“Camelot needs to take a long hard look in the mirror” says Lottoland chief

Lottoland has come out fighting after the UK government said it was looking at closing a loophole which would prevent the operator from offering bets on EuroMillions draws in the country.

In response to this weekend’s statement from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Lottoland chief executive Nigel Birrell said the operator was offering UK customers “value and choice” and rejected any suggestion its products were taking cash away from good causes.

“The opportunity to bet on EuroMillions with Lottoland is only available online – circa 80% of Camelot’s revenue is generated through retail,” Birrell said.

“To put this into perspective Lottoland EuroMillions betting revenues are less than 0.1% of Camelot’s total turnover, we are not affecting them or reducing their ability to give to good causes in any way,” he added.

Birrell also said Camelot’s decision to raise prices and add an additional 10 balls to the National Lottery “drove players away” from its site. You can read Birrell’s full response to the DCMS statement below:

“We welcome the opportunity to be involved with the Government consultation to find a clear and fair route forward that provides the UK consumer with choice to meet their needs. Lottoland strongly believes in enabling the consumer to make the decision on how they pay for products, services and entertainment.

“For many people the lottery has lost its magic. It is clearly a lack of choice, product innovation and an antiquated offering that has led to the decline of lottery sales over the past years. This is a trend that has been seen across many monopolistic industries where disruptor brands such as Uber, Airbnb and Netflix have brought customer choice, value and new technologies to the benefit of the customer, this is exactly what Lottoland are bringing to the market.

“We believe UK consumers should be able to dream again and even bigger than before! EuroMillions betting is just one facet of our offering – in total we offer 26 unique international lottery betting products, such as PowerBall and MegaMillions from the United States with jackpots up to $1.6 billion. We are already working on the next set of products which will fulfil the increasing demands of customers and will be far superior to what is available in the market today.

“But it’s not just choice that we have brought to the market. We are also passionate about ensuring UK customers benefit from increased value.

“When the price of a EuroMillions ticket was increased to £2.50 we froze the price of betting on the main draw at £2, offering those customers who were dissatisfied with the price hike a viable alternative, something we believe the UK consumers deserve. We understand this clearly agitates the monopoly but giving choice and value is in the best interest of the consumer.

Lottoland CEO Nigel Birrell says his firm provides customers “value and choice”

“We represent fair competition and an alternative from those disenfranchised with the current monopolistic market and offer. We are licensed, we pay our taxes and we are creating jobs (more than 300 so far).  We believe this agenda is clearly being driven by Camelot lobbying to protect their monopoly and bully any competition out of the market, a precedent we have seen with society lotteries and most notably the Health Lottery.

“We also believe the time has come to have a general discussion about the justification of the monopoly. Monopolies always hinder innovation and progress. The ones paying the bill are the UK consumers, especially in terms of lack of innovation and higher prices.

“Camelot are averse to healthy, licensed, tax-paying, and, above all, fair competition at the same time neglecting customer needs in the world we live in today.  The opportunity to bet on EuroMillions with Lottoland is only available online – circa 80% of Camelot’s revenue is generated through retail. To put this into perspective Lottoland EuroMillions betting revenues are less than 0.1% of Camelot’s total turnover, we are not affecting them or reducing their ability to give to Good Causes in any way.

“Camelot needs to take a long hard look in the mirror. Camelot drove players away with the lotto change – an increase of £1 and then a year later added 10 balls to the matrix. The EuroMillions price increase was the final straw for the consumer. The retail decline, lack of innovation and a greedy monopoly is causing the haemorrhaging here. Moreover, people want to win big jackpots not small raffle prizes.

“The UK lottery market cannot hide from technological progress and competition forever.

“Our presence is beneficial for the industry and the economy as a whole in that we are bringing value and choice to the market – something that’s been long overdue.

“And, finally, we are not here to take Camelot’s customers away; we are here to provide more choice, bigger jackpots and better value. Ultimately, this is what is going to drive the market forward.”