Virginia Lottery Goes Online

The Virginia state lottery has dumped its daily televised drawings in favor of internet drawings in an attempt to cut costs and move into the 21st century. The Virginia lottery finally realized that most lottery players now check their numbers online. In January the Virginia lottery started internet only video streams for its daily drawings and its popular twice-a-week Win for Life drawings. Lottery officials expect the move online to save more than $1 million dollars in operating costs during the next fiscal year. Virginia is trying to deal with a $4 billion budget deficit. While the move online is primarily a cost cutting measure the lottery recognizes that most players now rely on online sources for lottery information. Virginia Lottery Executive Director Paula Otto stated, "The Internet is actually a more popular way of people getting their numbers now."

Lottery officials report they have received a few complaints about the new policy, mostly from older people with no internet access or computer skills. An informal survey done by the Virginia lottery revealed that most states now use a combination of televised drawings and online feeds for drawings and most state lotteries also have lottery phone hot lines and email alerts for players to check lotto numbers. The executive director of the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries said that most state lotteries are looking for ways to cut costs and operating expenses. Executive director David Gale stated, "State budgets are a mess. Forget about lottery budgets because they're probably holding their own to tell you the truth." Most states use lottery revenues for education, senior citizens, wildlife and tourism. Council of State Governments fiscal analyst Sujit CanagaRetna says he is not surprised by Virginia's move. CanagaRetna stated, "States are looking at every possible way to corral some dollars together just to improve their bottom line. If you do a whole bunch of these little things, it could potentially add up to something significant."

Lottery players, especially younger players, depend on the internet for information and are rapidly shifting to web based programming. The shift to online technology could mean that online lottery tickets may be the norm in the very near future. Illinois and Iowa are exploring the sale of online lottery tickets. At the present time Federal law prevents the purchase of lottery tickets online but that is expected to change soon. Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank has sponsored a bill that would clear the way for the sale of online lottery tickets. Its about time lotteries embraced 21st century technology!