Public Gaming International Gaming July/August 2021

41 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • JULY/AUGUST 2021 Social Responsibility (EN - DE - FR - ES) another key topic for the Association. Romana Dernovšek, President & CEO, Loterija Slovenije and Supervisory Chair of the EL RG/ CSR Working Group expressed her happiness and gratitude with regard to the adoption of the mandatory RG Certification and the CSR Resolution. "We, Members of EL put our values first. Respon- sibility, sustainability, and integrity are the way we do business. By adopting the EL CSR Resolution and making the Responsible Gaming Certification mandatory, we have shown that we really do live up to these values. This is our way to continue prioritising the well-being of our players and to empower sustain- ability initiatives and programmes for the benefit of the society. I am proud to have been part of these processes and look forward to supporting all EL Members on our common journey". Further highlights EL welcomed NOVAMEDIA/Postcode Lotteries (NL) as a new Regular EL Member and Degree53 (GB) as a new Associate Member. A revised Respon- sible Gaming Certification Framework and changes to the EL Statutes were adopted - including the move of the Statutory seat from Switzerland to Belgium, the forming of an Advisory Board and making the statutes ‘’pandemic proof’’. EL publishes 2020 Annual Report 2020 was a year like no other. In the third edition of the Annual Report ( https://www.european- lot- teries.org/news/el-publishes-2020-annual-report ), EL reflects on an unforgettable year. Services to Members continued despite the pandemic, and EL quickly adapted to the ‘‘new normal’’. A move from physical events to successful online meetings, a state- of-the-art new website and e-learning platform, all proved that the Association could continue it services fully to Members. There is no doubt that the pandemic which presented Europe and the rest of the world with the biggest health, economic and social crisis in modern history, had a significant impact on the lottery sector. Yet, national lotteries upheld their historic support to society in times of need. EL Members continued to fulfil their core values of responsibility, sustainability, and integrity by supporting local communities. The 2020 Annual Report includes examples of how EL Members supported society during the global pandemic, as well as testimonies from the EL President, Secretary General and EL Team on how the pandemic had an impact on their lives professionally and personally. Looking ahead Despite the many challenges faced over the past year, the 2021 EL virtual General Assembly successfully and positively brought together over 70 Members from across Europe. The work of EL now continues with further webinars, e-learning modules and continuing to advocate the interest of EL Members. The work also begins for the 2022 Industry Days in Wiesbaden, Germany and the 2023 Congress and Trade show in Sibenik, Croatia. More information can be found on the EL website www.european-lotteries.org . Digital Engagement from page 21 players through digital – web site, apps, social media updates,” he said. “And let’s not forget about payments as well. This is so important as more people move away from using cash at retail. We’re fortunate in that we can accept all forms of payment but now we need to consider how we can award players through their mobile device, which will move us to where the rest of the world is with payments. It’s basically putting lottery in line with other products at retail.” Even for a successful iLottery juridiction like New Hampshire, retail is still the key focus. “About 70 percent of our sales are still through our scratch product sold at retail,” said Kelley-Jaye, “so it is still our main focus. But we try to undertake omnichannel initiatives such as launching a scratch ticket that rewards players with online play. We need to increase driving players from online to retail and things like couponing online players to play at retail will be an increased focus for us. But we have not forgotten important initia- tives like retailer winner-awareness and check presentations with winners at retail locations which are very popular with players and retailers. We are not looking to move players from retail to online. Instead, we want to attract new players through our digital programs, including iLottery, and keep them engaged. Gregg spoke for the many lotteries that can’t/won’t sell products online. “Our digital world in Arizona is now defined for us which is a bit of a blessing because we know what the rules are and how we’ll be playing for the next 20 years,” he said. “So we’re looking at ways we can thrive in the digital world, ways we can transform our digital footprint and drive our cultural connection to a younger demographic. Not offering iLottery does not mean the end of creative thinking. We’re excited about what is ahead of us and how we can build on our success.” n