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Lottery Ticket
Lottery Ticket
Lottery tickets have a long and storied history. The earliest known lottery tickets come from China as early as 205 BC. The earliest known lottery tickets from a public lottery are from the town of Sluis in the Netherlands circa 1434. Lotteries became very popular in the Netherlands and Belgium during the late middle ages. These lotteries were started to provide town fortifications and to help the poor. For the next three centuries lotteries were used to help the poor. In addition to implementing the first municipal and state sanctioned lotteries the Dutch were the first of sell lottery tickets for cash prizes. In fact the word lottery is derived from the Dutch word ‘loterij’ and the Dutch ‘Staatsloterij’ is the world’s oldest lottery and is still popular throughout the Netherlands.
In the English speaking world the first official lottery was implemented by Queen Elizabeth the 1st in 1569. One of the first settlements in America was financed by a lottery authorized by King James 1st to help establish the settlement at Jamestown. A large part of the American Revolution was funded through the sale of lottery tickets. At that time taxes were not considered an appropriate means of funding government projects. At the end of the war several states used lotteries to fund government functions and both Harvard and Princeton universities were funded by lotteries.
Lotteries fell out of favor in the US and were not revived until the 1960’s when New Hampshire started a state lottery and sold lottery tickets. Now almost every state in the US operates some sort of state lottery. In the 1990’s multi state lotteries such as Powerball and mega Millions were introduced. These mega jackpot lotteries were an immediate hit with lottery players throughout the US and have remained popular. Tickets are only $1 dollar and jackpots are commonly in the hundreds of millions.
Thanks to computer technology several lotteries now offer online lottery tickets. In Europe, Australia, and New Zealand online lottery ticket sales have been well received by players. Players cite convenience and ease of purchase as the chief factors contributing to the success of online lottery ticket sales. The UK lottery website also sells tickets for EuroMillions and offers players several funding options. In the US two states are currently exploring the possibility of online lottery ticket sales. Confusing and vague federal regulations are currently the only obstacle to providing US players with online lottery tickets. Lottery tickets have certainly come a long way since the 14th century!
Buy Online Lottery Tickets
Buy Online Lottery Tickets
In Europe, Australia, New Zealand and several other countries lottery players have been able to buy online lottery tickets for years. The move online has been well received everywhere it has been implemented and lotteries selling online lottery tickets report a noticeable increase in sales. Some official lottery websites sell tickets for other lotteries. The UK National Lottery website also sells online lottery tickets for the popular mega jackpot EuroMillions lottery. Some official lottery websites restrict participation by offshore players while others do not. The Australian ‘Oz Lotto’ website welcomes international players and everyone is welcome to buy online lottery tickets for any of the games that Oz Lotto provides.
For US citizens participation in a foreign lottery is illegal but the internet has many sites that will sell foreign lottery tickets to US players. US laws are designed to protect domestic lotteries from foreign competition because of the amount of money lotteries provide to states. The ability of US players to buy online lottery tickets for domestic lotteries has been hampered by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. (UIGEA) This ill conceived law was introduced by a few anti gambling extremists in congress and tacked on to a Safe Ports Bill making it politically impossible for opponents to vote against the measure. While the law does not ban online gambling it makes the processing of gambling related transactions illegal. The responsibility of enforcement was foisted on to banks and financial institutions without a clear set of rules and guidelines. Many lottery players who used credit cards to purchase lottery tickets at retailers had their transactions declined.
Recently two states, Illinois and Iowa are exploring the possibility of allowing residents to buy online lottery tickets. Should either of these states implement the sale of online lottery tickets it could open the door for other states to offer online lottery tickets. Once federal regulations are clarified states would be free to offer online ticket sales and banks and other financial institutions would be free to process lottery related transactions. Since the technology for online lottery ticket sales has been in place in Europe for over a decade it should be an easy transition for state lotteries in the US. Most lottery observers say that allowing players to buy online lottery tickets would immediately increase sales and attract a younger tech savvy generation to lotteries. It is really only a matter of time before state lotteries allow players to buy online lottery tickets. Most players say; the sooner the better!