Gambling in the USA
Pollard Banknote Applauds Minnesota Lottery’s Record FY 2018 Instant Scratch Sales
Pollard Banknote Limited (TSX: PBL) (“Pollard Banknote”), a leading lottery partner that provides instant tickets, interactive solutions, and marketing support, congratulates the Minnesota Lottery on a record-breaking fiscal year 2018. The Lottery achieved its highest overall sales to date, reaching $596.5 million, driven primarily by instant scratch game sales, which also set a record of $411.2 million.
Pollard Banknote began its partnership with the Minnesota Lottery in 2007 and currently serves as the Lottery’s primary instant ticket supplier. Over the last 10 years, Pollard Banknote has supplied the Lottery with a full range of instant ticket products and services, including jurisdiction-specific design, marketing, and strategic recommendations.
The Lottery’s sales achievement is a result of various successful instant products and strategies. Pollard Banknote has worked closely with the Lottery on many initiatives including the introduction of outstanding game concepts—such as eye-catching oversized tickets (larger than 48 square inches in area), innovative products such as PlayBook Mini™, multi-scene games, and popular licensed brands like Frogger and Ultimate Getaway—and the development of creative prize structures.
In collaboration with Pollard Banknote, the Minnesota Lottery has become the U.S. leader of oversized tickets, currently offering three large-format games in the market. This year, Super Bonus Crossword and Xtreme Cash added to the Lottery’s previous five oversized tickets, all of which were printed by Pollard Banknote. Super Bonus Crossword is the Lottery’s best-selling $20 crossword game to date (based on 10-week average sales) and Xtreme Cash’s 10-week average sales were 87% higher than the average $10 game launched in Minnesota since 2009!
Minnesota Treasures—the first PlayBook Mini™ game launched in the U.S.—combined Pollard Banknote’s ‘fun-size’ version of its patented PlayBook® with prominent Minnesota landmarks. Measuring in at 4″ x 3.9″, Minnesota Treasuresbrought together multiple games with various play styles in one entertaining booklet. This game contributed to a remarkable 39% sales growth in the $10 category, based on a comparison of sales 10-weeks before and after its launch.
One of the Lottery’s most popular $5 games in 2018 was Double Your Money. Pollard Banknote developed a prize structure that allowed for starting prizes of $10 (double the cost the ticket), while maintaining the Lottery’s standard quantity and odds. The game’s 10-week average sales were 67% higher than the Lottery average $5 game launched since 2009!
“Pollard Banknote extends our warmest congratulations to the Minnesota Lottery on achieving a record-breaking sales year,” remarked Byron Peterson, Director, Sales & Marketing, Pollard Banknote. “This significant accomplishment is well-deserved and reflects the Lottery’s hard work, dedication, and commitment to creating unique and engaging player experiences for Minnesotans. As a partner to the Minnesota Lottery for more than a decade, Pollard Banknote is extremely proud of the Lottery’s success and we look forward to helping it achieve continued sales growth in support of good causes in the coming years.”
“We are very excited to have reached record-breaking sales in fiscal year 2018. This success translated into a record $145 million for our beneficiaries including the state’s General Fund and various environmental programs,” said Robert Doty, Executive Director of the Minnesota Lottery. “In addition to offering high quality, innovative instant scratch tickets, Pollard Banknote supports the Lottery with guidance and expertise in research and marketing, with the ultimate goal of increasing revenue for good causes in the state of Minnesota.”
The Minnesota Lottery has been supporting good causes throughout the state since 1989. Over the years the Lottery has raised more than $2.9 billion for programs that improve the quality of life for Minnesotans. In FY 2018, the Lottery returned a record of $145 million to its beneficiaries, including $77 million to the state’s General Fund, $66 million to environmental programs, and $2 million to support problem gambling prevention and treatment programs. For more information about the Lottery, please visit www.mnlottery.com.
About Pollard Banknote
Pollard Banknote is a leading lottery partner to more than 60 lotteries worldwide, providing high quality instant ticket products, licensed games, Schafer Systems retail merchandising solutions, and a full suite of digital offerings, ranging from game apps to comprehensive player engagement and iLottery solutions, including strategic marketing and management services. The company is a proven innovator and has decades of experience helping lotteries to maximize player engagement, sales, and proceeds for good causes. Pollard Banknote also provides pull-tab tickets, bingo paper, and its Diamond Game and Oasis-branded electronic ticket machines to charitable and other gaming markets in North America. Established in 1907, Pollard Banknote is owned approximately 67.6% by the Pollard family and 32.4% by public shareholders and is publicly traded on the TSX (PBL). For more information, please visit our website at www.pollardbanknote.com.
Gambling in the USA
Scientific Games’ iLottery Games Portfolio Expands as Pixiu Gaming Joins SG Content Hub
Exciting New Hasbro-Licensed MONOPOLY and BATTLESHIP iLottery Games Coming Via SG Content Hub
Scientific Games welcomed Pixiu Gaming as the newest studio partner to the SG Content Hub. Pixiu Gaming joins the government-regulated lottery industry’s premier iLottery content delivery platform, featuring an expanding, highly curated selection of iLottery games from Scientific Games and partner studios around the globe. The games are available to lotteries in multiple languages and in a variety of play styles for all player segments.
Widely recognized as the leading supplier of Keno games in North American regulated gaming markets, Pixiu Gaming is a boutique developer focused on authentic, engaging and player-centric games. Founded in 2014 and based in London, UK with a remote global team, Pixiu is named after a fierce Chinese mythical creature that attracts and preserves great wealth.
Scientific Games, the world’s largest lottery games company, is collaborating with Pixiu Gaming to bring exciting new MONOPOLY and BATTLESHIP iLottery games to lotteries through its exclusive licensing agreement with Hasbro. Games created by Pixiu Gaming will be available in the SG Content Hub, in addition to games from Scientific Games’ own SG Studios and other premier partner studios worldwide.
Tony Plaskow, Pixiu Gaming Co-Founder, said, “Pixiu Gaming is thrilled to join the SG Content Hub to bring our games to more lotteries. We look forward to working with Scientific Games and Hasbro to create exciting, brand-sensitive MONOPOLY and BATTLESHIP-themed iLottery game experiences. These iconic brands are familiar worldwide, and each provides the perfect mix of strategy and luck. We will weave a true-to-brand digital game experience with fun, simple-to-understand content that entertains players.”
Matt Lynch, President, Digital for Scientific Games, said, “We are very excited to partner with Pixiu Gaming, an up-and-coming studio. Their unique approach to game development and artistic vision brings a differentiated offering to market that will add depth to iLottery portfolios by expanding game play options for existing players while bringing new game experiences to attract new players. Scientific Games is focused on creating an unparalleled range of playstyles and game mechanics for players with the SG Content Hub, and we are proud to soon include play experiences from Pixiu Gaming.”
SG Content Hub offers partner studios select exclusively licensed brands from the company’s portfolio of more than 100 licensed brands, which also includes other Hasbro-licensed games such as CONNECT 4, THE GAME OF LIFE and YAHTZEE. MONOPOLY is perennially the lottery industry’s top performer, with 33 lotteries worldwide offering MONOPOLY-themed games in fiscal year 2025, resulting in more than $2 billion in retail and digital sales during the year.
Scientific Games provides retail and digital games, technology, analytics and services to 150 lotteries in 50 countries worldwide. The company is a digital lottery innovator offering lotteries entertaining game content featuring the most extensive portfolio of licensed brands in the industry, and world-leading digital programs, including CRM, loyalty, promotions, second chance, mobile and web applications.
BATTLESHIP, CONNECT 4, THE GAME OF LIFE, YAHTZEE and HASBRO and all related trademarks and logos are trademarks of Hasbro, Inc. ©2025 Hasbro.
The MONOPOLY name and logo, the distinctive design of the game board, the four corner squares, the MR. MONOPOLY name and character, as well as each of the distinctive elements of the board and playing pieces are trademarks of Hasbro for its property trading game and game equipment. © 1935, 2025 Hasbro. All Rights Reserved. Licensed by Hasbro.
© 2025 Scientific Games, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Gambling in the USA
Caesars Entertainment Bolsters Online Casino Live Dealer Offering with the Launch of Branded Live Dealer Studio in Michigan
Caesars Entertainment Inc. announced the launch of its third branded online casino live dealer studio, available now to players on Caesars Palace Online Casino, Horseshoe Online Casino and Caesars Sportsbook & Casino in Michigan. Developed in partnership with Evolution, the new studio reinforces Caesars’ commitment to delivering world-class, immersive experiences across its online platforms, inspired by the iconic atmosphere of its Caesars Rewards destinations.
The debut of the new studio marks Caesars’ third branded live dealer studio that has opened in 2025 and draws inspiration from table game play at the Las Vegas Strip’s most iconic casino, Caesars Palace. Its opening follows the successful launch of Caesars’ first branded studio with Evolution in Pennsylvania in January. In April, the Company also debuted its first studio inside a Caesars Rewards destination at Tropicana Atlantic City in New Jersey.
“Our third live dealer studio expands our fully customized live dealer experience that is already extremely popular in Pennsylvania and New Jersey into another key jurisdiction where our online casino platforms are live. The studio design takes inspiration from our flagship destination, Caesars Palace, to authentically recreate the atmosphere of Las Vegas for online players. We look forward to our Michigan players enjoying the new experience,” said Matthew Sunderland, Senior Vice President and Chief iGaming Officer at Caesars Digital.
The new live dealer studio in The Great Lakes State is composed of five blackjack tables, including a VIP-exclusive blackjack table, one roulette table, and one baccarat table. The tables are adorned with custom-branded felts featuring iconic Caesars destinations and each marquee online casino platform, including Caesars Palace Online Casino, Caesars Sportsbook & Casino, Horseshoe Online Casino, and, for the first time, Tropicana Online Casino.
Select tables also feature custom felts co-branded through partnerships with professional sports teams. Like Caesars Rewards destinations across North America, the studio caters to VIP players with an exclusive high-limit blackjack table offering an authentic 1-to-1 live experience that could previously only be found in a physical casino.
“As the global leader in online live casino with nearly two decades of experience, Evolution is proud to partner once again with Caesars to launch this bespoke live dealer studio in Michigan. The studio brings the unmistakable character of Caesars’ iconic destinations to the online space, offering players in the state a polished, immersive entertainment experience that mirrors the energy and elegance of the casino floor. It’s another bold step forward in our shared commitment to innovation and quality at scale in the online live casino market,” said Marcus Huber, Chief Commercial Officer of Evolution North America.
Caesars Palace Online Casino, Horseshoe Online Casino and Caesars Sportsbook & Casino are available on iOS, Android, and desktop for those 21 and older in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ontario, and West Virginia. Each platform offers a dynamic online casino experience with a range of unique Caesars-branded games alongside hundreds of classic land-based casino favorites and core casino game mechanics, including high limit slots, private live dealer tables, linked progressive jackpots, variations of poker and roulette, and more.
Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel has officially opened its newly expanded non-smoking gaming floor, marking a significant milestone in the property’s continued commitment to exceptional guest experiences.
Located adjacent to the hotel lobby, the new, larger non-smoking slot floor will feature nearly 400 of today’s most popular slot machines in a fresh, modern environment designed exclusively for non-smoking guests. This addition enhances the casino’s dedication to providing smoke-free gaming options in a luxury setting. For convenience and ease of access, non-smoking guests can also take advantage of the smoke-free entrance via the hotel’s valet parking.
This new space complements Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel’s existing fully enclosed, non-smoking slot area near Falls Buffet and Snoqualmie Café & Deli, offering guests even more choice and accessibility when it comes to their preferred gaming environment.
In addition to these gaming enhancements, all restaurants on property are 100% non-smoking, making Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel a premier destination for guests seeking an elevated, smoke-free entertainment and dining experience.
“We’re thrilled to offer our guests even more smoke-free options. The expansion of our non-smoking gaming floor reflects our ongoing efforts to listen to our guests and create an atmosphere that’s both exciting and comfortable for everyone,” said Mary Lou Patterson, CEO of Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel.
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