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Arkansas Lottery Poses Dilemma for Colleges
Arkansas Lottery Poses Dilemma for Colleges
The recent introduction of the Arkansas lottery was good news for most citizens of the state. Lottery tickets went on sale September 28th at over 1550 locations throughout the state. The lottery has not been without controversy. Harding University, a Christian college in Arkansas made a decision to allow its students to purchase lottery tickets and play the newly introduced Arkansas lottery. Despite a student ban on gambling at the college affiliated with the Church of Christ the university made an exemption for the lottery.
The exemption was originally made because revenues generated by the Arkansas lottery go towards funding college scholarships. The scholarships are available for students at both public and private colleges including Harding University. David Crouch, the university’s public relations director cited the funding of scholarships as the main reason for the lottery exemption. Students at Harding are forbidden to gamble. Crouch stated, “We are opposed to gambling. It is part of our code of conduct,”
In October Harding reversed course and banned students from playing the Arkansas lottery. Harding University President David Burks said that the University would include the Arkansas lottery in its student gambling ban. Burks said that the exemption was a mistake. Burks stated, “My intention was to express in our policy the reality that it will be very difficult to enforce any prohibition against the lottery. In an attempt to avoid one appearance of hypocrisy, I made a decision that has itself come to be viewed as hypocritical.” Burks said that students caught playing the Arkansas lottery would face a written or verbal warning. Burks said, “It is important to me that all people, both here and away from campus, know that Harding University stands firmly against gambling.”
The Arkansas lottery has posed a dilemma for other private colleges. Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia has banned students from playing the lottery. Arkansas State University, the University of Central Arkansas and the University of Arkansas ban students from gambling on campus but said that the gambling ban would apply to the purchase of lottery tickets on campus.
While a few states are still arguing about the morality of state lotteries others are joining the 21st century and now allow the purchase of online lottery tickets. Players no longer have to trek to the nearest lottery retailer to purchase lottery tickets. In addition players can check for winning numbers. States with large budget deficits hope the availability of online lottery tickets will boost lottery generated revenues and fill state coffers. Purchasing online lottery tickets has been very popular in Europe and states are hoping for similar results in the US.
Lotteries Set to Go Online
Lotteries Set to Go Online
The worldwide market for lotteries is hugs and over 200 jurisdictions around the world have official lotteries. In 2009 industry experts say that total global lottery revenues totaled about $240 billion USD. In the US where most states have lotteries total sales amounted to $52.4 billion in 2009 and are expected to rise in 2010. Lotteries also spend a lot of money on marketing and spend about $5 billion annually on advertising and promotions around the world. Most lottery jurisdictions implemented lotteries to supplement tax revenues and in the US most states spend lottery revenues on education or social services. Many jurisdictions have come to rely on lottery funds to support various government functions. During the current global recession lotteries have provided governments with much needed funds to fill empty state coffers.
Lottery ticket sales have increased by a modest 2% a year compared with double digit growth for casino and online gambling. In the US legislation has been introduced that would re legalize online gambling and provide the government with another revenue stream. In the US gambling sites are incredibly popular including lottery sites. Should federal law be changed it will clear the way for online lottery ticket sales which at present are blocked by vague regulations regarding online gambling. Online marketers stand to benefit from changes in the law as lotteries spend millions to promote their games online.
Thanks to the recession lottery ticket sales have slowed but there are other factors contributing to the slowdown in lotto ticket sales. Offshore gambling sites are siphoning off revenue from lotteries as more Americans go online to gamble and play foreign lotteries. In addition most lotteries have not introduced new games in years and player boredom has contributed to a decline in ticket sales. Mega jackpot lotteries such as Powerball and Mega Millions spark player interest when jackpots reach hundreds of millions but for some reason many lottery players are not interested in everyday jackpots of $20-$30 million and ticket sales fall.
Lottery demographics show that most regular lotto players are aging and for some reason many state lotteries have not been able to attract a younger player base. Thanks to flagging many states have had to cut marketing budgets resulting in flagging ticket sales. Most lottery industry experts say that allowing state lottery ticket sales in the US would result in an increase in sales. In Europe and New Zealand online lottery ticket sales have been popular with players and most players say convenience is a major factor in online lotto ticket purchases.