IOWA, OTHER U.S. LOTTERIES REACH AGREEMENT
TO CROSS-SELL POWERBALL, MEGA MILLIONS

Plan Also Calls For National Lottery Game By 2010

DES MOINES, Iowa – Powerball could get some company in Iowa from two other big jackpot games, under a new agreement among U.S. lotteries.

Lottery directors across the country reached an agreement in principle Wednesday (Oct. 7) to work towards cross-selling of the Powerball® and Mega Millions games in 2010 and development and implementation of a national lotto game for all U.S. lotteries in late fall 2010.

Powerball and Mega Millions are both lotto games with jackpot prizes that have climbed into the hundreds of millions of dollars, but to date, the games have been sold in separate jurisdictions. Powerball is sold in 30 states including Iowa, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands; while Mega Millions is sold in 12 other states, including Illinois.

Iowa Lottery CEO Terry Rich said the agreement comes after several studies and feedback from lottery players across the United States. Allowing lotteries to sell both Powerball and Mega Millions and implement a national lotto game should create more winners and result in increased proceeds for the good causes benefitted by lotteries, he said.

"These plans all involve variations of games and game types that are already popular with lottery players," he said. "We think Iowa players will enjoy the chance to play for even more big lotto prizes."

Under the agreement, lotteries that currently sell Powerball will have the opportunity to begin offering Mega Millions tickets to their players, pending approval in each jurisdiction. And, Mega Millions states will be able to offer the Powerball game to complement their existing mix of games. Details of the national lotto game are still being developed.

"We still have a lot of details to work through involving legal, information-technology and marketing issues," Rich said. "But we think these new games can offer entertainment for Iowa players and help for the state of Iowa during these tough economic times."

Lottery proceeds have three main purposes in Iowa. They provide support for veterans and their families through the Iowa Veterans Trust Fund; help for a variety of significant projects through the state general fund; and backing for the Vision Iowa program, which was implemented to create tourism destinations in Iowa, assist with community attractions and build and repair schools.

Since its start in 1985, the Iowa Lottery has raised nearly $1.2 billion for state programs while its players have won more than $2.4 billion in prizes.

The lotteries that sell Powerball are: Arizona Lottery, Arkansas Scholarship Lottery, Colorado Lottery, Connecticut Lottery Corporation, D.C. Lottery and Charitable Games Control Board, Delaware Lottery, Florida Lottery, Idaho Lottery, Hoosier Lottery, Iowa Lottery Authority, Kansas Lottery, Kentucky Lottery Corporation, Louisiana Lottery Corporation, Maine State Lottery, Minnesota State Lottery, Missouri State Lottery, Montana Lottery, Nebraska Lottery, New Hampshire Lottery Commission, New Mexico Lottery Authority, North Carolina Education Lottery, North Dakota Lottery, Oklahoma Lottery Commission, Oregon Lottery, Pennsylvania Lottery, Rhode Island Lottery, South Carolina Education Lottery, South Dakota Lottery, Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation, Virgin Islands Lottery, Vermont Lottery, Wisconsin Lottery, and the West Virginia Lottery.

The lotteries that sell Mega Millions are: California Lottery, Georgia Lottery, Illinois Lottery, Maryland Lottery, Massachusetts Lottery, Michigan Lottery, New Jersey Lottery, New York Lottery, Ohio Lottery, Texas Lottery, Virginia Lottery and Washington's Lottery.