程阳：National Lottery (Ireland)

The National Lottery (Irish: An Crannchur Náisiúnta) is the nationwide lottery that has operated in the Republic of Ireland since 23 March 1987. Created by the National Lottery Act, 1986 for the purpose of raising funds for deserving causes, the National Lottery currently offers a range of games that includes scratchcards, Lotto drawings, televised game shows, and participation in the transnational EuroMillions lottery. In 2007, its tickets and scratchcards were distributed by 3,623 retail agents throughout the country, with total sales for the year amounting to €778.5 million.

[edit] Administration

Since its inception, the National Lottery has been administered by the An Post National Lottery Company (Irish: Comhlacht Chrannchur Náisiúnta An Post), a subsidiary of Ireland's semi-state postal services provider An Post. The company holds a licence to operate the lottery on behalf of the Minister for Finance, who has ultimate authority in issuing or revoking the lottery licence, in overseeing gaming operations, and in distributing the lottery's proceeds.

The National Lottery Act, 1986, stipulates that the lottery licence must be reissued under a competitive-bid process at least once every ten years. The current licence was granted to An Post National Lottery Company on 26 June 2001, to cover the period from 1 January 2002 until 31 December 2008. In 2006, then–Minister for Finance Brian Cowen extended the licence for a further two years, until 31 December 2010. The government will invite bids for a new licence to take effect on 1 January 2011.^[1]

In 2008, the An Post National Lottery Company undertook a €6 million rebranding campaign, introducing a new signature color (lime green) and a new logo (a lime green–coloured star with a smiling face) with the goals of unifying its branding across its various products and giving the National Lottery a more youthful and fun image. The new branding extends from the company's lottery machines and kiosks to its playslips, scratchcards, tickets, and website.^[2] The redesigned website was launched on 20 August 2008.

The National Lottery's online and instant-ticket services are currently provided by a contractor, GTECH Ireland, a wholly owned subsidiary of GTECH Corp.