Intralot Australia announced the sale of its Category 2 lottery license assets in Australian state of Victoria (operated also in Tasmania) to the Tatts Group, which currently holds a Category 1 Public lottery license, the primary license in the region. The transaction brings Victoria back to a monopoly status quo.
Proceeds related to the transaction, including up-front fees, ongoing payments and cost savings, are estimated to reach upwards of US$18 million. The Victorian lottery operation represented less than 2 percent of the group’s revenues in the first half of 2014.
Peter Sidwell, executive chairman of Intralot Australia, said, “We have opted for a solution which is to the benefit of our retailers and, of course, we will expedite a smooth transition to the new operator. As represented in other forums, Intralot’s ability to fully exploit the Category 2 license was materially affected by events linked to the license issuance.”
The Gambling Licensing Review Panel found that Intralot Australia was “unequally treated” during the process that resulted in the awarding of its license, but no corrective measures were taken by the government. Intralot Australia is currently pursuing legal remedies.
“Intralot will continue to operate and focus on the very successful monitoring operation of 27,000 VLTs in Victoria, the recently awarded pre-commitment (responsible gaming) project in the same state, its successful recently updated partnership with Lotterywest in Western Australia and the new opportunities that will arise in the other jurisdictions of Australia and the wider region of Oceania,” Sidwell said.
