Pacific Online expects 20% earnings growth this year

MANILA, Philippines - Pacific Online Systems Corp., the exclusive lotto system provider in Visayas and Mindanao, expects its net earnings to grow by at least 20 percent or more than P300 million this year as it continues to roll out terminals, introduce new game offerings, widen its network of retail lotto outlets and strengthen its marketing and distribution efforts.

Pacific Online posted a net income of P263 million in 2009, an increase of more than two-fold from the P130 million recorded the previous year. Revenues reached P962 million, up 20 percent, on record lottery and scratch card ticket sales.

Willy Ocier, chairman and president of Pacific Online, said while the power brownouts had affected lottery sales, the company expects to perform much better in the second half especially with the public’s warm reception to its Grand Lotto 6/55, a single matrix online lottery game wherein a player player chooses six numbers out of the 1-55 matrix. Minimum bet is P20 per six-digit combination.

The minimum guaranteed jackpot prize is P30 million.

From the traditional lotto outlets, Scratch It tickets are making inroads into other institutional buyers such as supermarkets and other fastfood retail outlets.

Ocier said the company will take a more aggressive strategy in marketing and distribution of the Scratch It tickets nationwide. “While the primary distribution outlets for the tickets will still be the lotto outlets, efforts are ongoing to expand the distribution network to non-lotto and corporate accounts, such as convenience stores, department stores, commuter train stations, money transfer stores,” he said.

To prepare for sustained growth, Pacific Online has earmarked around P300 million for the continued expansion of online lottery and Keno terminals to add 500 new ones.

Ocier said the company is hoping toend the year with more than 2,000 terminals. Pacific Online through its subsidiary, Total Gaming Technologies, which holds the equipment lease agreement for nationwide Keno, rolled out 66 more betting terminals, bringing the total betting network to 100 as of Dec. 31, 2009.