Lotteries are government-run games whereby participants have the chance to win money or other prizes based on numbers drawn from a pool of entries. They are popular in many countries. The largest lotteries are state-run, while others are privately owned or operated. The prizes range from small cash amounts to automobiles and other large-ticket items. In some cases, lottery proceeds are used to fund public education or other programs. The United States has numerous state-run lotteries and several privately run ones, including Mega Millions and Powerball. Canada has four nationwide lotteries: Lotto 6/49, Lotto Max (which replaced Lotto Super 7 in September 2009), Daily Grand, and Millionaire Life.
In 1967, the Canadian Liberal government passed an Omnibus Bill that brought up to date a number of obsolete laws, including the law prohibiting buying and selling tickets. The Bill made lotteries legal in Canada, but there was still a great deal of controversy over whether or not Montreal Mayor Jean Drapeau’s “voluntary tax” was a lottery. He argued that his ‘tax’ was not a lottery because participants did not pay any money, and the winners were chosen in a competition to answer four questions about Montreal. Although the Quebec Appeal Court eventually ruled that Drapeau’s ‘tax’ was illegal, the monthly lotteries went ahead without any interruptions and attracted players from across Canada and around the world.
Today, there are a number of companies that offer services related to the national lottery, and most of them are based outside of the country. One of these, GTech Corporation – headquartered in West Greenwich, Rhode Island – claims to handle 70% of worldwide online and instant lottery sales, according to its website. The company’s technology powers the lottery systems of most of the top ten lotteries in the world, and it sells its software to other companies.
In the meantime, lottery vendors such as Huong still struggle. She and her husband Manh work a 16-hour shift each day, lugging their lotto machines around the streets of Saigon. On good days they can sell 250 tickets, netting a profit of about 11 US-$ per day. On bad days they may only sell 180 tickets, a loss of about 8 US-$. In addition to selling lottery tickets, the two also sell cigarettes and food. Their income is enough to support the family, but it’s not much to live on. Huong is hoping to buy a house and start a business for her children in the future. If she can do that, she will be able to stop working as an employee of a lottery company.