Camelot rolls out ‘premium’ scratchcards to boost sales
Camelot, the lottery operator, is to introduce a series of premium scratchcards offering larger prizes as the next step in its strategy to revive interest in its games.
The first &£3 scratchcards will be launched on June 28, subject to National Lottery Commission approval, with another &£3 game expected to be rolled out in February. There are also plans to sell “big-win” &£5 scratchcards by the end of the year, again subject to NLC approval.
Players will be able to win up to &£500,000, compared with the maximum &£100,000 award for the standard &£2 line of games. As further enticement, the odds for the &£3 games have also been improved to a one-in-four chance of winning a prize.
Advertising for the &£3 scratchcard games will break in the summer, and will be based on the &£20m “beneficiaries” Lotto advertising campaign that is scheduled to run until 2004.
A Camelot spokeswomen says: “This is a significant product innovation and will be a major event in UK scratchcard marketing. If the launch proves successful, further &£3 games will be introduced as a regular feature of our game plan.”
Last week, Camelot unveiled its recovery strategy to return to growth by 2004. It is expected to introduce a host of new games in the next 12 months, including a European “mega-draw” lottery and various Olympic-themed games, such as a “penny lottery”.
