know immediately if they’ve won.” In 2002 a new style of pull-tab game was approved for sale in Texas and those games have resulted in a dramatic increase in sales. From 2002 to 2003 sales of pull-tab tickets increased of 45 percent and sales have continued to increase every year since. Most of the 1,265 non-profits that conduct charitable bingo games to raise money for their charitable causes also sell pull-tabs. For more information about charitable bingo, please visit the official Texas charitable bingo Web site at http://www.txbingo.org SOURCE: Texas Lottery Commission Press
Release. Baltimore Personalities Named Host and Co-Host of Maryland Lottery TV Event BALTIMORE, Maryland, USA (March 9, 2006) -- The Maryland Lottery announced the host and co-host of the upcoming Ancient Treasures television event. Local personality, Steve Rouse will join forces with Fox 45’s Traffic Reporter, Gabrielle Abiera to host the Hollywood-game show-style production. Steve has had prior experience working with the Lottery, having hosted the Lottery’s Cash Encounters television event in 2003. Most will remember him from WQSR-FM where he hosted Rouse and Company for 17 years. Steve currently hosts the talk show, Baltimore Saturday Night that airs on Channel 2 on Saturday nights at 11:30 PM.
This will be Gabrielle’s first time working with the Lottery. The Maryland native has a background in broadcasting and was once a cheerleader for the Baltimore Stallions of the Canadian Football League. Gabrielle now provides Marylanders with the local traffic report every weekday morning on Fox 45. “Steve and Gabrielle will do a great job as co-hosts,” said an enthusiastic Buddy Roogow, Director of the Maryland Lottery. “Their personalities will inject fun, excitement and energy into the show. The contestants and the audience are going to love them.” The entry deadline for the Ancient Treasures television event is April 28th. Lottery players who wish to participate in the event still have the opportunity to do so. To be eligible, players must collect the four different Egyptian symbols on their non-winning Ancient Treasures scratch-off tickets and send in their set of symbols to receive $500 and qualify for a chance to win $1 million at the TV event. The event will air on June 24th on television stations across the State. Currently, 291 Ancient Treasures $500 Bonus Prizes remain. For more information on the Ancient Treasures scratch-off or second-chance event can visit the Maryland Lottery website at www.mdlottery.com. SOURCE: Maryland Lottery media release.
For information Missouri Lottery
Staff Appointments
Guess previously worked as a sales representative for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Prior to that, he was employed as a leasing representative with Magic Media Outdoor Advertising. Guess has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas. Also joining the Missouri Lottery is Nathan Bradley of Jefferson City. Nathan joined the Lottery staff as the administrative office support assistant for the Game Accounting section. He is responsible for completing adjustments for retailer refunds and credits and for answering customer service calls for the section. He also helps with other accounting functions. He previously worked in commercial sales for Lowe's and as a call center operator for Missouri One Call Systems, Inc. SOURCE: Missouri Lottery. Norsk Tipping Chooses Oberthur Gaming Technologies MONTREAL, Quebec, Canada (March 14, 2006) -- Oberthur Gaming Technologies (“OGT”) is proud to announce the signature of an exclusive contract with Norsk Tipping, the Norwegian National Lottery, for the printing of its instant lottery tickets. This three-year contract includes two one-year possible extensions. The previous partnership between the two organizations, signed in November 2002, is then sustained with the signature of this new agreement. “OGT has presented the most advantageous tender, and we have always been very pleased with their capability of manufacturing products of an unrivaled quality, as well as with the tremendous client support they have been provided since 1995, when we started our business relationship,” said Reidar Nordby Jr., President & CEO of Norsk Tipping. “OGT has always provided us with the utmost standards of security, as well as with original and exciting ideas. It is a pleasure to work with devoted people like them.”
“At OGT, we are honored with the confidence Norsk Tipping has placed in our organization,” said Patrick Larocque, Vice President, Sales and Marketing of OGT-Europe. “We are all looking forward to pursue our winning relationship with Norsk Tipping, and intensifying our efforts to continue growing the instant lottery market in Norway.” About Oberthur Gaming Technologies (www.oberthurgt.com) With more than 35 years of lottery-specific expertise and over a century's experience in the security printing industry, Oberthur Gaming Technologies is the world’s leader in the printing of innovative instant lottery tickets. Comprehensive services include strategic game planning and innovative conceptual design with OGT’s Dream Team™, mobile gaming, Cyber Games™ as well as state-of-the-art Global Operations and Lottery Distribution System (GOLDS). OGT currently supplies a full range of high quality products and services to 100 clients in some 50 countries. The company has production units and offices in Montreal, Canada; San Antonio, Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the U.S.; Paris, France; Vienna, Austria; and Sydney, Australia. SOURCE: Lyse Trudel, Communications Officer, Oberthur Gaming Technologies, (+1-514) 254-3600, ext. 101, Email: lyse.trudel@mtl.oberthurgt.com. For information: Patrick Larocque, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Europe, Oberthur Gaming Technologies, (+1-514) 254-3600, ext. 361, Email: patrick.larocque@mtl.oberthurgt.com JCM Gold (H.K.) Ltd. Opens New Sales Office in Macau
MACAU (March 15, 2006) – Responding quickly to the growing needs of its customers in the region, JCM Gold (H.K.) Ltd. has opened a new sales office in Macau. The office will offer direct local sales and support, including product training, trouble shooting and maintenance. The office will sell and service the entire line of JCM products, including the World Bill Acceptor (WBA®), Universal Bill Acceptor (UBA™), Trident™ Table Safe System and Intelligent Cash Box (ICB®). The office will also offer TransAct printers, including the Epic 950™, which is available on virtually every modern game platform. JCM Gold (HK) Chairman Yojiro Kamihigashi said, “This is an incredibly exciting time in the gaming industry, and we are thrilled to open an office in Macau, where we can provide local, easy access to JCM staff and products. Globally, we are ready to commit all necessary resources to further strengthen our customer-centric business philosophy.”
JCM Macau is located at Unit N, 6/F, Dynasty Plaza 393-437 Alameda Dr. Carlos D’Assumpcao, Macau, and is headed by Masakazu Sakamoto. About the Alliance Companies JCM American Corporation is the industry leader in currency handling systems and provides products, software and services to the gaming, vending, banking, amusement, and petroleum industries. TransAct (Nasdaq: TACT) designs, develops, manufactures and markets transaction-based printers under the Ithaca® and Epic® names. In addition, the company markets related peripherals spare parts and service. SOURCE: JCM American Corporation media
release distributed by Steinbeck Communications. MDI’s American Idol® Brand Rocks in Texas
ALPHARETTA, Georgia, USA (March 16, 2006) -- The huge success of the hit reality show American Idol® is stirring up a buzz with lottery players in Texas, now that the Lottery has launched a new instant game based on the hit television phenomenon. Texas is the first state to carry American Idol, licensed by MDI Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Scientific Games Corporation (NASDAQ: SGMS). The Hoosier Lottery will follow, launching its $2 game this week. “American Idol is by far the hottest show on television and its ratings are at an all time high. Worries that its popularity was going to wane have clearly been dispelled as is evidence with this season,” said Steve Saferin, MDI president. “It’s that extreme popularity that is resulting in great ticket sales for Texas and will do the same for other lotteries planning on running the game.” Texas’ $2 instant ticket features cool graphics from the show making it easily recognizable and offers a top prize of $20,000. It went on sale on Jan. 27 and as of early March was selling at about $1.3 million a week. Total sales have reached about $6 million with one-fourth of the game sold.
American Idol makes a unique game in that multiple states have been represented by American Idol finalists, resulting in a built-in fan base. Kelly Clarkson, the first winner of American Idol and arguably the most successful, is from Texas. Currently, the 12 finalists are from Alabama, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, New York, Tennessee and Virginia. And the mega-hit American Idol isn’t going anywhere any time soon. Fox Broadcasting, the producers of American Idol, the show’s famously sharp-tongued judge Simon Cowell and BMG Music Entertainment have announced a series of agreements that will keep Idol on the air through 2011. “Early predictions are that the popularity of this entertainment phenomenon is only going to grow and grow each new season,” Saferin said. “Lotteries everywhere should jump on this. Talk about attracting new players!” SOURCE: MDI Entertainment media
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