China’s Ministries of Finance and Civil Affairs issued a joint statement last week announcing the “orderly delisting” of lottery games that feature a short duration between purchasing a ticket and learning the outcome of one’s wager, also known as high-frequency lottery products.
In January 2019, Beijing ordered its sports and welfare lottery administrators to halt the promotion of both high-frequency (sports) and “quick-opening” (welfare) lottery products. According to CalvinAyre.com, the products, accounting for between one-quarter and one-third of lottery sales, were leading to “large-scale irrational purchases” by impatient players.
The Ministries’ announcement last week claimed these marketing restrictions had “played a positive role in curbing the unauthorized use of the Internet to sell lottery tickets and restrict large-value betting.”
As of November 1, lottery administrators in each province or autonomous territory will be limited to offering a single quick-draw product, “including virtual sports guessing football games.” Following next year’s annual Spring Festival holiday, “all high-frequency quick-open games will stop selling.”
