 Beginning in July, Chicago-based
Northstar Lottery Group will manage
the state's lottery games under a 10-year management contract. And
by 2016, five years into the contract, Northstar estimates it will
generate $5 billion in revenue for the Illinois Lottery. The lottery
raked in $2.2 billion in 2010.Northstar Lottery Group was chosen
over Camelot Group, the firm that manages the national lottery in
the United Kingdom. The partnership was inked on Tuesday.
Lottery spokeswoman Susan Hofer said Gov. Pat Quinn chose
Northstar because the company projected the most revenue.
Carolyn Grisko, a spokeswoman for Northstar, said the firm wants
to revitalize the Illinois Lottery brand by developing new online
games, refreshing in-store merchandise and expanding retail outlets.
A top Northstar executive echoed that sentiment.
"We also recognize that people play the lottery because they have
fun doing it, and that's why we are going to create new and
innovative games that bring excitement to every type of player,"
Connie Laverty, Northstar's chief executive officer, said in a
statement.
With 73 percent of the state's lottery players older than 45,
according to a study, Northstar sees an "opportunity to expand
customer base and attract younger players," according to its
business proposal.
But aggressive marketing tactics trouble some anti-gambling
advocates.
"We're concerned about underage gambling because you'll only have
to be 18 years old to gamble on the lottery," said Anita Bedell,
executive director of Illinois Church Action on Alcohol and
Addiction Problems. "We're also concerned about people who are
vulnerable, people who don't have much money who will be enticed to
spend more money gambling at a time when the economy is in such bad
shape. And the role of the government in this -- of promoting
gambling -- is distressing."
[to top of second column] |
Bedell said she is worried the lottery expansion will cause more
problems.
"The lottery is a very regressive tax on the poor," Bedell said.
"Having more aggressive marketing and advertising and more outlets
at this time is going to create more problems for the people of
Illinois."
The Illinois Lottery continues to contribute to the Common School
Fund, which is scheduled to increase based on inflation, said Hofer.
Last year, the school fund received $625 million from the lottery.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By MARY J. CRISTOBAL]
 |
