Lottery Retailers
Lottery games offer players a chance to win prizes by matching a combination of numbers drawn at random. They are typically organized by state or local governments. The games can be either traditional raffles or instant games, such as scratch-off tickets that have a lower prize amount and higher odds of winning.
The lottery industry has grown to encompass more than $1 billion a year in ticket sales. There are 186,000 retailers in the United States selling lottery tickets, according to the National Association of State Public Lotteries (NASPL). Many sell all types of lottery games, including multi-jurisdictional games like Powerball and Mega Millions.
Retailers are divided into four categories: convenience stores, grocery stores, service stations, and restaurants and bars. NASPL reports that California had the largest number of retailers in 2003, followed by Texas and New York.
Some lottery companies also have their own retail outlets. During 2001 the New Jersey lottery launched an Internet site that allows its retailers to access their own sales data, read about game promotions, and contact lottery officials. The Louisiana lottery also offers a retailer optimization program that supplies retailers with demographic information and helps them increase their sales.
Almost all state lotteries are administered by a lottery board or commission within the state government. In 1998 the Council of State Governments reported that most states had a lottery agency, but they varied in the degree of authority they exercised over that entity.
There is little consensus about the extent to which the state should regulate lotteries or whether they should be outlawed altogether. A large percentage of the public views them as a major regressive tax on lower-income people, and they are viewed by some as an attraction to addictive gambling behavior.
These concerns have led to a variety of legal and regulatory actions, including bans on the sale of certain types of lottery tickets and limits on the size of jackpots. There are also many allegations of abuse by lottery operators, particularly in relation to the elderly and poor.
The history of lottery in Europe dates back to the 15th century, when towns held public lotteries to raise money for town defenses and for the benefit of the poor. Francis I of France permitted the establishment of lotteries in several towns between 1520 and 1539, and a record dated 9 May 1445 at L’Ecluse indicates that a lottery was held to raise funds for town walls.
However, the first known European lottery to award money prizes is thought to have been the ventura in Modena, Italy, from 1476. Records of lotteries in Burgundy and Flanders also suggest that they date back to the 1500s.
In France, the royal family was known to be interested in the results of lotteries, and some members of the court won top prizes in a drawing. Louis XIV reportedly returned the money won to the government in order to pay for redistribution and to fund the construction of the palace in Versailles, but the lottery was eventually abolished.