11 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 (ǣǕǣɎƏǼ ¨ƏȸɎȇƺȸ ǔȒȸ nȒɎɎƺȸǣƺɀ ZZZ EHGHJDPLQJ FRP time, in spite of the disruption of COVID. It is the overall player-experience, including the playing environment and also the different offers like anonymous play and the real experience of scratching a ticket, that is included in every ticket-sale. For retail players, Online is just a back-up to be chosen if they are not able to follow their routine. A very important second argument for retail is its role as a point of contact, of personal interaction between players and others in the store, including the retail clerk. Online and mobile offers always require an active role and involvement of the player in navigating to the online-offer, registering, payment-procedure etc. But nearly every potential player has several contact-points in real-life and Retail is at least one of the most important and most regularly used contact-points. On the other hand, players who had rewarding experiences with digital platforms over the last twenty months, especially those who are new to lottery, will likely concentrate more of their play in those channels. But even they represent an opportunity for lotteries to promote the omni-channel play-style with the new players, and for our retail partners to acquire new customers. All channels will drive together to create an individualized player-experience, and Retail will have its important role in this. Does this mean that the same products, same games as before will now simply be offered on multiple channels? H. Höltkemeier: Until recently, online lottery games have tended to resemble the games that we have been offering in retail stores for decades. Games, services, and the player experience provided on digital channels were not effectively differentiated from the off-line player experience and so offered little added value. That is changing. Everyone sees the incredible potential to re-imagine the entire online playing experience and I think we will see lots of progress and development of exciting new ways to add value to the online player experience. Those aspects of the playerexperience that do not translate well to the online-channels will be replaced by new added-values through modernized games and new services. In the past years, we’ve seen exciting innovations in the Lottery Industry. Still, we have recognized the need to inject a higher level of entertainment into lottery games, especially to appeal to young adults. Now, though, the need for alternatives to traditional sources of entertainment that involve gathering together in groups at concerts, theatre, bars, and other recreational venues is more acute than ever. This represents an opportunity for Lottery to fulfil a void in the marketplace, a human need for diversion and recreation. We need to respond to consumer interests through offering more variety and more enjoyment, by enhancing the player experience at retail, maybe with things like animated scratchers and games that promote social group plays. There is lots of potential for connecting shop-oriented players in the online world, for promoting social interaction in the virtual world, and for making online games more fun. I think over the course of the next year we will see much more granular analyses and insights into how the world is changing and how lottery might continue to adapt
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