Gamblor’s World

 

Last Updated: Thursday, November 30, 2006 | 10:21 AM ET

CBC News

Ontario’s Lottery and Gaming Corporation is now considering printing disclaimers on scratch and win tickets, in light of criticisms that current practices are unfair and misleading to the consumer.

Under the current system, scratch tickets continue to be sold even after the top prizes have been won and players have no chance of winning the jackpot. While consumers may call a toll-free hotline to learn what prizes are left, critics have said the OLGC should be more transparent in its practices.

In B.C., Quebec, and the Atlantic provinces, lottery corporations print disclaimers on scratch tickets that explain the top prizes may have already been claimed.

(CBC) Proposed changes would see the OLGC print a disclaimer on the tickets, explaining that some of the prizes may have already been claimed.

"I’ve started to explore some of the different practices by different jurisdictions on these kinds of issues," said George Sweny, OLGC’s senior vice president.

The Gambling Watch Network, which has filed a complaint with Ontario’s ombudsman, said lottery corporations should be more direct with players about their odds of winning.

"It is only a fair game, it seems to me, if the consumer has every chance of knowing what exactly the odds are in that particular play," spokesman Brian Yealland said.

In B.C., Quebec, and the four Atlantic provinces, lottery corporations already print such disclaimers on the backs of scratch tickets. Retailers in these six provinces also pull tickets from the marketplace once the top prizes have been won.

Sweeny said the OLGC is reviewing these procedures, which are also used by some U.S. lottery organizations.

"We are certainly going to explore that and we will monitor it and we will understand within our organization just what our capacity is to do that," he said.

Fifth Estate report

The province’s ombudsman, Andre Marin, has launched an investigation into OLGC practices, following a report by CBC’s The Fifth Estate questioning the suspicious number of retailers and clerks who have won lotteries.

Last month, it was revealed that in the past seven years Ontario clerks and retailers have claimed lottery victories nearly 200 times. University of Toronto statistician Jeffery Rosenthal said the number should have been closer to 57, and was a nearly impossible statistical anomaly.

The Fifth Estate probe stemmed from a lawsuit involving Coboconk, Ont., senior Bob Edmonds and the OLGC. Edmonds alleged that his winning ticket had been fraudulently claimed at a local store and eventually reached a settlement with both the retailer and the OLGC.

After the report aired, the lottery corporation announced measures such as more electronic devices for players to check their own tickets, rules prohibiting clerks from handling a ticket unless it has been signed on the back by a customer and video screens that would face customers.

CBC News later raised questions about the high number of retailers and clerks claiming wins on scratch tickets. Internal data from the OLGC indicate that at one point, retailers and clerks claimed wins on scratch tickets 10 per cent of the time.

According to OLGC documents, investigators routinely checked for "pin-pricking" — where a scratch ticket card is scratched very lightly to see if it contains a winning code — while looking into allegations of insider wins.

Duncan Brown, CEO of the lottery corporation, announced last week that he’s considering the idea of banning the purchase of lottery tickets by clerks who sell them.

Copyright © CBC 2006

New gaming deal needed

Darren Bernhardt, The StarPhoenix, Thursday, November 30, 2006

Saskatchewan’s Native leaders are threatening to scrap the gaming agreement with the province, saying government should no have jurisdiction in First Nations business.

"This is a big issue here — our inherent right to self-government," said Lawrence Joseph, the newly minted chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN). "Gaming is a booming business that has benefi ted our communities. It’s time we took it over entirely and got the province out." Failing that, the provincial government’s share of profi ts must be slashed because the present revenue- sharing formula is far too generous, Joseph added. He spoke Wednesday at a special session of the FSIN legislative assembly, which continues today at TCU Place.

Attended by chiefs, councillors and elders from 74 First Nations represented by the federation, the session gives participants the chance to discuss everything from gaming jurisdiction and revenue sharing to establishing their own regulatory and licensing body.

The 2002 Framework Agreement, which governs First Nations gaming, is up for review for a sixmonth period beginning in December. In June, First Nations must decide whether to extend it, alter it or get out altogether.

"There will be opportunities for change. We will be consulting with all of you over the coming months," said Greg Ahenakew, CEO of the Indigenous Gaming Regulator (IGR), an Indian-run licensing authority created by the 2002 Framework Agreement.

Several First Nations have designated IGR as their regulator for on-reserve gaming over the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA).

On Wednesday, delegates approved a motion to make the IGR the mandatory authority for charitable gaming, including bingos, scratch games, poker tourneys and all casino table games.

"We’ll deal with it all internally. No more going to the province," Ahenakew said. "The IGR will be the exclusive authority on First Nation lands." Ratifying the motion simply gives direction to the team re-negotiating the gaming agreement. It must still be agreed to in the new deal.

The SLGA would retain control over VLTs and other electronic games as per law under the Criminal Code.

But some chiefs are challenging that as well.

"I see that as compliance and conforming. Stand up and fi ght for the treaties," Chief Todd Cappo of the Muscowpetung First Nation told Ahenakew.

"I’m not in a position to give up any jurisdiction at all." The treaties allow for First Nations to establish their own laws but, as Joseph noted, they can be superseded by the general law of the land.

Right now, the government takes all of the gaming profi ts each year and redistributes them to a First Nations trust fund, community development corporations and the general revenue fund of the province.

That control doesn’t sit well with the FSIN.

According to Ron Crowe, one of the members of the re-negotiating team, "the province has the right to withhold money if it deems any spending to be inappropriate, but there is no fair mechanism to fi ght those allegations and recover the money." Under terms of the current agreement, the provincial government receives 37.5 per cent of net profits.

In 2006, that amounted to $15 million — money that didn’t go to First Nations communities, Joseph noted.

"They have no problem taking their share of our money, but they’re not so willing to part with revenues from natural resources that are part of our land," Joseph said.

With new casinos opening up and revenues climbing every year, annual profi ts from gaming are expected to hit $220 million within fi ve years, vice-chief Morley Watson said.

dbernhardt@sp.canwest.com

© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2006

Roger Horbay joins me tomorrow morning (Friday December 1,
2006) at
3:05 A.M. Eastern. CJAD 800 in Montreal or www.cjad.com. We
will talk
about VLTs, Slots and scratch tickets. If they can’t beat
you, they
WILL cheat you. Talk radio with passion in the middle of
the night.
–
Join Sol Boxenbaum on Last Call With Sol
Tuesday through Saturday mornings 3:05 A.M. to 4:00 A.M.
Eastern
Standard Time on CJAD
800 in Montreal or at www.cjad.com

 

Last Updated: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 | 10:18 AM ET, CBC News

A national gambling watchdog group has raised new concerns about lottery scratch cards sold in Ontario, charging that current practices are unfair and misleading to the consumer.

The Gambling Watch Network filed a letter with Ontario’s ombudsman complaining that scratch tickets are sold even after the top prizes have been won. Brian Yealland, the group’s spokesman, said retailers should stop selling tickets if the buyer has no chance of winning the jackpot.

The Gambling Watch Network has filed a complaint with Ontario’s ombudsman, saying lottery tickets should be pulled once the top prizes have been won.

(CBC) "People go on purchasing those tickets although they have no chance of winning, and it seems to us that this is a breach of the understanding one has in buying a ticket," Yealland said.

This practice has been the subject of scrutiny and lawsuits in the United States, causing some state lotteries to include disclaimers on the tickets explaining that some prizes may already be won. In Iowa, instant win tickets are pulled from stores once the grand prizes have been claimed, said Tina Potthoff, a spokeswoman for the Iowa State Lottery.

"We want to make sure our players have a chance to win the top prize every time they purchase a ticket," Potthoff said. "If by chance a top prize is missing and they only have a second- or third-tier prize, we feel that’s false advertising."

A spokesman for the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation said players can call a toll-free number printed on the back of each scratch and win ticket to find out which prizes are still available to be won.

The province’s ombudsman, Andre Marin, has launched an investigation into OLGC practices, following a report by CBC’s The Fifth Estate questioning the suspicious number of retailers and clerks who have won lotteries. Last month, it was revealed that in the past seven years Ontario clerks and retailers have claimed lottery victories nearly 200 times. University of Toronto statistician Jeffery Rosenthal said the number should have been closer to 57, and was a nearly impossible statistical anomaly.

The Fifth Estate probe stemmed from a lawsuit involving Coboconk, Ont., senior Bob Edmonds and the OLG. Edmonds alleged that his winning ticket had been fraudulently claimed at a local store and eventually reached a settlement with both the retailer and the OLG.

After the report aired, the lottery corporation announced measures such as more electronic devices for players to check their own tickets, rules prohibiting clerks from handling a ticket unless it has been signed on the back by a customer and video screens that would face customers.

CBC News later raised questions about the high number of retailers and clerks claiming wins on scratch tickets. Internal data from the OLG indicate that at one point, retailers and clerks claimed wins on scratch tickets 10 per cent of the time.

According to OLG documents, investigators routinely checked for "pin-pricking" –where a scratch ticket card is scratched very lightly to see if it contains a winning code — while looking into allegations of insider wins.

Duncan Brown, CEO of the lottery corporation, announced last week that he’s considering the idea of banning the purchase of lottery tickets by clerks who sell them.

Copyright © CBC 2006

 

Green Thumb Theatre’s production of this play by Dennis Foon focuses on the subject of teen gambling — a growing problem in Canada. Brian Anderson, Nikolas Longstaff, Erin Matthews and Joshua Reynolds star in the play, directed by Patrick McDonald. Recommended for ages 13 and up, it runs to Sun. ($20/$15 at 862-2222). Performance schedule at http://www.lktyp.ca. Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People, 165 Front St.

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