| Prestigious "Global IT Excellence" Award To
INTRALOT
ATHENS, Greece (May 21, 2008) --
INTRALOT was honoured with the
prestigious "Global IT Excellence Award 2008" by the World Information
Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA) during the 16th World Congress on
Information Technology (WCIT 2008), the global forum on information and
communications technology, which was held in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia. Themed "The
Global Impact of Information and Communications Technology: Enable Businesses,
Empower Societies, Enrich Economies", the five-day event (May 18-22, 2008),
drew more than 3,200 delegates from over 90 countries.
Nominated for the "Private
Sector Excellence Award" by the Federation of Hellenic Information Technology
and Communications Enterprises (SEPE), member of the WITSA, INTRALOT
participated in an international voting procedure by a multinational committee
consisted of professionals belonging to WITSA's member associations worldwide.
INTRALOT was distinguished among other organizations
all over the world for the demonstration of effectiveness of the use of IT, the
number of people benefiting from the application of the technology, the degree
of effectiveness of the technology, and the level of innovation used in
implementing the technology's application. The Private Sector Excellence Award
recognizes information technology users, whose innovative uses of information
technology directly increase a business ability to meet its objectives, improve
its competitiveness or better serve its customers needs.
At the occasion of
the awarding, Mr. Constantinos Antonopoulos, CEO of INTRALOT, stated: "We are
extremely honoured to receive this significant award by such a prominent global
Organization, whose members comprise more than 90% of the global ICT market. In
particular, we would like to thank the Federation of Hellenic Information
Technology and Communications Enterprises (SEPE) for proposing INTRALOT to this
prestigious contest.
The flagship event of WCIT,
also known as the Olympics of the ICT, was an excellent opportunity to share
our practices and celebrate our distinction with people from the top ICT
companies worldwide. This new recognition of our efforts by the World
Information Technology and Services Alliance ratifies our commitment to
excellence and innovation". The first WITSA Awards
were held at the 2000 World Congress on IT, in Taipei. The WITSA Global ICT
Excellence Awards are held every two years, in connection with WITSA's premier
event; the World Congress on IT. The Awards program aims at identifying the
most outstanding users of information and communications technology.
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 more than 40 countries, with 4.200 people and revenues of
€835,5 m. for 2007, INTRALOT has established its presence on all 5
continents.
For more information CONTACT: Ms Persa Kartsoli, Head of
Corporate Affairs, Phone: +30-210 6156000, Fax: +30-210 6106800, email:
kartsoli@intralot.com MDI Nominated for International Licensing
Award The Overwhelmingly
Popular Deal or No Deal™ Up for Honors
ALPHARETTA, Georgia, USA
(May 16, 2008) -- MDI Entertainment, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Scientific Games
Corporation (NASDAQ: SGMS), has been nominated for an International
Licensing Excellence Award for its “Deal or No Deal”
property. The awards, which will be handed out at the
June 11 LIMA (Licensing Industry Merchandisers’ Association) gala and
awards ceremony at the Sheraton New York, recognize the best and the brightest
in the licensing industry. The nomination for
MDI’s “Deal or No Deal” property is in the “Best Film,
Television and Entertainment Brand Licensee of the Year – Hard Goods”
category. It is up against Digital Blue’s Disney products, Hasbro’s
Spider Man 3 product line, JAKKS Pacific’s Hannah Montana product line and
Rubie’s Costume’s High School Musical 2 costumes and accessories.
Deal or No Deal is licensed by Endemol USA Inc. “This nomination is a reflection of MDI’s
strong and close relationship with our licensors,” said
Steve Saferin, MDI president.
”It highlights the mutual benefits that have been achieved between MDI
and Endemol and proves what can come out of successful licensor/licensee
partnerships.”
Licenses from around the
world will be honored in the following seven categories: Art, Character,
Corporate, Film Television & Entertainment, Sports, Retailer, Promotions as
well as the Overall Best License of the Year. “The International Licensing Excellence Awards
are the coveted prize and a recognized symbol of success in the licensing
industry,” said Charles Riotto, president of LIMA. “Recent
years have seen an upsurge in entries from all facets of the industry and the
judging metrics have gotten more and more stringent to insure that the ballot
represents the best of the best for our industry. This year for the first time,
we are happy to be partnering with BRANDWEEK to increase the level of awareness
and stature of the awards overall.” The
success of Deal or No Deal instant tickets last year led MDI and Scientific
Games to invent a new product category called Linked Instant Games. Twenty-two
states signed on to the first-ever linked game - Deal or No Deal - in which
each lottery was guaranteed one winner a trip to Hollywood for a chance to win
$1 million by playing Deal or No Deal on stage with host Howie Mandel and the
26 models. MDI hosted more than 500 people in Los
Angeles last month and treated them to a true Hollywood experience with Deal or
no Deal tapings, dinner parties at Paramount Studios and the historic Roosevelt
Hotel and side trips to popular tourist attractions like Knott’s Berry
Farm, downtown Hollywood and Disneyland.
“The
popularity, sales success and excitement of our Deal or No Deal linked game led
to this outstanding LIMA nomination and we couldn’t be more honored to
receive this,” Saferin said. “We recognize we couldn’t
have achieved this without the support of our lottery partners and we look
forward to another year of success for both MDI and our customers with our
upcoming linked games and we thank LIMA for this award
nomination.” Each year, LIMA donates a
portion of the ticket sales from the annual awards gala to a charity that
supports and enriches the lives of children. LIMA’s charity of choice this
year is the Children’s Brain Tumor Foundation, which works to improve the
treatment, quality of life, and long-term outlook for children who are battling
brain and spinal cord tumors. About
Scientific Games Scientific Games Corporation is
the leading integrated supplier of instant tickets, systems and services to
lotteries worldwide, a leading supplier of server based gaming machines 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
CONTACT: Max Montgomery, Phone: 770-664-3807.
SAZKA’s Advertisements Win the Gold Medal at
the Golden Award International Festival in Montreux,
Switzerland PRAGUE, Czech Republic
(May 13, 2008) -- SAZKA’s Helicopter,
Skyscraper and Forest spots won another international award – the Gold
Medal in the Television Campaign category at the Golden Award of Montreux 2008
international advertising festival.
The TV advertising and
multimedia festival Golden Award of Montreux is a prestigious independent
forum, which evaluates advertising works from all over the world. The festival
jury comprised executive and creative directors of renowned ad agencies, along
with marketing directors of major supranational companies.
The television campaign “People across the Globe Look
for their Lucky Numbers. We Have Sportka!” has become the most successful
advertising project in SAZKA’s longer than a 50-year history. The
Helicopter, Skyscraper and Forest spots were also awarded with the Golden Drum
at the Golden Drum international advertising festival in Portoroz; the best
campaign prize in the Entertainment, Recreation and Leisure category at the
Advertising Summit & Intercontinental Advertising Cup in Valencia; the
Golden Stone 2007 by the Association of Czech Advertising Agencies; and the
Silver Nutcracker 2007 by the Art Directors Club of the Czech Republic in
partnership with the Association of Communication Agencies and the Association
of Producers in Audiovision, to name some of the awards won.
SAZKA, a.s., the oldest and biggest lottery company in the
Czech Republic, has signed no long-term agreement with any advertising agency.
It seeks creative and production partners for individual projects ad hoc, using
RFP (request for proposals) processes. The Helicopter, Skyscraper and Forest
spots, created in Lithuania, Nepal and Malaysia, were directed by Karel
Janák. SOURCE: PhDr. Zdeněk Zikmund, Press
Spokesperson, SAZKA, a.s., Tel.: 266 12 92 22, Fax: 266 12 26 67, E-mail:
zikmund@sazka.cz.
La Française des Jeux Launches a New
Instant Game Based on Police Investigation
FRANCE (May 19, 2008) -- On May 15,
La Française des Jeux launched a
€2 new instant game based on the successful and famous TV police series
theme called ‘Menez l’Enquete !’ (Lead the investigation!).
Menez l’Enquête ! is the second instant theme-based game
launched in 2008 after Totémia.
Like Totemia, Menez
l’Enquete! is a temporary game with a limited edition of 50 million
printed tickets. The new game will be sold during a 3 to 6-month period.
The ticket features 2 games, offers a €10,000 top
prize and chances to cumulate several winnings: In
game 1, players scratch 3 screens computer that indicate the place, the weapon
and the motive and compare them with the 3 winning clues. Players can win up to
3 times (cumulative winnings). There are 64 winning combinations.
In game 2, players scratch the car windscreen to find a
finger-print or a face. Uncovering a finger-print, players win a prize and
cumulate it with the winnings from game 1. Finding a face, players double his
winnings from game 1. The new game has a prize payout
of 66% and very good chances of winning a prize: 1 in 4.16. In addition, Menez
l’Enquete ! offers one chance in 5 to win €4 (i.e. double price
refund) against 1 chance in 9 on average with the other instant games.
Fore more information, please Contact: Antonia Dadoun
– La Française des Jeux, Email: adadoun@lfdj.com.
Let the
Adventure Begin!
LANSING, Michigan, USA (May
15, 2008) - The Michigan Lottery has
partnered with one of the summer's hottest movies to make you a big instant
winner! The Indiana Jones ‘quadrilogy’ is on sale now!
Indiana Jones is a $2 ticket with top prizes of $25,000!
To win, just match your numbers with any of the three winning numbers and win
the prize shown. Four different tickets highlight
each Indiana Jones movie, including the new Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of
the Crystal Skull, set to release on May 22. Indiana
Jones tickets are available at over 11,000 Michigan Lottery retailers.
Over 95 cents of every dollar spent on Lottery tickets is
returned to the state in the form of contributions to the state School Aid
Fund, prizes to players and commissions to retailers. In fiscal year 2007, the contribution to schools was $748.9
million. Since its inception in 1972, the Lottery has contributed more than
$14.3 billion to education in Michigan. For additional
information, please visit the Lottery's Web site at:
www.michigan.gov/lottery.
SOURCE: Michigan Lottery. CONTACT: Andi Brancato,
517-335-5648. Littlefield
Corporation Announces Formation of the Texas Association for the Advancement of
Charitable Bingo AUSTIN, Texas
(May 16, 2008) -- Littlefield Corporation (OTCBB: LTFD) announces that it has
participated with others representing approximately thirty-five (35) licensed
commercial lessors in the founding of the Texas Association for the Advancement
of Charitable Bingo.
The Texas Association for
the Advancement of Charitable Bingo is a non-profit business association among
licensed commercial lessors, which seeks the advancement of charitable bingo in
Texas. The Association is formally organized as a
Texas non-profit corporation pursuant to the provisions of Title 1, Chapter 3,
Subchapter A of the Texas Business Organizations Code and is intended to
operate in a manner consistent with Section 501(c)(6) of the United States
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The
Association has filed its Certificate of Formation with the Texas Secretary of
State’s office effective as of 1 May 2008 and adopted its Bylaws as of the
same date. The Association shall be governed by a three (3) person Board of
Directors which shall appoint officers. The
Association’s members currently are composed of approximately thirty-five
(35) founding commercial lessors. The Association shall increase its membership
exclusively by invitation. Invitations will be extended to active commercial
lessors who do not participate in or support gambling -- legal or illegal -- in
or around charitable bingo halls. The Association
will become an active voice for the advancement of charitable bingo before the
Texas Lottery Commission and the Legislature
and will actively pursue rulemaking and legislative initiatives which benefit
charitable bingo. The Association will coordinate closely with the TLC
Charitable Bingo Operations Division and other like-minded industry
organizations such as the Texas Charity Advocates. SOURCE: Littlefield Corporation, For additional information,
please Contact: Jeffrey L. Minch, Texas Association for the Advancement of
Charitable Bingo, 512-476-5141, Email: jminch@littlefield.com. California State Lottery Commission Revises Budget
for 2007-08 Fiscal Year
SACRAMENTO, California (May
20, 2008) -- The California Lottery
Commission today voted to approve a mid-year revision of the California
Lottery’s budget for the 2007-08 fiscal year. The budget revision was
prompted by updated sales projections that show a $275 million decrease in
sales compared to the projected budget for the fiscal year. The revised budget
predicts sales of $3.075 billion for the 2007-08 fiscal year with public
education projected to receive $1.091 billion in supplemental funding as a
result. This represents a reduction of $94 million in education funding
compared to what was projected, but would still represent the eighth
consecutive year that the Lottery returned more than a billion dollars to its
beneficiary. Poor brand image and low prize payouts,
as well as arcane restrictions all contribute to the budget shortfall.
Some states have also attributed their current year declines to the poor
economy and rising gas prices. Other state lotteries have been similarly
affected with 19 other lotteries reporting flat or declining sales.
Over the course of this fiscal year, the California
Lottery began to enact the first long term business plan (www.calottery.com/businessplan)
in an effort to stabilize sales and create long term
growth. This plan will take approximately three to five years to
implement and once recognized will represent the maximum amount of sustainable
growth attainable under the current legislative restrictions.
This year, the California Lottery recruited over 1,000 new
retailers, launched a new marketing campaign that has stabilized and even
reversed the downward trend with our lotto game sales (SuperLOTTO Plus® and
MEGA Millions seeing increases of 7%
and 13% respectively), increased consumer protection efforts to industry
leading levels, and increased earned media on lower jackpots and regional
winners. These and the many other efforts the Lottery is undertaking
should minimize or even reverse the downward trend to the extent possible
without legislative reforms.
The modest budget projected
for 2007-08 was largely based on sales for the draw style games such as
SuperLOTTO Plus and MEGA Millions. Sales for these games are projected to fall
short of budgeted goals by $30 million. SuperLOTTO Plus sales are now estimated
at $605 million, or 3.2% below budget. MEGA Millions sales are now
projected at $415 million, or 2.4% below budget. Because of statutory restrictions the California Lottery uses
the proceeds from sales of its draw games like SuperLOTTO Plus and MEGA
Millions, and additional administrative savings, to fund prize levels for its
Scratchers® products. Declines in draw games sales, force the Lottery to
curtail the sale of Scratchers tickets because it cannot afford to fund
Scratchers prize funds at desired levels. Recognizing that draw games sales
were declining, the California Lottery lowered its prize structure on
Scratchers products for the 2007-08 fiscal year. Unfortunately, as a result,
the Lottery projects a decline of 11.7% in Scratchers sales below the original
target of $1.800 billion for a revised total of $1.590 billion in sales. The
decline in Scratchers sales is unfortunate because while other states have seen
similar sales declines in draw style games, they have the ability to mitigate
their deficits through higher Scratchers sales. Public education will receive 34% of sales as mandated by the
Lottery Act. However, the revised budget now projects that the Lottery will
contribute $1.091 billion in supplemental funding to education over 2007-08, a
decrease of $94 million. SOURCE California
Lottery. CALIFORNIA STATE LOTTERY
ADJUSTMENTS
TO FY 2007-08 BUDGET
(Dollars in Millions)
| SALES |
Original
Budget
FY2007-08 |
% of
Sales
|
Change |
Adjusted Budget
FY 2007-08 |
% of
Sales |
| Estimated Sales |
$3,350 |
100.0% |
($275) |
$3,075 |
100.0% |
| PRIZES |
|
|
|
|
|
| Prize Expense |
$1,675 |
50.0% |
($137) |
$1,538 |
50.0% |
| Promotional Prizes |
$105 |
3.1% |
($5) |
$100 |
3.3% |
| Total Prizes |
$1,780 |
53.1% |
($142) |
$1,638 |
53.3% |
| ADMINISTRATIVE
EXPENSES |
|
|
|
|
|
| Retailer Compensation |
$239 |
7.1% |
($20) |
$219 |
7.1% |
| Game Operations |
$60 |
1.8% |
($4) |
$56 |
1.8% |
| Communications |
$40 |
1.2% |
$0 |
$40 |
1.3% |
| General
Administration |
$77 |
2.3% |
$0 |
$77 |
2.5% |
| Administrative
Reserve |
$15 |
0.4% |
($15) |
$0 |
0.0% |
| Total Administrative
Expenses |
$431 |
12.9% |
($39) |
$392 |
12.7% |
| EDUCATION
REVENUE |
|
|
|
|
|
| Statutory Requirement |
$1,139 |
34.0% |
($94) |
$1,045 |
34.0% |
| Interest and Other
Income |
$20 |
0.6% |
$0 |
$20 |
0.7% |
| Unclaimed Prizes |
$26 |
0.8% |
$0 |
$26 |
0.8% |
| Total Revenues for
Education |
$1,185 |
35.4% |
($94) |
$1,091 |
35.5% |
Pacific Lottery
Corporation Begins Delivery and Installation of Its Proprietary Lottery
Terminals in Vietnam
CALGARY, Alberta, Canada
(May 22, 2008) - Pacific Lottery Corporation
(the "Corporation") (TSX VENTURE:LUK) is pleased to announce that it has
begun the delivery and installation of its proprietary and innovative Lottery
Terminals (the "Lottery Terminals") to authorised Lottery retailers in Vietnam,
in accordance with its new ten (10) year exclusive technology supply and
services contract. The Corporation expects to deliver
these innovative Lottery Terminals to pre-authorized lottery retailers over the
course of the next few weeks, until the start up network minimum of 200 lottery
retailers required for launching of the new online lottery system is achieved
and thereafter on a continuous program schedule until market saturation is
reached. The delivery of the Lottery Terminals is in
furtherance of the Ha Noi Electronic Corporation ("HANEL") manufacturing
subcontract with the Corporation to produce under exclusive license the initial
600 Lottery Terminals; being part of the Corporation’s larger installation
plans for a market that is generally acknowledged will require several thousand
Lottery Terminal outlets before market saturation is achieved.
The new Lottery Terminal installations are being conducted
by four technical installation teams under the supervision of the Corporation.
Each of these four installation teams consist of technical staff from the
Corporation and staff from the following Vietnamese government affiliates or
agencies: the Ha Noi Lottery Authority ("CLC"), Vietnam Data
Communications Company ("VDC"), a subsidiary of Vietnam Post and
Telecommunication Corporation ("VNPT") and HANEL. Once
the required installations are completed, the launch of Vietnam’s new
online lottery program utilizing the Corporation’s proprietary lottery
technology will follow shortly.
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In other news, the
Corporation was pleased to participate recently in the hosting of a Vietnam
focused investment seminar held in Frankfurt, which was attended by several
officials of the Vietnamese Ministry of Finance. The keynote address was
delivered by the Hon. Vu Van Ninh, the Minister of Finance of the Government of
Vietnam. The afternoon seminar was attended by many senior European fund and
banking managers who were interested in learning more about the many investment
opportunities available in Vietnam. The Corporation was gratified by the
significant interest demonstrated by the participants in the ongoing
development and progress of the Vietnamese economy. About Pacific Lottery Corporation (PLC):
Pacific Lottery Corporation is engaged in the provision of
online lottery technology and related professional services for delivery to a
growing audience of international customers. Today, the Corporation exclusively
leads the technical support activities for the On-Line lottery program in
Vietnam. CONTACT: Jill L.E. Johnson, Pacific Lottery
Corporation, (403) 266-8900, (403) 266-8909 (FAX), Email:
info@pacificlottery.ca.
FLUXX AG becomes JAXX AG
- Shareholders' Meeting
Approves Change Of Name
- Shareholders Vote by a
Clear Majority in Favour of All Agenda Items
ALTENHOLZ, Germany (May 21,
2008) -- At today's Shareholders' Meeting in Kiel the shareholders of the
gaming specialist FLUXX AG (ISIN
DE000A0JRU67) voted by a clear majority in favour of the change in the
company's name to "JAXX AG". The change of name will therefore take effect in
around four to six weeks, once the shareholder resolutions are entered on the
Commercial Register.
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Through the change of name,
FLUXX aims to strengthen the link with the gaming products offered under the
brand name JAXX. "The mention of 'FLUXX' does not automatically make the
association with sports betting, lotteries and casinos clear," explained Rainer
Jacken, Management Board spokesman of FLUXX AG. "Our product brand 'JAXX', on
the other hand, has already been established as a gaming brand for over 10
years." A survey commissioned from the renowned brand management agency
"Interbrand" revealed that the "JAXX" brand enjoys high relevance in the German
gaming market. The experts moreover believe that the brand is the ideal
umbrella under which to launch new products or enter new markets.
In addition to the change of name, the shareholders of the
future JAXX AG approved all other agenda items by a clear majority. The turnout
at the Shareholders' Meeting was 7.9 percent (previous year: 8.7 percent).
The results of the individual votes were:
Agenda item 2: Discharge of the Management Board -
Voting result: 92.7 % in favour. Agenda item 3:
Discharge of the Supervisory Board - Voting result: 99.1 % in favour.
Agenda item 4: Election of the auditors - Voting
result: 99.2 % in favour. Agenda item 5:
Resolution on the amendment of approved capital 2007/II; amendment to articles
of incorporation - Voting result: 90.3 % in favour. Agenda item 6: Resolution on the adjustment of the
authorisation for the Management Board to issue stock options, and of
conditional capital 2006/I; amendment to articles of incorporation - Voting
result: 89.6 % in favour. Agenda item 7:
Authorisation to issue convertible bonds and create conditional capital 2008/I;
amendment to articles of incorporation - Voting result: 90.2 % in favour.
Agenda item 8: Resolution on the change of name;
amendment to articles of incorporation - Voting result: 97.5 % in favour.
Agenda item 9: Resolution on the adjustment of the
articles of incorporation to reflect changes in the law - Voting result: 98.8 %
in favour. SOURCE: FLUXX AG. 
Pacific Online Profit Soars 70% to P46.3Million in
Q1 MANILA, Philippines (May 22,
2008) -- Pacific Online Systems
Corp., the exclusive online lottery system provider of the
Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO),
posted a net profit of P46.3 million in the first quarter, up 70 percent from
the previous year, due to higher revenues from the increased number of
terminals. In a report, Pacific Online said revenues
grew 66 percent to P178.9 million mainly due to additional terminal
deployment.
As of end-March 2008,
Pacific Online's total number of operating terminals hit 1,457 from 1,089 a
year earlier. Wholly-owned unit Loto Pacific Leisure
Corp. contributed P13.5 million to Pacific Online's total revenues,
representing commissions from retail lotto operations which also include
revenues generated by Loto Pacific's subsidiary, Lucky Circle Corp.
Total operating expenses, including depreciation and
amortization, rose 33 percent to P 66.3 million, mainly due to a 49.6 percent
increase in depreciation and amortization charges with the additional terminal
deployment. Higher personnel and rental costs likewise
contributed to the increase in expenses. Pacific
Online registered a stockholders' equity of P442.3 million and retained
earnings balance of P52.8 million as of end-March due to the increase in first
quarter profits. Given its strong financial
performance in the first three months of the year, Pacific Online has declared
a cash dividend of 25 centavos per share to all shareholders on record as of
May 23, totalling P49.8 million. The dividends are payable on or before June
19. "We expect this trend to continue throughout
the rest of the year. Without taking into account the additional revenues
expected from the roll out of additional terminals, we are confident of
reaching P200 million by yearend, based on the tracking of first quarter
results," Pacific Online chairman and president Willy Ocier said:
"Considering that the major capital expenditure budget
for new terminals has been provisioned, we intend to share the fruits of
management's hard work with our stakeholders. We expect to be in a position to
declare similar amounts of dividends by yearend and adopt a similar policy for
the ensuing years." Ocier added. The company's
income growth will be driven by the continued roll out of new terminals. It is
eyeing to put up 350 more outlets this year to bring its total betting station
network to around 1,750. SOURCE: Philippine Star.
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