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Illinois Lottery mulling changes to drawingsNews Story
Could this be a move to all-computerized drawings and the death of real drawings in Illinois? After 20 years of perky hosts and ping pong balls, the future of live Illinois Lottery drawings on WGN-Ch.9 is up in the air. Lottery officials said Tuesday they are considering parting ways with WGN-TV, home to daily drawings since 1994, when the current one-year contract expires in June. Advances in lottery technology, an influx of new games and the move by Tribune Co. to pull the evening drawin
Apr 16, 2014, 8:07 am - Lottery News

Northstar fights to keep Illinois lottery documents secretNews Story
The company hired to run the Illinois Lottery continued its fight to keep some documents under wraps, arguing their release would violate its contract with the state and expose company secrets to competitors. At a hearing before the Illinois Court of Claims, Northstar Lottery Group argued today that lottery officials have no duty to release a marketing study and a business plan even though the Illinois Attorney General has advised the documents should be made public. The firm asked the cou
Apr 15, 2014, 8:05 am - Lottery News

For some, Illinois Lottery app makes ticket-buying too easyNews Story
When Illinois launched its first-in-the-nation lottery app in January, Matthew Ruder quickly signed up so he could jockey for jackpots with just a tap of the finger on his smartphone. It's really easy to buy lottery tickets on the big draw days, said Ruder, 40, of Pekin in central Illinois. I can just log in to it, add some money to it, buy some tickets, and then I have them right there instead of stopping at the store. It just makes it easier sometimes. State lottery officials hope the
Apr 10, 2014, 8:31 am - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery seeks to collect $20 million from operator Northstar Lottery GroupNews Story
But the lottery has not shown Northstar the final audit numbers The Illinois Lottery said Monday it is entitled to a $20 million payout from Lottery private manager Northstar Lottery Group because the group fell short of the total Illinois Lottery income Northstar said would be generated in fiscal year 2012. Noted Illinois Lottery Superintendent Michael Jones: Northstar won the private manager contract by projecting a net income of $851.2 million in FY12, but failed to reach this goal, con
Mar 19, 2013, 4:09 pm - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery superintendent at odds with private manager of lotteryNews Story
Illinois Lottery superintendent Michael Jones and the Northstar Lottery Group are at odds. Northstar is the private management consortium named in the fall of 2010 to run the Illinois Lottery. The source of the disagreement is a preliminary draft of a ruling this week from a mediator assigned to determine whether Northstar should have to pay a penalty for failing to meet stipulated profit goals in its private management agreement with the state. By its own accounting Northstar, comprised o
Sep 14, 2012, 8:09 am - Lottery News

Hoosier Lottery director offers reassurances on outsourcingNews Story
Indiana won't turn its lottery over to a private company if bidders don't meet the state's high standards, the executive director of the Hoosier Lottery said Friday. The state has been seeking bids on a 10-year contract to run the Hoosier Lottery. Executive Director Karl Browning released a statement Friday, a day after a spokeswoman for Camelot Global Services, which runs the national lottery in Great Britain, told The Indianapolis Star it dropped out because the state's process encourages b
Sep 8, 2012, 8:49 am - Lottery News

Penn. Lottery gets advice from Illinois on privatizationNews Story
State trying to decide if privately operating the lottery is right approach Pennsylvania is currently looking into privatizing its lottery, but one official with the Illinois lottery, the only private system in the nation, is warning the commonwealth to carefully plan how it would choose a company to manage day-to-day operations. Illinois Lottery Superintendent Michael Jones says in the Land of Lincoln, potential overseers had to estimate how much money they'd be able to bring into the lot
Aug 9, 2012, 7:42 am - Lottery News

Report: Ill. lottery manager short $100M on profitNews Story
The Illinois Lottery's private manager fell nearly $100 million short of the profits it promised to deliver for the state. But the Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday that revenues generated by Northstar Lottery Group still set an Illinois record. Illinois has fallen behind other state lotteries for years. Northstar promised $825 million in net revenue when it took over the lottery in July 2011. A Tribune analysis found it had collected $726 million by the end of June. That could mean hund
Aug 2, 2012, 9:34 am - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery glitch causes many duplicate Quick Pick ticketsNews Story
Mary Ellen Reiter felt like she got one losing ticket for the price of two after discovering that eight sets of numbers on one Illinois Lottery quick-pick ticket that she bought matched eight sets of numbers on another. I think that they should make it right, said Reiter, 52, of Evanston, who bought the duplicate tickets Sunday at a convenience store in the northern suburb. The way I figure, I should at least receive back $5 of free quick-picks. About 3,000 tickets were similarly affecte
May 7, 2012, 12:26 pm - Lottery News

Illinois Lottery run by private company starting FridayNews Story
Illinois' private lottery manager takes over operations Friday, with both the company and the state envisioning greatly increased sales and more money for state coffers. Although Northstar Lottery Group formally assumes the reins July 1, the transition to private management has been under way for some time. Regular players have seen new signage and the rollout of new games in recent weeks, but otherwise shouldn't notice a difference if they buy lottery tickets after the first of the month.
Jun 30, 2011, 8:21 am - Lottery News