Pacific Online sees record lotto sales for this month

MANILA, Philippines - Pacific Online Systems Corp., the lone online lottery equipment provider in Visayas and Mindanao, is eyeing record sales this month as loyal lotto players and first-time jackpot chasers turned out in droves to buy that winning ticket.

The weekend Lotto 6/49 jackpot has jumped to a bank-account-popping P347.8 million Sunday – the biggest ever in in the history of the country’s online lottery game – due to an unprecedented surge in ticket sales.

After 21 draws, two bettors finally won the jackpot.

Willy Ocier, chairman and president of Pacific Online, said lotto sales reached a record P582 million as of Feb. 19, exceeding the P513 million registered for the whole of February last year.

“We’re looking forward to record sales this month – at least 50 percent over the same period last year,” Ocier said.

Pacific Online ended 2008 with revenues of P740 million or 48 percent higher than the year earlier mainly due to robust sales and new terminal openings.

Total PCSO lotto sales in the Vis-Min hit a record P6.49 billion, up 35 percent from P4.79 billion in 2007, mainly due to the addition of 200 lottery terminals. In December alone, sales amounted to an all-time high of P770 million.      

PCSO’s Scratch hit Instant Tama Tickets project completed its first full year of operations, registering P520 million in sales nationwide.

Pacific Online handles marketing and distribution of the Scratchit tickets for PCSO.

As of end-December 2008, Pacific Online had a total of 1,600 lottery terminals in Visayas and Mindanao.

Ocier said the company will continue the expansion of wholly-owned unit Lucky Circle Corp., which operates lotto outlets in SM malls and supermarket to further augment its revenues.

Lucky Circle stores sell seven Instant scratch games namely Mega Money, Fast Cash, Jack En Poy, Gold Rush, Pot of Gold, Red Hot 7’s and Double Dollars.