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The UK National Lottery and Online Lottery Tickets
The UK National Lottery and Online Lottery Tickets
The UK National Lottery is the largest in the United Kingdom and is run by the Camelot Group who was awarded the franchise in 1993. In 2010 Camelot Group was purchased by the Ontario Teacher’s Pension Plan from Canada announced they were purchasing Camelot for £389 million pounds. ($562,622,030 USD) One of the most attractive features of the UK National Lottery is that all jackpots are paid in a lump sum and unlike US lottery jackpots are totally tax free. The UK National Lottery uses twelve machines that can be used for any lottery draw. For security reasons the machine and set of lottery balls to be used are not announced until the drawing actually takes place. The lottery draw machines have names straight out of Arthurian legends and are named Merlin, Arthur, Galahad, Vyvyan, Lancelot, Garnet, Topaz, Opal, Amethyst, Moonstone, Pearl and Sapphire.
The UK National Lottery offers several games and the largest is the famous Lotto game. Players select six numbers from 1 to 19 and a bonus ball. In England the ‘quick pick’ option is known as the ‘Lucky Dip.’ Tickets for the UK National Lottery cost £1 (about $1.44 USD). Draws take place on Wednesdays and Saturdays and results are posted on the National Lottery’s website immediately. The UK National Lottery offers players several other games similar to the familiar ‘pick 3’ and ‘pick 4’ games which are so popular in the US.
One of the best aspects of the UK National Lottery is the sale of online lottery tickets. The UK National Lottery also sells lottery tickets for the popular EuroMillions lottery. All National Lottery games can be played online after the player registers. There are two ways to play the UK National Lottery online. The first is by subscription. Players have the option of signing up through direct debit and their numbers will be entered automatically. Winners are notified by email by noon of the following day. The second method offered to UK online lottery players is the ‘Loaded Account ‘option. Players load finds into their lottery account and can play anytime they wish. Again, winners are notified by email.
UK lottery players love the online option. Most players cite convenience as the chief factor for their choice to purchase online lottery tickets. One of the best advantages of online lottery tickets is that they are impossible to misplace or lose. Players who purchase lottery tickets online are sent an email linking the player to the numbers chosen. As has been mentioned all winners are notified by email. Online lottery tickets for the UK National Lottery can be purchased from the official lottery website and transactions are safe and secure. Hopefully in the near future the US will adopt and apply 21st century technology to US lotteries.
UK National Lotto An Overview (Page 1 of 2)
The UK National Lotto is the largest lottery game in the United Kingdom and is currently operated by the Camelot Group PLC. Camelot was granted the license to run the UK lotto when it was launched in 1994. The National Lotto is regulated by The National Lottery Commission and their role is to ensure that players are treated fairly; that the UK’s interest in the Lotto is taken care of; and that the operator is motivated to maximize the enjoyment and benefits that the Lottery brings to the nation.
In 2002, to stem the tide of diminishing sales, the UK National Lottery had to make some changes. As a result, the main game was re-branded Lotto.
All the prize money paid out on all the games offered by the UK National Lottery is both lump sum and tax-free. The revenues generated by all of the National Lotterys games are allocated in the following manner. For every pound (£) spent on the National Lottery games, 50 pence is allocated to the prize pot, 28 pence is given to good causes that the UK Government decides on, 12 pence goes to the British Government as tax and 5 pence is taken by the Lotto retailers as commission. The license holder receives 4.5 pence to cover their operating costs and a further 0.5 pence as profit.
Anyone interested in participating in the UK National Lottery games must be at least 16 years of age and be resident in either the United Kingdom or Isle of Man.
The National Lottery The Different Game Choices
The UK National Lotto brand comprises numerous games to suit all tastes, each of which is listed here.
Lotto
To participate in the UK National Lotto, each player is required to choose six numbers from 1-49 and a further bonus number. The player can either select their own set of numbers simply by completing the form in the lottery outlet, or they can opt for the lottery retailers system to generate the numbers for them. This is known as the ‘lucky dip’ option.
Players are required to match at least 3 of their chosen 6 numbers to win a cash prize. A players winnings naturally increase as a result of matching more of their selected numbers. A further number is then drawn as the bonus ball which is only relevant to players who match 5 of the 6 drawn numbers. Players who match the bonus ball number as well as 5 of the 6 main numbers win a much greater cash prize than those players who simply match 5 numbers without the bonus ball.
Any player lucky enough to match all their chosen numbers wins the jackpot. The chance of this happening is around 1 in 14 million. If no one wins the jackpot in a given week, the prize fund is rolled over to the following week, making a much larger jackpot. These rollovers are a fairly common occurrence; with one taking place every few draws or so. The maximum number of rollovers permitted by the lottery operator is three but this has only happened on two occasions since this Lottery was launched in 1994.