If the mutterings of some of the lotto companies in India is to be believed then the online lottery system of buying a lotto ticket for as less as Rs 10 might be a good investment option vis -à- vis trading in stock markets to beat recession blues.
Judging by the response at times of crises like the Mumbai floods (in July 2005) and even the recent terrorist attacks in Mumbai when people were forced to stay indoors, Gautam Thawani of online gaming company Pan India Infravest Pvt Ltd said, “We saw sales increased on those days because most people had nothing to do. So they switched to their computers and started buying lotto tickets. We have seen sales increase after the office hours as well.”
It’s true that in these times of recession and pink slips, triggered by the scare of global economic downturn, people want to put their money in less riskier options than trading in high risk ventures such as the stock market.
At such times, the odd success stories also add fuel to the fire. Not too long ago a sweeper of a municipal hospital in Mumbai was on an outing with his family when he decided to stop by at an outlet to check the results of a lotto ticket that he bought regularly, and discovered he had won Rs 2.09 crore in lottery! As the story spread, thousands of daydreamers queued up outside gaming kiosks in the hope of becoming millionaires.
The lottery sells dreams to a buyer. Week after week or, in some cases, each day of his life, he hopes of striking it rich someday. The humble sweeper’s ‘rags to riches’ story is the sort of inspiration he keeps repeating in his mind to build up on his hopes.
Is lotto really a better a bet than the stock market?
“I don’t know whether it is better. But at the moment, when the global recession is at its peak, it provides an avenue of lesser investment and a chance to win huge amounts of money,” utters Gautam.
Be that as it may, lotto cannot be compared with stock market or any other conventional investments because latter give assured returns. Agrees Gautam but claims, “In the last five years as a company we have paid over Rs 4500 crores only as prize money to our winners. And over the last four years we created 65 crorepatis (billionaires) with the highest winner getting Rs 17 crores and more than 2800 lakhpatis (millionaires).”
However, there is no winning formula involved in this. Like the stock market, one speculates when buying a lottery ticket. In stock market one speculates on shares and in lottery system the buyer speculates on numbers. Most regular lottery buyers observe the winning numbers over a period of time. And they opt for the same numbers when they buy a lotto ticket. But, it doesn’t mean the buyer would end up striking it rich. It’s all a game of chance which the lotto kiosk owners and companies prefer to call “investments” and not a gamble.
Lotto is not meant for the hard core investor who will not budge from investing in stocks and shares and other investment options. But the lotto companies advise a high risk person (investor) to add lotto as investment option in his portfolio so that when stock market falls, he can use it (lotto) as a hedging strategy. How appealing that would be to a conventional investor only time will tell.
There are restrictions on online lottery in India. It is permitted only in the states of Maharashtra, West Bengal and Punjab. However, paper lottery is considered legal everywhere in the country. Online lottery has nothing to do with playing on the internet. In the online lottery system (or lotto) the numbers are allotted to a buyer and the ticket is printed by a computerized machine. Hence the terminology “online.”
In the ultimate analysis, lotto companies want online lottery to be treated as any other normal investment option since it is a tool to earn money. As for whether people actually prefer to buy a lotto ticket rather than invest in stock market, there is no specific information available. However, as a normal human reaction to combating cash crunch and lured by the colour of money, especially in times of recession, people may buy lottery tickets to see if lady luck smiles on them.
V FOR VICTORY: Tulsiram Bandu Chintale after receiving his winning cheque of Rs 1.04 crore. PIC/BIPIN KOKATE
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