Lottoland adds new product to lottery options

Lottoland is ignoring attempts from Australian newsagents to shut the successful site down by continuing to increase its product.

The betting operator, Lottoland, added a new betting product known as WorldMillions, which the site calls the “world’s first global lottery.”

WorldMillions is drawn every Thursday and Sunday in Europe and is available to Australian punters. It has already taken place twice since its inception.

Australians have until Friday morning at 2.30 am AEST to place a bet for the $50 million Thursday draw and until Monday at 2 am AEST for the $100 million Sunday draw.

Lottoland details on its website that the draw is made by combining numbers from two lottery companies to make “WorldMillions completely transparent and tamper-proof.”

The WorldMillions winning number is a combination of the last four digits of Germany’s KENO supplementary game, Plus5, and the last four digits of the Austrian lottery game, ToiToiToi.

As a result, WorldMillions requires punters to pick an eight-digit number between 00,000,000 and 99,999,999 and since each number can only be bet on once, the prize won’t be shared.

The controversial betting operator also reveals on its website WorldMillions offers better odds than EuroMillions – you have a one in 100 million chance of winning compared to a one in 139 million.

There’s also the option for the punter to bet on half a share or even one-tenth to win a smaller portion of the jackpot. You can find out more via the website.

The new addition follows the recent condemnation by newsagents around Australia for offering the unique business model in the country.

The Australian site isn’t the only branch under scrutiny – the UK branch is also facing scrutiny with the government conducting a public consultation on the prohibition of third-party betting sites, including Lottoland.

The Australian Lottery and Newsagents Association (ALNA) has recently urged the Australian government to take similar action just last week.

ALNA CEO Adam Joy slammed Lottoland for deceiving customers by making them believe the betting site offered similar products which benefited state and local governments – as official lotteries do.

The Senate lightly touched on the impact of third-party betting firms – specifically Senator Pauline Hanson argued they pay no tax and do not benefit the community.

Her arguments were dismissed but ALNA wants the government to consider adding legislation similar to South Australia’s Independent Gambling Authority, which makes it illegal for the state’s residents to buy Lottoland products.

Lottoland CEO Luke Brill has responded to ALNA’s claims, denying the company is “the enemy of the newsagents”.

He added Lottoland is “a competitor” and it is just their marketing strategies that are different.

“If we can find a way to cooperate with newsagents, we would be more than happy to do that,” he said.

There have also been claims that Lottoland doesn’t face the same regulatory requirements as official lottery operators, but Brill has denied these allegations.

The Australian Lottoland branch is licensed by the Northern Territory Racing Commission and Brill added that “the regulations around online gaming are actually more rigorous than they are around lottery.”