Public Gaming International May/June 2020

26 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • MAY/JUNE 2020 Andreas Kötter, Chief Executive Officer, WestLotto, Münster, Germany In my opinion, it is not possible to give conclusive answer to this question right now. e crisis continues and at the moment we cannot determine the complete impact, particularly the social and economic dimensions. Only one thing is clear, worldwide we currently are learning how vulnerable we are, individually and as a society. is will have a major impact on our enlightened and economically dominated world. However, I do recognize that some trends will probably consolidate. I expect an increasing sectoral deglobalization in some industries. For example, many value chains will become shorter. Current trends are already growing regionalization in food supply, shorter supply chains in industry and increased warehousing. In other parts, there will be a changed form of globalization. Cooperation in health policy will become increasingly global, as will the expansion of the digital infrastructure (5G). Digital trade is currently experiencing a massive increase. Platforms such as Net ix are experiencing a record of 15.8 million new subscribers in Europe in the last quarter, while Airbnb is experiencing a dramatic drop in revenues. is crisis hits some hard, others less so. e digitalization of commerce will be further intensi ed. A second trend that I believe will intensify is a more exible working environment. e current situation shows all industrial leaders that people are perfectly able and willing to work from home and with state-of-the-art software applications if they have a su cient IT infrastructure. Not all things work as they used to, but di erently. We will have to be prepared for the fact that the relationship to the workplace will change, partly dramatically. We as a lottery provider will not be able to isolate ourselves from the rest of the business world. A third trend that is clearly emerging is that international lottery cooperation’s are becoming more and more successful and have a stabilizing e ect. In Europe, we are currently experiencing dramatic developments in some countries and the associated economic shutdowns due to COVID-19 - in some cases, such as Italy and Spain, regional drawings cannot take place. An international lottery draw such as Eurojackpot, which can still be organized, is of central importance. Despite all these trends, it is also clear that lottery is and will remain part of our customers’ daily routine and has contributed to the stability of society. Lotto continues to stand for trust and is part of everyday culture e balance between the consistency for which large lottery providers - good causes - stand and the ability to adapt exibly to changing environmental conditions in order to grow with the target group will be the big challenge. As already mentioned, the trend towards digitalization is continuing. We are currently recording double-digit growth rates among online customers. Especially the share of customers >45 years of age stands out, who want to be sure to play "their numbers". It will be important to know how we integrate our regular players, who are of central relevance for major lotteries, in our online activities and how we can adapt our online solutions especially to this target group. At the same time, the trend towards digitalization does not automatically mean a decline in terrestrial services. We will have to continue to invest here in order to maintain our market share. On the product level, it is important to notice the new trends that have been reinforced by Corona. Topics such as e-sports and gaming and thinking in terms of cooperation have become more important. Our asset is also the reliability of our IT systems, which we must continue to safeguard for the future. At the same time, this is also a key to nd ways to review and improve operational e ciency. Unfortunately, illegal providers are using the crisis to win customers for illegal gaming o ers in the digital channels through a massive increase in advertising expenditure. After the crisis, we must take stronger action against illegal providers and encourage politicians and regulators to act more consistently. Lotteries has traditionally performed better than other sectors in past economic downturns. is is due to our special product and sales structure. is also exists because of our cultural uniqueness. Lotteries are usually sold together with other goods for daily use. is unique selling point is sometimes an obstacle, but in this case, it has usually been an advantage. Nevertheless, we see a di erence in sales between impulse products such as instant lotteries and classic lottery products. Large lotteries stand for the ful llment of people's dreams, which occur during economic upturns and downturns, possibly with a di erent accentuation. An analysis of the stakes together with the course of the GDP in times of economic recession therefore shows more or less no direct connection. I currently assume, and social-psychological studies also show this, that a signi cant proportion of people want to quickly nd their way back to their normal lifestyle after the shutdown. Especially adults with families are literally yearning for the "pre-corona structure", in which the family live, work and leisure activities is clearly regulated. For us as a lottery provider, however, major questions will come up. Will the large lotteries be able to demonstrate their real social added value in the future or not? My conclusion is that if lottery companies do not manage to do so, it will be increasingly challenging them to keep their good position in society. e pure legal mission is not enough. It is about a good mix of purpose, social vision and position as well as attitude. One of the essential questions will be: how do we strengthen the social t from lottery providers to the bene ciaries? And: how do we, as lottery providers, create an online solution that gives our target groups a familiar lottery environment? Continued at publicgaming.com VISION OF THE POST-CORONAVIRUS WORLD