Lottery online is a form of gambling which involves the use of random numbers to determine winners. These numbers are sold by lottery companies which are licensed at a state or territory level. Many of these companies are privately owned, while some are government-owned. The lottery industry is a significant source of income in the United States and other countries. Most lottery revenue is used for public education.
During the late 1990s, internet technology enabled people to play lottery-style games without actually purchasing tickets. These online games are known as instant lotteries. In some cases, players are charged premiums on the base price of the ticket to participate. This practice is not legal in all jurisdictions, but it continues to grow. In the United States, lottery games are regulated at the federal and state levels.
New Zealand has a national lottery, operated by an autonomous Crown entity called Lotto New Zealand. Lottery profits are allocated by the Lottery Grants Board to charities and community organizations. Some of these include Sport and Recreation New Zealand, Creative New Zealand and the New Zealand Film Commission. The New Zealand national lottery also offers a range of online games including Lotto, Keno and Instant Kiwi scratchcards.
The European Union has a national lottery, the EuroMillions, operated by Camelot Group. It is Europe’s largest lottery, with a prize pool of around EUR2.4 billion per draw. In addition, a number of other lotteries are operated on a regional basis, such as the French Loterie de la Première Division, which has a prize pool of over EUR1.6 billion per draw.
In Canada, the four nationwide lotteries are operated by Interprovincial Lottery Corporation, a consortium of the five provincial/territorial lottery corporations: Atlantic Lottery Corporation (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland), Loto-Quebec (Quebec), Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (Ontario), and Western Canada Lottery Corporation (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut). Each of these operates its own website. There are also a number of licensed re-sellers which sell Canadian lottery products on their websites.