SBC Digital – Africa: Technology is the way forward for lottery

Technology in the lottery sector was among the key talking points at this week’s SBC Digital – Africa, with Dhrupal Amin – Non-Executive Director of GameCover – emphasising that the right software is ‘critical’ to make lotto ‘easy to play’.

Taking part in the BetConstruct-sponsored panel titled ‘A Lottery of Trust’, Amin was joined by Neil Jasper (Consultant at Tenica Consulting), Frank Herold (Member of the Board at Emirat), Helena Pereira (VP of Szrek2Solutions) and Brendan Burns (Chief Lottery Director of ITHUBA Holdings). The session was moderated by Independent Consultant Jonas Ödman.

Concerning the future of lotteries in Africa, Amin and Herold both agreed that technology was the way forward, with Amin saying the right software is ‘critical’ to make lotto ‘easy to play,’ as well as providing accurate results for players. However, he also stated that lotteries must offer competitive jackpots as well in order to effectively l compete with other gambling verticals.

Herold added that lottery technology must be ‘easy and perfect’ for the market to grow and that over the past 12 months, because of the COVID pandemic, there has been strong movement in the mobile lottery market. However, a good marketing strategy is still needed to bring the product into the sector.

Despite the growth in online and mobile lottery over the past year in Africa, both Jasper and Burns commented that retail remains dominant, with Jasper stating that a lack of infrastructure means that the right omnichannel approach is needed to succeed in the future.

Brendan Burns added:

“Retail space is still dominant, but there was a dramatic shift in South Africa away from brick and mortar into the online channels during the COVID lockdowns. Luckily for us, we had the random number generator and the online lotteries and we have a very unique partnership with our banking partners that are also selling lottery tickets on their mobile apps, so we have maintained the continuity of sales. We did see a little dip, but nothing to be very worried about. We were able to carry on with remote draws and the online channels were swelled by almost twice as many registrations. Right now, 40% of our business is online.”

Burns also believes that lottery games will change, becoming more sociable, more competitive and virtual as well. He also believes blockchain could enter the market to help create an African Lottery, or possibly even a global lottery.

This week’s SBC Digital Africa conference and exhibition features a speaker line-up of 60 senior executives and specialists, all ready to share hard-to-find information about the continent’s best opportunities for betting and gaming operators.

The agenda for the event on 30-31 March 2021 includes sessions that examine the future of the markets in South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya and Côte d’Ivoire, and deliver insights on key issues such as payments technology, marketing strategies and the growth of esports.

To register for your free ticket, click here

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