Long odds don't bother 'Mega' fans
Charles Millard wasn't under any illusion.
My chance is a zillion to one, the 60-year-old Johnson City man said on Monday as he bought a ticket for tonight's historic $355 million Mega Millions drawing.
Still, across the Greater Binghamton region, players such as Millard lined up Monday at convenience stores and newsstands for a chance to win the largest pot in New York Lottery history, even though they acknowledged their odds were as long as Binghamton being named the sunshine capital o ...
Mar 6, 2007, 7:54 am - - Lottery News forum
Indiana Senate approves lottery sell-off
Administration officials worked the back of the Senate chamber Tuesday and managed to secure just enough support to pass Gov. Mitch Daniels' plan to privatize the Hoosier Lottery.
The 27-20 vote comes from a GOP-controlled chamber that is far friendlier to the governor's plans than the Democratic-held House, where Senate Bill 577 heads next.
The legislation authorizes the state to enter into a contract with a private operator to run the lottery for the next 30 years.
In exchange, the st ...
Feb 28, 2007, 9:06 am - - Lottery News forum
Mass. Rep. says lottery funds should go to areas with highest sales
Lynn is one of the Massachusetts State Lottery's sales hotspots.
Yet while Lynn residents spend $85 million a year on tickets and games, the old industrial city gets back just $15 million a year from a Lottery-financed state aid program.
State Rep. Steven Walsh (D-Lynn) said it is this imbalance that drove him to file legislation that could revamp the way Lottery proceeds are doled out to cities and towns.
Walsh's bill calls for a commission to explore whether the current formula used t ...
Feb 28, 2007, 8:38 am - - Lottery News forum
Lotteries long for 'jackpot fever'
To lottery players, $100 million ain't what it used to be.
A seven-month streak of jackpots that were big, but not gigantic, has sent traditional lottery sales plummeting in many states.
In the past six months, Mega Millions sales are down 30% in Texas compared with a year earlier and 38% in Massachusetts. Powerball sales are off 6% in Wisconsin.
The USA is suffering from jackpot fatigue, lottery officials say.
There was a time when $50 million created a stir. Then we needed $ ...
Feb 13, 2007, 2:31 pm - - Lottery News forum
N.Y. Lottery: We've got a game for you
Whether you're looking for instant gratification or prefer to dream big with millions in the bank, the New York Lottery has a game for you.
Lottery machines spew out tickets that could be worth millions of dollars if the astronomical odds are beaten.
Store counters often have racks displaying dozens of colorful choices for those wanting instant scratch-off tickets.
Some people play their favorite numbers twice a day, fearing their Daily Number will surely come in if they skip a bet.
...
Jan 31, 2007, 3:24 am - - Lottery News forum
Lottery foes try to restrict gambling, with little success
Some New York lawmakers want the state to tell lottery-ticket buyers how slim the odds are of winning, and raise the gambling age from 18 to 21 to try to discourage gambling sprees.
But those who oppose change have a ready rejoinder: The state is, in effect, addicted to the billions in revenue that Lottery games generate.
The status quo is likely to prevail.
If you put in the ad 'The New York Lottery jackpot is now $10 million' and in the next graph say the odds of wining are 1 in 12 m ...
Jan 31, 2007, 12:51 am - - Lottery News forum
Lottery revenue important to a host of businesses
If the New York Lottery vanished tomorrow, many store owners would suffer. Their businesses rely on the 6 percent commission they get from lottery sales.
I would not be in business without the lottery, said Mike Palencar, who owns two convenience stores in Webster, N.Y.
He estimates that lottery commissions amount to just 5 percent of his stores' total profit. But sales commissions aren't the only benefit for the lottery's 16,000 vendors statewide. People coming to the stores to buy lott ...
Jan 30, 2007, 10:36 pm - - Lottery News forum
Sales increase as Lottery adds new games
While the number of games has expanded and receipts have greatly increased, the basic structure of the New York Lottery and its mission have remained relatively unchanged over the four decades it has been running, lawmakers and state officials say.
The games, then and now, siphon money away from illegal gambling and help to pay for schools. The lottery was approved by voters, at the urging of then-Gov. Nelson Rockefeller, in a referendum to amend the state constitution in 1966.
The nu ...
Jan 30, 2007, 8:51 pm - - Lottery News forum
Lottery mega-jackpots generating less 'buzz'
Rhode Island Lottery chief predicts Powerball and Mega Millions will merge in the future
Just a few years ago, a $240 million Powerball jackpot would have drawn long lines at gas stations and convenience stores across the state.
But last week there was little buzz. And forget about lines.
Call it jackpot fatigue.
Rhode Islanders' appetite for gambling has lowered. And we're not alone. Elsewhere in the region, sales of lottery tickets and other forms of gambling are either less th ...
Jan 27, 2007, 9:23 am - - Lottery News forum
Georgia Lottery sales hit record $1.56 billion
The Georgia Lottery Corp., which finances the HOPE Scholarship program, Thursday announced record sales for the first half of fiscal year 2007.
Lottery President and CEO Margaret DeFrancisco said the six-month numbers were $28.4 million ahead of the same period last year, which was a record at the time. The fiscal year began July 1.
Sales for the first half of fiscal year 2007 totaled $1.56 billion, with $400 million going to education more than $4.1 million ahead of last year. The rest ...
Jan 19, 2007, 1:21 pm - - Lottery News forum
