The process that gave the new contract to Allwyn Entertainment was at the expense of Camelot, which has operated the lottery since its inception in 1994. According to analysts, the new contract is estimated to be worth £80 billion over the next decade.
Should the legal battle drag on, there are concerns that players who win jackpots under Camelot would be unable to claim their prizes.
Allwyn is set to take over the reins of the lottery from 2024. The UKGC wants to transfer the license as soon as possible to ensure its preferred applicant has time to enact a successful transition.
But once transferred, things could get messy if Camelot’s legal challenge goes beyond 2024. Legal experts have said the case could take years to resolve.
Camelot wants to put the license swap on hold, pending the resolution of the lawsuit. It claims that hundreds of millions in funds that go to good causes are being jeopardized by a theoretical future suspension.
“We are confident that we have run a fair and robust competition. A delay to the implementation of the [next] license poses a significant risk which could diminish funds going to these causes,” the UKGC said last month.
Camelot alleges the UKGC changed the rules during the final stages of its selection process.
The winner was chosen based on a “scorecard” process, where each bidder was marked on every aspect of their proposal to ensure fairness, and ironically, deflect lawsuits.
The regulator scored Allwyn’s bid 87.2% and Camelot’s 85.7%. But a “risk factor” discount of up to 15% was supposed to be applied to the financial projections made by each bidder. Except that it wasn’t, according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiff argues that Allwyn’s score should have been adjusted for risk because its bid projected significantly more money to good causes.
The Czech company promised to donate £38 billion of revenue to good causes in ten years. Camelot raised £45 billion in 28 years.
Source: Casino.org
