Loto-Québec expands Scientific Games partnership for lottery
Scientific Games and Loto-Québec have been together for the past 50 years, and the companies are committing to another five years. Since the launch of the lottery and Scientific Games’ choice of partner, the latter has been able to develop 4,500 instant games for the lottery, making sure that it remains competitive and players – satisfied.
The new five-year contract extension was revealed in a press release and it details the conditions of the partnership which will see Scientific Games become the lottery’s primary instant games provider.
This is good news for Scientific Games which has a facility in Montreal that opened back in 2010, which will enable the supplier to continue pushing out content for Loto-Québec, as the lottery seeks to retain its competitive market edge.
So far as competitive edges go, Scientific Games accounts for 70% of the global lottery sales of instant games, making it the de facto leader. The Montreal facility can be put to good use to help increase the number of games Loto-Québec can offer to players.
The partnership was understandably welcomed by all parties. Loto-Québec’s COO of Lotteries Isabelle Jean said that this extended alliance was the latest testimony to the strong relationship between the two companies. Jean is confident that Scientific Games will help with making tickets greener.
Scientific Games President, Americas & Global Instant ProductsJohn Schulz was similarly pleased with this development. He acknowledged the strong partnership between the two companies and said that the Montreal facility will be able to provide the lottery with the necessary output of games.
Scientific Games supports four provincial lotteries in Canada, making it also one of the most prominent suppliers in the country. Schulz said that he was not surprised at the partnership extension, citing the company’s strong distribution and production capabilities, which made it a natural pick for Loto-Québec.
While Scientific Games announced and went ahead with rebranding, changing its name to Light & Wonder, the lottery business was sold to Brookfield Business Partners for approximately $5.8 billion ,retaining the SG name. The lottery segment in Canada is one of the best represented segments in the country’s burgeoning market.
Most of the legislation in Canada only made it possible for lottery operators and parlay betting to operate until recently, which has contributed to a significant boost and visibility of the segment. However, the recent legalization of private gambling in Ontario is opening new opportunities. This doesn’t mean that lottery has slowed down – just to the contrary.