IGT launches PlaySpot for Rhode Island Lottery

PROVIDENCE – International Game Technology PLC and Rhode Island Lottery last week announced the official launch of the PlaySpot mobile lottery application.

PlaySpot connects players to a lottery network via Bluetooth, allowing them to purchase lottery tickets and instant-win games as well as check and collect their winnings from their mobile devices while inside a licensed Rhode Island Lottery retail location.

The launch announcement follows a nine-month pilot test that began in December 2016 with PlaySpot’s first deployment at Blue Moon Pub in Cranston. IGT and Rhode Island Lottery’s technical and marketing teams worked together throughout the app’s development to create this first-of-its-kind interactive lottery experience for Rhode Islanders.

IGT plans several additional deployments of PlaySpot over the next year, according to a release.

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“The Rhode Island Lottery is proud to be the first, and currently the only lottery in the world, to have IGT’s PlaySpot solution,” said Gerald S. Aubin, director of Rhode Island Lottery, in a statement. “We have long been advocates for finding new strategies for growth, and are pleased to partner with IGT on this innovative solution for our players.”

Aubin said he hoped the PlaySpot app will attract new players from the millennial demographic and provide growth opportunities for Rhode Island Lottery’s retail partners.

IGT and Rhode Island Lottery announced PlaySpot’s launch on Sept. 13 at the annual North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries convention, where IGT also unveiled a number of other new games and product offerings.

Michael Chambrello, CEO of North America Lottery at IGT, remarked that the company decided on a theme of “Modernizing Play” to express its vision for the lottery industry at NASPL 2017, which took place Sept. 13-16 in Portland, Ore.

“Our industry is poised for advances on many fronts, from the retail operating model to the player experience to the form and content of the games,” said Chambrello. “We’ve been listening to our customers, and our newly reimagined portfolio communicates how we can help them take advantage of the many opportunities for growth.”

Among the products IGT showcased at NASPL were several new or improved services designed to help lotteries attract more players and drive sales, including IGT’s Aurora platform for managing lotteries across different channels, first released in October 2015 and recently updated with a more-streamlined administrative portal.

IGT’s booth at NASPL 2017 also featured its suite of data-driven business apps for insights and sales growth; a new concept for a hybrid lottery draw game called “NOW & LATER” with a scratch-off ticket component; and its newest exclusively licensed brand, the hit talent-competition TV show “The Voice” with more than 500 million viewers worldwide.

The multiyear licensing agreement with “The Voice” producer Talpa Global B.V., announced Sept. 12, grants IGT the exclusive right to develop and distribute games globally under “The Voice” brand, including instant scratch games, pull-tab games, traditional online games, instant online games, monitor games, interactive games and mobile games.

Galen Auer is a PBN contributing writer. Email galen.auer@gmail.com or follow on Twitter at @PBNAuer.