iGaming operators are constantly on the search for ways to expand their offerings and tap into new markets. Innovation in our industry has been a huge focus in 2015, with the most impressive start-ups to date entering Clarion’s various launch pads and especially impressing the judges at EiG’s Start-up Launch Pad in October.
Large jackpots have always come along with a huge appeal despite the unfavourable odds (just think Microgaming progressive jackpots for slots, the Colossus Bets model and $1,000,000 prize pools at Draft Kings) and with this in mind, innovation in our industry has uncovered a new vertical for iGaming operators to take advantage of: betting on lotteries.
Lottoland is a B2C Lotto Betting site and has just recently launched Lottoland Solutions, a B2B offering for iGaming operators. The company was established a couple of years ago in Gibraltar and Lottoland Solutions’ VP of B2B Glen Bullen is in the process of educating operators on the big opportunity they have in lottery betting.
Lotteries have been around for hundreds of years, dating all the way back to Medieval times. In recent years, new concepts have been actioned allowing for pooling and therefore larger jackpots, an area the founders of Lottoland were able to take advantage of.
“Lotteries are ubiquitous but up until the EuroMillions concept was devised and launched their modus operandi had been confined to a stake pooling system within geographical boundaries. The private individuals behind Lottoland spotted that borders were irrelevant online and that betting on lotteries had not been explored to any great extent even though there was clearly latent mass-market appeal”, Bullen shared.
So far, Bullen and his colleagues at Lottoland are proud of the progress they have made and truly believe in the innovation behind their offering.
“Compared to the many billions of dollars, pounds or euros spent on lottery tickets around the world, Lottoland’s financial numbers are small in comparison. However, from zero at launch a couple of years ago to exceeding projected revenues, Lottoland has shown that taking a different approach is rewarding and sustainable”, said Bullen.
Most impressive of all, Lottoland’s customer winnings are underwritten by their own Insurance Linked Securities (ILS), the first ever EU-regulated ILS for a lottery betting company.
“An ILS is a financial vehicle that has traditionally been issued to provide cover for potentially catastrophic events like earthquakes and hurricanes. Whereas working out the probability of natural disasters is virtually impossible, the mathematical probability, or odds, of someone winning a five, six or seven-number lottery game is finite and crucially enables subscribers to an ILS to have a very good understanding of the risk involved”, explained Bullen.
He continued, “The Gibraltar government’s progressive approach to financial services made this possible, enabling the locally-licensed Lottoland to arrange a €100 million ILS transaction to cover for the possibility of customers hitting one of the many mega-lottery jackpot betting opportunities it offered”.
Hitting a multi-million jackpot might sound like a long-shot, but its actually been done before at Lottoland, making this product even more appealing to customers.
“Our customers can currently bet on 28 lottery offerings including EuroMillions, EuroJackpot, Spain’s El Gordo de Verano, and America’s PowerBall and MegaMillions lotteries. The largest jackpot winner was paid out in August, this when a player won a record PLN 11.2 million jackpot by matching winning numbers for the Polish Lottery”, said Bullen.
The chance to win a lot more than 11.2 million presents itself at Lottoland and its just a matter of time before it happens.
“Lottoland gives players an opportunity to bet on the outcome of lottery jackpots that reach staggering amounts, for instance MegaMillions and PowerBall jackpots, as of 30th November 2015, respectively stood at €395m and €104 million for that week alone”, he said.
The big opportunity here for the iGaming industry is the B2B Lotto Betting platform Lottoland is now offering, an innovative way for operators to reach new players.
“Operators are always looking for opportunities to diversify and to differentiate from their competitors. A simple technology integration via our API provides operators with access to what is viewed as one of the largest markets of untapped players out there”, Bullen explained.
This new popular concept coupled with guaranteed payouts are the two main points Bullen emphasizes when educating operators across the iGaming industry on Lottoland Solutions.
“If we use Lottoland as a “proof of concept”, in November we exceeded all targets within just two years from launching. Our ILS drew welcome interest from operators and is a main point of discussion in B2B meetings as it gives them reassurance that should there be a big winner, the payouts will be quick and hassle free”, he shared.
