Bill Breslo, President, Diamond Game

The trend toward self-service and self-checkout is likely to accelerate, which could hamper lottery ticket sales.  Diversifying lotteries’ retailer and player base will be important to maintaining lottery sales.  Fast play products, available as e-instants in the iLottery space and as “stay-and-play” self-service games for social establishments, provide a different play mechanic that will broaden the player base and open new sales channels.

 Two areas that will provide the greatest benefit and opportunity for lotteries post COVID-19 are iLottery and products geared toward social establishments.  The former—iLottery—helps maintain important lottery revenue during crises that affect retail sales, e.g. pandemics and extreme weather, such as blizzards and flooding.  The latter—social establishment products—not only diversify lotteries’ retail and player base, but also provide an important source of revenue for bars and restaurants that have been significantly impacted by COVID-19 related closures and regulations.

 Many individuals will resume social gathering rather quickly; however, there is another segment of the population that will remain cautious for quite a while.  For the lottery industry to benefit from opportunities post COVID-19, understanding how this pandemic has impacted retailers and potential retailers is key.  Providing solutions that address retailers’ challenges will uncover opportunities for lotteries.  Social establishment retailers, e.g. restaurants/bars and social clubs, will be trying to regain lost revenue, so providing viable products aimed at this retailer segment not only helps these establishments recover, but also diversifies lotteries’ retailer base and generates incremental revenue. Diamond Game products have been uniquely designed for the social establishment space and can help lotteries rebuild sales in the post COVID-19 world.