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Lottomatica
Launches Level I American Depositary Receipt (ADR)
Program ROME, Italy (September 21,
2007) - Lottomatica S.p.A. announced
that the registration statement of the Company's Sponsored Level I American
Depositary Receipt (ADR) program has been declared effective by the U.S.
Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). As previously announced,
Lottomatica's ADRs will trade on the U.S. over-the-counter (OTC) Pink Sheet
market under the symbol “LTTOY,” and the CUSIP number is
545697104. Each ADR will represent one Lottomatica ordinary share.
This communication does not
constitute an offer to purchase, sell, or exchange or the solicitation of an
offer to purchase, sell, or exchange any securities. The shares of Lottomatica
S.p.A. may not be offered or sold in the United States except pursuant to an
effective registration statement under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, or pursuant to a valid exemption from registration.
About Lottomatica
Lottomatica is one
of the world's largest commercial lottery operators and a market leader in the
Italian gaming industry. GTECH, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Lottomatica, is a leading gaming technology and
services company, providing innovative technology, creative content, and
superior service delivery. GTECH and Lottomatica together create a fully
integrated lottery operator and gaming technology solutions provider – a
combined company with worldwide scale, considerable financial strength, and
industry-leading customer solutions. Lottomatica is majority owned by De
Agostini, which belongs to a century-old publishing, media, and financial
services group. Lottomatica is publicly traded on the Italian Stock Exchange
(LTO), and in 2006, had approximately €1.7 billion in revenues and 5,900
employees in over 45 countries when combined with GTECH.
For further information: AD HOC Communication Advisors
02/7606741, Mario Pellegatta - Matteo Cidda 335/1415585.
GTECH contact: Robert K. Vincent Public Affairs
1-401-392-7452. A New Era In The
Gaming Market Of South Africa Has Begun
INTRALOT Partner In Gidani (Pty) Ltd - The New
Operator Of South Africa’s National Lottery
ATHENS, Greece (September 22, 2007) --
INTRALOT announces that
GIDANI (Pty) Ltd, in which its subsidiary
INTRALOT South Africa is an equity member, has been awarded the License to
operate the National Lottery of South
Africa. The award has been announced after a
6 months’ thorough process of re-examining the shareholding structure of
the applicants, that have been bidding for the new National Lottery License, by
the Minister of Trade and Industry, following the decision of the competent
court to set the license aside on March 5. It is
reminded that GIDANI was chosen after an international tender. Despite the long
delay, GIDANI has maintained its readiness and therefore will be able to start
immediately the operations of the National Lottery.
The duration of the new
License is seven (7) years and eight (8) months. It is expected that GIDANI
will achieve much better results than the previous annual revenues of about
€440m, through its advanced technology, the superior know how, the new
gaming content and the rapid expansion of its network.
INTRALOT South Africa, in which INTRALOT S.A. is the
majority shareholder, is currently the biggest shareholder of GIDANI and will
become the second major one, after the South African Government exercises its
option to join the company as a shareholder. The other shareholders of GIDANI
-based upon the local regulations for Black Economic Empowerment- are local
companies coming mainly from the Investment industry and the NGO space.
INTRALOT is the provider of the necessary Technology and
Services for the implementation and support of the overall National Lottery
project. INTRALOT has procured, installed and will support the operation of the
advanced integrated gaming total solution which includes an initial
installation of more than 7.500 CORONIS terminals and their peripherals, the
operating system “LOTOS” and the telecommunications infrastructure
needed for the smooth operation of the network. Within the first 3 years of
operation, the retailer network of GIDANI will increase to approximately 11.000
PoS. INTRALOT has, also, supported extensively all
the necessary training on the use of the new terminals, gaming software, as
well as, on client services’ best practices and transactions’ safety
to the retailers across the country. In a short period of time, 27.000
individuals were trained by 100 trainers in 103 venues around the country as
well as in in-shop training sessions. GIDANI is
expected to bring new dynamics in the local gaming market and broader economy.
The facts speak for themselves:
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- The Lottery’s operation will
be inaugurated with a network of 7626 retailers and the plan is to grow by at
least 3.000 additional PoS within the first 3 years of operation.
- The Lottery will be present
everywhere, in all Magisterial districts in South Africa, through at least two
retailers in each district.
- The retailers’ network is
already fully expanded not only in conventional lottery shops but also in
convenience stores, post offices, supermarkets, cafes and fast-food type stores
and general trade shops.
- GIDANI will offer retailers a
significant improvement in their profitability, through better commissions and
lower costs of doing the Lottery business.
- During GIDANI’s operation of
the National Lottery, Good Causes will benefit by a very significant increase
of the contribution they get from the lottery operation.
INTRALOT S.A. CEO, Mr.
Constantinos Antonopoulos stated: “GIDANI has been fairly re-named the
new National Lottery Operator of South Africa, as it carries proven and sound
national and worldwide experiences, through its local shareholders and its
international partner, INTRALOT. We commit ourselves to contribute to the best
operation of the South African Lottery and to create a valuable and mutually
profitable collaboration with our GIDANI Partners in order to deliver
significant benefits to the National Lottery and new exciting gaming
experiences to the citizens of South Africa”. About INTRALOT (www.intralot.com) INTRALOT, a public listed company, is the leading supplier of
integrated gaming and transaction processing systems, innovative game content
and sports betting management, to state-licensed gaming organizations
worldwide. It’s broad portfolio of products & services, its know-how
of Lottery, Betting & Video Lottery operations and its leading-edge
technology, give INTRALOT a competitive advantage which contributes directly to
customers’ efficiency, profitability and growth. With presence in over
than 40 countries, with more than 3,600 people and revenues of €791,4 m.
for 2006, INTRALOT has established its presence in all 5 continents.
For more information please CONTACT: Ms Persa Kartsoli,
Head Of Corporate Affairs, Phone: +30-210 6156000, Fax: +30-210 6106800, email:
kartsoli@intralot.com.
Scientific Games Awarded Ukrainian Lottery
Contract 5 Year Pact to
Supply Instant Ticket Cooperative Services to MSL
NEW YORK, USA (September 20, 2007) --
Scientific Games (Nasdaq: SGMS)
announced that it has been awarded a contract with MSL, the largest Ukrainian
Lottery, to supply instant tickets and cooperative services.
The contract begins in
April 2008 and will run for five years, with options to extend for additional
one-year increments. The company will handle the manufacturing and distribution
of instant tickets throughout Ukraine, including shipping, warehousing,
telemarketing, distribution and will advise on game design and marketing issues
as well as support on retail network optimization and expansion. Revenues to
Scientific Games will be based on a percentage of sales. MSL currently operates
10 lotteries in Ukraine, spanning a population of 47 million people and
approximately 16,000 retailers. "We are proud to
become a partner of the Ukrainian Lottery through MSL," said Lorne Weil,
Chairman and CEO of Scientific Games. "We look forward to growing instant
ticket sales throughout MSL's large network of retailers in the spring of 2008.
Ukraine is widely considered one of the fastest growing economies in the world,
and we hope to grow funds for charitable causes at a similar pace."
"After witnessing Scientific Games' success in other
European countries, we realized Scientific Games would be the perfect partner
to help grow instant ticket sales in the Ukraine," said Georgiy Lozhenko,
President of MSL. "MSL has a history of cooperating with well-known foreign
and domestic companies and we believe Scientific Games will help MSL continue
to be a strong leader and take our lottery to the next level."
About Scientific
Games Scientific Games Corporation is the leading
integrated supplier of instant tickets, systems and services to lotteries
worldwide, a leading supplier of fixed odds betting terminals and systems,
Amusement and Skill with Prize betting terminals, interactive sports betting
terminals and systems, and wagering systems and services to pari-mutuel
operators. It is also a licensed pari-mutuel gaming operator in Connecticut,
Maine 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 www.scientificgames.com.
Company Contact: Investor Relations, Scientific Games
Corporation, 212-754-2233 About MSL
MSL is the oldest and the greatest lottery operator in
Ukraine. MSL is a successor of the best traditions of "Sportloto", which
has been present in the lottery market for 36 years and continues to be a
leader of the lottery matters in Ukraine. Today, the MSL is carrying out 10
lotteries and includes the whole spectrum of entertainments for the lottery
fortune hunter: instant, numerical, bingo and internet lotteries.
SOURCE: Scientific Games. Report -- Retail Strategies of Global Lotteries
Differ Significantly MECN’s New Benchmarking Report Offers Unique
Insight Into the Retail Strategies of Global Lotteries
LONDON, UK (September 25,
2007) -- Lotteries are increasingly interested in benchmarking and success
factors. And as the retail channel still dominates the global lottery market,
retail benchmarks and success factors are the ones many eyes are foremost
turning to. Key results of MECN’s new lottery benchmarking study: retail
strategies differ significantly, and many European lottery monopolists employ a
much less aggressive retail strategy than is sometimes alleged.
Wide variations in regard to retail density
Although the interactive channels are catching up, the
retail channel is still by far the dominant sales channel for lotteries. But
the retail density among the lotteries varies widely. For example, the number
of residents per retail shop ranges from more than 6,000 residents per outlet
to less than 500, with the overall average number of residents per outlet
hovering around 2,000. Retail strategies in
comparison In our analyses we found that lotteries
pursue very different retail strategies. The best way to characterise these
strategies is to compare the average number of residents per outlet and the
catchment area per outlet – the result is a 4-field matrix based on the
following basic strategic approaches:
Exhibit 1: Retail strategies in
comparison 
1. Absorption and penetration strategy -
Lotteries whose retail outlets have only a small catchment area and
also a low average number of residents per outlet, as a rule, are primarily
focusing on increasing their overall sales. This aggressive absorption and
penetration strategy might potentially be problematic in the eyes of some
initiatives for responsible gambling. 2. Large
area strategy - Particularly lotteries serving sparsely populated
large states, such as Atlantic Lottery
and Norsk Tipping, face massive
challenges in defining their retail strategies. In field 2 of our matrix we
find lotteries for which the low number of potential customers per outlet is
not an indication of maximum absorption of buying power, but rather the
consequence of a sparse settlement pattern.
3. Pinpoint
strategy - Many lotteries want their retailers to have a potential
customer base of more than 2,000 customers. So instead of increased absorption,
these lotteries are betting on moderate penetration and a responsible approach
to supplying customers with lottery products without stimulating excessive
gambling. 4. Conservative strategy -
Some lotteries could, according to our analysis, even increase the
number of their outlets without hurting their retailers’ bottom line and
without risking criticism for creating incentives for excessive gambling.
Many European lotteries employ a rather moderate retail
strategy In the recent conflicts, critics have
often cited the size of the retail networks of European lotteries as an
indicator of their excessive expansion strategy. According to our analysis,
only few European lotteries pursue such an expansive strategy. Most of them
– among them the German WestLotto
and the Dutch De Lotto – instead
pursue a moderate pinpoint strategy (as described in point 3).
New lottery benchmarking report
The information above is taken from MECN’s latest
report “Lottery Benchmarking and Success Factors” - a unique
benchmarking report analysing data from more than 150 lotteries for the years
2005 and 2006. The report analyses, among other things, sales benchmarks, sales
channel benchmarks, operating expenses benchmarks, and marketing benchmarks as
well as success factors and best practices. The study
can be obtained at: http://www.lottery-benchmarking.mecn.net
About MECN: MECN is a
network of experts on issues concerning the media and entertainment industry.
Together they provide in-depth knowledge, analysis, and advice to global
clients. CONTACT: Martin Oelbermann, Tel: +49 (0)89
3835 6785, e-mail: pr@mecn.net
Scientific Games Selected in Iowa Instant Ticket
RFP Revenue Estimated at
$1 Million Per Year NEW YORK, USA (September
21, 2007) -- Scientific Games (Nasdaq:
SGMS) announced it has been selected as the primary vendor to supply instant
tickets and related services for the Iowa
Lottery. Subject to negotiation, a contract for a two-year term would begin
January 1, 2008, and include options to extend for three additional one-year
periods. Scientific Games was chosen through a competitive procurement and this
contract is expected to generate approximately $1 million in revenue per
year.
"We are proud to be a
part of the Iowa Lottery, which is well recognized as one of the most
innovative and forward-looking lotteries in the world," said
Lorne Weil, Chairman and CEO of
Scientific Games. "We have cultivated a great relationship with the Iowa
Lottery over the years and we look forward to their continued strong
growth." In fiscal 2007, the Iowa Lottery
generated $235 million in retail sales, of which $125 million were from instant
tickets, and returned $58 million to the state. About Scientific Games Scientific Games Corporation is the leading integrated
supplier of instant tickets, systems and services to lotteries worldwide, a
leading supplier of fixed odds betting terminals and systems, Amusement and
Skill with Prize betting terminals, interactive sports betting terminals and
systems, and wagering systems and services to pari-mutuel operators. It is also
a licensed pari-mutuel gaming operator in Connecticut, Maine 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 www.scientificgames.com.
Company CONTACT: Investor Relations, Scientific Games
Corporation, 212-754-2233 SOURCE: Scientific
Games. Washington's Lottery Launches Raffle - And Best
Odds Yet to Become a Millionaire! 25th Anniversary Million Dollar Raffle Tickets Go on
Sale September 23 – Only 375,000 Available!
OLYMPIA, Washington State (September 23, 2007) --
Washington’s Lottery wants to know: Who
doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Everyone’s odds of winning a million bucks just got a
whole lot better thanks to a new raffle game announced today by
Washington’s Lottery. The Lottery’s first-ever raffle game –
launched to honor its 25th anniversary – will make three very lucky ticket
holders instant millionaires.
Lottery officials urge
Washingtonians to buy their raffle tickets right as they go on sale the morning
of September 23. Why? Because only 375,000 raffle tickets will be issued,
making this game a customer’s best bet at winning a million dollar prize.
Odds of winning a million bucks are 1 in 125,000, plus 354 additional winners
will win prizes of either $100,000 or $1,000. “Since we sold our first ticket 25 years ago,
Washington’s Lottery has made hundreds of people millionaires,”
said Christopher Liu, director of
Washington’s Lottery. “We couldn’t think of a better way to
celebrate 25 years of winners than to create three more!”
Raffle games held by lotteries in other states have often
sold out before many people could get around to buying tickets – less than
a week in one case. Tickets may be purchased for $20
each at any Washington’s Lottery retail store location when they open the
morning of September 23. The 25th Anniversary Raffle is a draw game, so it may
be purchased in the same way customers purchase Lotto, Hit 5, The Daily Game
and Daily Keno tickets. Once players buy their tickets, they’ll have to
hold on to them – the raffle drawing will be held on November 15.
“Once you’ve bought your tickets, keep them
in a safe, cool dry place,” said Liu. “Tickets are expected to
sell fast and that little slip of paper could be your ticket to become a
millionaire.” SOURCE: Washington Lottery.
South Carolina Education Lottery Acknowledged for
Excellence in Financial Reporting COLUMBIA, South Carolina, USA (September 25, 2007)
– The Certificate of Achievement forr Excellence in Financial Reporting
has been awarded to the South Carolina Education
Lottery (SCEL) by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United
States and Canada (GFOA) for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR).
The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area
of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment
represents a significant accomplishment by a government entity and its
management. This is the second consecutive year that SCEL has been acknowledged
for producing a first-class CAFR.
Uvette Pope-Rogers, CPA,
SCEL’s Controller, received the Award of Financial Reporting Achievement
on behalf of the Lottery for preparing the award-winning CAFR.
The CAFR has been judged by an impartial panel to
meet the high standards of the program including demonstrating a constructive
‘spirit of full disclosure’ to clearly communicate the
organization’s financial story and motivate potential users and user
groups to read the CAFR. The GFOA is a nonprofit,
professional association serving approximately 16,000 government finance
professionals with offices in Chicago, IL, and Washington, D.C.
SCEL markets fun and entertaining games in a
responsible manner. The funds are appropriated by the General Assembly to
supplement educational programs. Since start-up, more than $1.74 billion in
lottery proceeds has been appropriated towards educational programs, including
K-12 programs, the Endowed Chairs Program at South Carolina’s three
research universities, and higher education scholarships. Learn more
about how education is winning by visiting
www.sceducationlottery.com
— Where Education WWins! For More
Information CONTACT: Julie E. Huffman, SCEL Communications Coordinator, Office:
(803) 737-2574, Fax: (803) 737-2893, Cell: (803)
667-2848, Email: Julie.huffman@sclot.com
SOURCE: South Carolina Education Lottery.
Aristocrat
Launch Statewide Millioni$er Progressive in Nevada
LAS VEGAS, Nevada, USA (September 26, 2007) -- From Las
Vegas to Reno, from Elko to Laughlin and everywhere in between, players in
casinos across Nevada can now become instant millionaires, thanks to
Aristocrat's new statewide penny progressive, Millioni$er.
Currently, 760 Millioni$er penny games are in play
throughout the state and across the U.S., and 385 games in Nevada will all be
linked by October to create a statewide progressive jackpot that offers players
the chance to win more than $1 million playing a penny slot.
Millioni$er has already
created 28 millionaires since 2004, and with the new statewide progressive
jackpot, many more players could soon be added to the growing list of
Millioni$er millionaires. "This is an exciting time
for all types of players in casinos throughout Nevada! By playing the new
Millioni$er progressive product, players now have a chance at becoming a
millionaire by playing a penny slot!" said Aristocrat Senior Vice President
of Sales Sean Evans. Millioni$er is a Hyperlink(R)
progressive and sports a patented second-screen feature with four different
jackpot levels that can be triggered randomly during game play. The four tiered
progressives give Millioni$er a higher hit frequency so players win jackpots
more often. Aristocrat Technologies Inc. is a
subsidiary of Aristocrat Leisure Limited , a leading global provider of gaming
solutions that consistently outperform the competition. The Company is licensed
by over two hundred regulators and its products and services are available in
over ninety countries around the world. Aristocrat offers a diverse range of
products and services including electronic gaming machines, interactive video
terminal systems, electronic tables, and casino management systems. For further
information visit the company's website at
http://www.aristocratgaming.com/
CONTACT: Paul Speirs, Steinbeck Communications,
(702) 413-4278, Email: paulspeirs@cox.net
SOURCE: Aristocrat Technologies Inc.
SAZKA to Partner with the Ukrainian National
Lottery PRAGUE, Czech Republic
(September 21, 2007) -- The SAZKA joint
stock company has agreed on cooperation for the Ukrainian National Lottery. The
Ukrainian National Lottery (UNL) is based in
Kiev and owns 3,200 betting on-line terminals on the territory of Ukraine, a
country with some 48,000,000 inhabitants. It is active in number lotteries and
operates nationwide lottery games Super Loto, Keno and Loto Triyka. The
Ukrainian National Lottery is a member of the European Lotteries and Toto Association (EL).
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Under the cooperation,
which will cover a period until 2013, SAZKA, a.s., will provide its partner
with lottery know-how as well as licences and patents for non-lottery products
such as those for the mobile phone top-up service. The Ukrainian National
Lottery will also be allowed to use SAZKA's terminals, which are now available
after the recent conversion of the on-line system and terminal network of
SAZKA, a.s. The cooperation will be mutually very profitable inclusive of
financial benefit for SAZKA, a.s. "Betting and
lottery companies from several countries have offered their cooperation to us
over the past years," said JUDr.
Aleš Hušák, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief
Executive Officer of SAZKA, a.s. "We consider the prospects of the Ukrainian
National Lottery, which is active in one of the most populated European
markets, to be very good, in both lottery and non-lottery services."
"SAZKA is among leaders of the lottery industry in
numerous areas," added Ramez Sarkis, Chief Executive Officer of the
Ukrainian National Lottery. "We also want to offer some of its products to
our customers in the future." SOURCE: SAZKA, a.s.
press release. Mobile Gambling
Wagers to Approach $12bn Within 3 Years, According to Juniper
Research HAMPSHIRE, UK (September
26, 2007) - The increasing deployment of multiple mobile payment technologies
and liberalisation of remote gambling legislation in key markets is expected to
push total annual wagers on mobile phones to nearly $12bn by 2010, according to
a new report by Juniper Research.
Mobile lotteries are
expected to be the most popular service by the end of the forecast period, with
more than 380m users worldwide. According to
report author Dr Windsor Holden, “Mobile lotteries have already
experienced significant levels of adoption in the Far East, while we envisage
that European state lotteries will increasingly embrace the mobile environment
in the medium term.” The report added that
growth would also be fuelled by market liberalisation such as the UK’s
Gambling Act which came into force on September 1, and by proposed amendments
to existing legislation elsewhere in Europe. Furthermore, it suggested that in
the longer term, there would also be opportunities in the US market.
“The intimations from the US are that the act will
be repealed or at least reformed,” said Holden. “Should that
be the case, then, facilitated by location-based technologies, in-state mobile
lotteries, betting and possibly casino services will be available in that
market by 2010.” Other findings from the
report include:
- Global gross win from mobile
gambling services will rise from just $106m in 2007 to $3.2bn in 2012.
- The UK is currently the largest
single market for mobile gambling services, although it will be overhauled by
the US by 2012.
- Adoption in emerging markets will
be boosted by the introduction of cash-based payment systems such as
Spin3’s On-Cash
Juniper Research assesses the
current and future status of mobile user-generated content based on interviews,
case studies and analysis from representatives of some of the leading
organisations in the growing mobile user-generated content industry.
White papers and further details of the study 'Mobile
Gambling: Casinos, Lotteries and Betting 2007-2012 (Fourth edition)’ can
be freely downloaded from http://www.juniperresearch.com
Alternatively please contact John Levett at
john.levett@juniperresearch.com, telephone +44(0)1256 830002/889555.
Juniper Research provides research and analytical services
to the global hi-tech communications sector, providing consultancy, analyst
reports and industry commentary. SOURCE: Juniper
Research. Connecticut
Lottery & Arizona Gaming Designs LLC Sign Licensing
Agreement PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania
(September 24, 2007) -- Arizona Gaming Designs, LLC announced today it reached
agreement with The Connecticut Lottery
Corporation to license a new lottery drawing game scheduled to launch in
2008.
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The patented
“Match-Up” game concept (to be known as “Mix &
Match” in Connecticut) features flexible game design allowing
lotteries to create different games based on their specific needs. Match-Up
games are easy to understand, simple to play and provide players with frequent
winning experiences. The Match-Up game Connecticut selected is a 5 of 20
game. Players win by matching any one or more numbers by ‘Position’
or by matching any three or more numbers in any order. Overall odds of winning
are 1 in 3.8 with a top prize of $250,000 in cash. “Arizona Gaming Designs is extremely pleased the
Connecticut Lottery Corporation (CLC) selected our unique Match-Up concept as
their first new drawing game in 10 years,” said Ron Borruso,
President, Arizona Gaming Designs. “Our goal is to increase overall
sales without cannibalizing existing game sales. We look forward to our
partnership with CLC and to the successful launch of our game next
year.” Match-Up games can be designed to
compliment individual or multi-state lottery online game products.
“Our games provide the lottery industry with new
options the industry has been seeking for years….games offering great odds
and substantially more winners.” said Borruso Earlier this year, the Pennsylvania Lottery successfully
launched the unique Arizona Gaming Designs game, “Mix &
Match”, which is similar in play-style to the CLC game.
For more information please Contact: Fran Gruden Arizona
Gaming Designs, LLC, T: 412.344.5012, C: 412.596.1537, Email:
fgruden@gruden3.com
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