Lotteries Think Internet Will Seduce Rich People Too
from the slim-chance dept
Thu, May 5th 2005 1:15pm —
Brett
Not too long ago, Georgia was blazing a trail to the internet with plans for an
online version of its state lottery. A bill creating the virtual
racket game recently passed the state's House, while
several others states are moving in this direction. Proponents of internet-based lotteries are hailing them as a major advancement in the
original Idiot Tax paper-based lottery of yore. The hope is that making it easier to buy tickets will appeal to a bigger audience, especially wealthier people who disproportionately avoid it today. But is a lack of convenience really limiting lottery sales? After all, rich people shop at grocery and "convenience" stores -- where ticket machines are already ubiquitous -- just like poor people. Rather than enticing more players, moving the kiosk online probably won't do much to change the ticket-buying behaviors of people who don't already buy in to the system. If they miraculously do, then state governments might have found a sneaky way of effectively taxing the rich.
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