By Kate Northrop
MARTINSVILLE, N.J. — Speednet Group, a leading lottery technology company, announced today that it has re-launched the USA Mega website with an updated, modern look that works equally well on mobile devices, computers, and tablets.
USA Mega offers players and industry professionals a myriad of tools and resources for playing Powerball and Mega Millions, including the latest lottery results, jackpot analysis, news updates, statistics, official drawing videos, and the entire historical record of both games. Now, players can expect a smoother, more efficient experience while browsing the site on a mobile device in addition to using it on a desktop computer or tablet.
"The most compelling aspect of the new USA Mega [website] is its ability to reconfigure itself when viewed on a phone versus viewing on a computer," USA Mega creator Todd Northrop said. "Design goals were a simpler, more modern design that retains familiarity with the old site."
USA Mega was originally launched as BigGameLottery.com in May 2000 in response to lack of information available over the Internet on The Big Game, the multi-state lottery game that eventually became the Mega Millions game we know today. Four years after its launch, the website added Powerball to its repertoire, which in turn led to the rebranding of the site to USAMega.com.
The website remained virtually untouched since 2004. The cleaner, more contemporary redesign that is truly compatible across mobile devices and desktop computers and tablets is the first prominent change made to USA Mega in 16 years and was carefully constructed to reduce visual distractions so the important content can be more easily discovered.
"With the shift in web browsing from desktop computers to mobile phones, we wanted to make smartphones a first-class citizen of USA Mega, so that our visitors can equally enjoy our website on whichever device they want to use," Northrop explained. "We have eliminated former desktop-only functionality, such as needing to hover a mouse over content in order to see additional details. We have also been careful with the sizes of text and buttons so that they can be read and used with ease both with a mouse and a touch screen."
A revamped aesthetic and mobile functionality are not the only thing players can expect. According to Northrop, visitors will notice other improvements made to the site's content as they start to dig deeper.
"One of the most popular features we offer is the Jackpot Analysis, which displays the after-tax amounts a player would be awarded if they won," Northrop said. "We have now expanded that feature to show the complete tax burden a player would face, including the amounts initially withheld by the lottery, as well as the final tax bill for both federal and state taxes."
First pioneered by USA Mega in 2002, the Jackpot Analysis feature is particularly useful for providing an in-depth, comprehensive look at the tax burden a winner would face if they won the Mega Millions or Powerball jackpot. Following the updates to the tool, visitors can now simulate after-tax amounts with an increased level of detail, right down to the federal filing status (Single, Married Filing Jointly, etc.) with the latest marginal tax rates.
Another frequently used resource on the USA Mega website is the drawing information page, which condenses all the important information about any drawing on one page, including winning numbers, jackpot amounts, official drawing video, the locations of winners, and complete prize breakdown.
While page formats are among the most obvious changes on the site, long-time visitors to USA Mega may notice more subtle improvements, such as the additions made to the Quick Picks page. The Quick Picks tool now uses an advanced cryptographic library to generate truly random numbers, and the generated numbers can now be instantly copied with the click of a button.
One more example is the PowerSearch page, a powerful and flexible search engine for past winning numbers, which now offers a greater range of search conditions made possible by additional improvements.
The process for the redesign began over a year ago, but the pandemic put a strain on development. In addition, any full-featured website must consider propagating changes to other areas, such as social media, the YouTube channel, and jackpot alert emails, which further adds on to the complexity of the redesign. Despite the delay, Northrop is optimistic about the website's progress and completion.
"From a technology standpoint, we have made a huge leap forward," Northrop remarked. "For the first time in the 20-year history of USA Mega, it was rebuilt from the ground-up using the latest web technologies. This results in a faster, more reliable website that we can update much more quickly and easily."
Users who use older Internet browser versions will still be able to continue using USA Mega without a hitch. Although the number of people using outdated browsers has dwindled, the website is able to detect when a person is using one and will redirect them to a "legacy" website that will still support them. Now, USA Mega is fully equipped to reformat itself to work best for any device and screen size to accommodate a growing number of mobile users.
Northrop concluded: "Because the majority of our visitors use a phone to browse the website, we anticipate a very positive reaction, since all the content will be properly sized for the device screen and the modern aesthetic will fit right in with other apps and websites they use."