Atlantic Lottery Corporation
Encyclopedia
The Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC) (French: Société des loteries de l'Atlantique), currently branded as simply Atlantic Lottery or Loto Atlantique, is an organization that operates lottery
games in Atlantic Canada
. It is owned jointly by the four Atlantic provincial governments: New Brunswick
, Nova Scotia
, Prince Edward Island
, and Newfoundland and Labrador
. ALC's headquarters are located in Moncton, New Brunswick
. All profits returned by ALC are distributed to the provinces for their general funds.
ALC was founded in 1976, shortly after the founding of government lotteries elsewhere in Canada
. While ALC's first games were only played on a regional basis, it quickly joined the Interprovincial Lottery Corporation
, which offered national draws.
ALC has been seen by some as an innovator in lottery technology. In 1988, they became the first lottery organization in the world to print a bar code on all draw and scratch tickets, allowing for instant verification of a prize. In 1990, they introduced the first legal video lottery terminals in Canada. The introduction of PlaySphere in 2004, they allowed users to play the lottery over the Internet
, another first.
In 2007, Atlantic Lottery was named one of Canada's Top 100 Employers
, as published in Maclean's
magazine, the only provincial gaming authority to receive this honour.
Since 1976, ALC has awarded more than $5.5 billion in prizes and paid out $5.9 billion in profits to its four shareholders.
ALC also owns the Red Shores Racetrack and Casino at Charlottetown Driving Park. The facility includes harness racing
, slot machines and poker tables and is located in Charlottetown
, Prince Edward Island
. It also runs Red Shores at Summerside Raceway in Summerside, Prince Edward Island.
Canada Games - Atlantic Lottery has supported the Games for more than 30 years.
2009 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships
in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
.
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
games in Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada
Atlantic Canada is the region of Canada comprising the four provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec: the three Maritime provinces – New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia – and Newfoundland and Labrador...
. It is owned jointly by the four Atlantic provincial governments: New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...
, and Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
. ALC's headquarters are located in Moncton, New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
. All profits returned by ALC are distributed to the provinces for their general funds.
History
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. While ALC's first games were only played on a regional basis, it quickly joined the Interprovincial Lottery Corporation
Interprovincial Lottery Corporation
The Interprovincial Lottery Corporation is an organization that operates lottery games in Canada. It is owned jointly by the five provincial lottery commissions. ILC's headquarters are located in Toronto, Ontario....
, which offered national draws.
ALC has been seen by some as an innovator in lottery technology. In 1988, they became the first lottery organization in the world to print a bar code on all draw and scratch tickets, allowing for instant verification of a prize. In 1990, they introduced the first legal video lottery terminals in Canada. The introduction of PlaySphere in 2004, they allowed users to play the lottery over the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, another first.
In 2007, Atlantic Lottery was named one of Canada's Top 100 Employers
Canada's Top 100 Employers
Canada's Top 100 Employers is an annual competition that recognizes the best places in Canada to work. First held in 1999, the project aims to single out the employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional working conditions and progressive human resources policies. Winners are...
, as published in Maclean's
Maclean's
Maclean's is a Canadian weekly news magazine, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events.-History:Founded in 1905 by Toronto journalist/entrepreneur Lt.-Col. John Bayne Maclean, a 43-year-old trade magazine publisher who purchased an advertising agency's in-house...
magazine, the only provincial gaming authority to receive this honour.
Since 1976, ALC has awarded more than $5.5 billion in prizes and paid out $5.9 billion in profits to its four shareholders.
Games and products
- Draw Games:
- Lotto 6/49Lotto 6/49Lotto 6/49 is one of Canada's two national lottery games. Winning numbers are drawn by the Interprovincial Lottery Corporation every Wednesday and Saturday. Launched on June 12, 1982, Lotto 6/49 was the first nationwide Canadian lottery game to allow players to choose their own numbers...
(national) — draws every Wednesday and Saturday - Lotto MaxLotto MaxLotto Max is a Canadian lottery game that began sales on September 19, 2009. The first set of winning numbers were drawn on September 25, 2009, and subsequent draws have been held every Friday. It replaced Lotto Super 7 in September 2009....
(national) — draws every Friday (replaced Lotto Super 7Lotto Super 7Lotto Super 7 was a national lottery game in Canada, operated by the Interprovincial Lottery Corporation . It was launched in 10 June 1994, and its last draw was on 18 September 2009....
in September 2009) - Tag (a 6-digit number attached to other draw tickets)
- Atlantic 49 (a regional draw played in conjunction with Lotto 6/49 that uses the same format) — top prize is always $1,000,000.
- Pik 4 (a "mini-Keno" draw using the Lotto 6/49 numbers)
- KenoKenoKeno is a lottery or bingo gambling game often played at modern casinos, and is also offered as a game in some state lotteries. A traditional live casino keno game uses a circular glass enclosure called a "bubble" containing 80 balls which determine the ball draw result. Each ball is imprinted...
Atlantic - Atlantic PayDay (a draw of 4 numbers out of 70 in which the top prize is an annuitized $500,000 paid out two weeks at a time)
- Bucko (played three lines at a time with a possibility of combination wins) — Draws everyday with a top prize of $20,000.
- Lotto 6/49
- Sports betting:
- Pro-LineSport SelectSport Select is to a group of sports betting games offered by Canada's provincial governments. In Quebec, the program is known as Pari sportif, in Ontario and Atlantic Canada it is known as Pro-Line while in British Columbia, it is known as Sports Action. However, the rules for the games are...
- Over-Under
- Props
- Pools
- Spreads
- Pro-Line
- Other conventional games:
- Scratch-n-Win (scratch ticketsScratchcardA scratchcard is a small card, often made of thin paper-based card for competitions and plastic to conceal PINs, where one or more areas contain concealed information which can...
, including recurring draws such as Set For Life) - Breakopen (Pull-tabPull-tabA pull-tab is a gambling ticket that is sold as a means to play a pull-tab game. The object of the ticket is to open the perforated windows on the back of the ticket and match the symbols inside the ticket to the winning combinations on the front of the ticket. The winning Pull-Tab ticket is turned...
s) - Video lottery terminalVideo Lottery TerminalA Video Lottery Terminal or VLT is a gaming machine that allows gamblers to bet on the outcome of a video game.A VLT is similar to a slot machine, in that each terminal is a stand-alone device containing a random-number generator...
s
- Scratch-n-Win (scratch tickets
- Internet-based games:
- PlaySphere (allows for draw games and sports betting to take place over the Internet)
ALC also owns the Red Shores Racetrack and Casino at Charlottetown Driving Park. The facility includes harness racing
Harness racing
Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait . They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, although racing under saddle is also conducted in Europe.-Breeds:...
, slot machines and poker tables and is located in Charlottetown
Charlottetown
Charlottetown is a Canadian city. It is both the largest city on and the provincial capital of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, the wife of George III, Charlottetown was first incorporated as a town in 1855 and designated as a city in 1885...
, Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...
. It also runs Red Shores at Summerside Raceway in Summerside, Prince Edward Island.
Community involvement
The Peter Gzowski Invitational (PGI) golf tournaments for literacy - A sponsor of the Atlantic Canadian PGIs since 2002.Canada Games - Atlantic Lottery has supported the Games for more than 30 years.
2009 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships
2009 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships
The 2009 International Canoe Federation Canoe Sprint World Championships were held 12–16 August 2009 in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, on Lake Banook. The Canadian city was selected to host the championships in October 2003 after having done so previously in 1997...
in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
Dartmouth founded in 1750, is a community and planning area of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. Located on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour, Dartmouth has been nicknamed the City of Lakes after the large number of lakes located in the city.On April 1, 1996, the provincial...
.