Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

£72m makeover for National 'Lotto'

Cahal Milmo
Tuesday 09 April 2002 00:00 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The National Lottery is to acquire a continental flavour by being renamed Lotto as part of a £72m makeover by its operator, Camelot, to revive the game's fortunes.

The new title, which copies European countries including France and Italy, was leaked yesterday ahead of an official relaunch on 29 April.

Camelot won the right last year to the second seven-year licence to run the lottery, beating Richard Branson's People's Lottery, after promising to reverse a slump in demand for tickets.

Sales fell by 5.4 per cent to £2.4bn in the six months to September 2001, while Camelot's profits fell by 27.3 per cent to £22.9m.

A Camelot spokeswoman said yesterday: "We can't comment on any new name. We will be revealing the details of the relaunch shortly, but until that time we are not talking about specifics."

The new image is also expected to include a new logo to replace the current crossed-fingers symbol.

Camelot announced last month that it was also changing its corporate logo to a figure reaching for a star. It decided against changing its name, saying it was associated with "integrity".

The details of the relaunch will also include new games and a special draw for the Queen's golden jubilee.

But retail experts warned that changing the National Lottery name could prove a costly error. Neil Mason, an analyst for the market research group Mintel, said: "There are other games with the Lotto name and it could confuse players."

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in