SVL close to testing mobile lottery sales
Published:Friday | November 1, 2013 | 12:00 AM
Avia Collinder, Business Reporter
Supreme Ventures Limited is pursuing the development of a mobile payment system, a new application that will make it easier to place wagers or buy lottery tickets on the go.
But the project, for which the company is putting out feelers for partners, is yet to be designed.
President and CEO of SVL Brian George said his company is reviewing a number of options which will provide patrons for its games with new alternatives for purchasing both lottery and sports-betting tickets.
Currently, tickets must be purchased with cash from agents at, fixed locations.
George said his options include mobile wallet plans for which discussions are advanced.
"Supreme Ventures currently has mobile wallet plans and will be participating in a pilot in the near future," he said.
However, the gaming executive is not ready to disclose much more.
"Due to contractual non-disclosure requirements, we cannot elaborate further on this. What we can say is that we believe that the integration of mobile money into our business strategy should be independent of the supplier," said the SVL president.
"Mobile money is not an end in and of itself. The final objective is to enable a range of transactions, including but not limited to the ability to purchase both lottery and sports-betting tickets using a smartphone."
SVL would not be ready to disclose a potential launch date for an app or discuss the revenue impact until all research is completed and the regulatory requirements ascertained, he said.
All mobile banking, epayment, mobile wallet and such products must be licensed by the Bank of Jamaica. Outside of a Government-backed mobile money project, the BOJ has so far licensed one epayment platform, called JCUES, offered by the credit union league.
George, at mid-year, had acknowledged early talks with IT expert Patrick Casserly, who is himself attempting to get into the mobile money market, but it's unclear whether a deal is still likely to emerge from that source.
Casserly's Florida-based firm, eMagination Inc, has had talks with PayToo Corp to roll out a mobile payment solution, but the SVL head declined to speak on a potential alliance.
"We indicated at the time of this disclosure that we were in discussions with PayToo as one of SVL's options. These discussions continue ...," George said, while again citing confidentiality agreements.
Casserly said Thursday that there was no update to give on his talks with PayToo, but would comment "when the time is right".
Sonia Davidson, vice-president in charge of communication for SVL, said the international trend was for gaming companies to provide alternative payment options from fixed locations, and that was the direction in which SVL is headed. There was no indicative cost for the amount of investment needed, she said, as SVL is currently at the research stage.
Supreme Ventures is Jamaica's only lottery company in operation since 2001. Last year, the company joined the billion-dollar profit club when it netted J$1.07 billion.