San Francisco Startup Develops Lotto Ticket Buying App
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – There could soon be another way to buy Powerball tickets and avoid waiting in long lines at the convenience store. A San Francisco company is working on an app that would allow users to pick lottery numbers and buy tickets over the phone.
The app from Midoplay lets players pick their own numbers or use quick picks. Users of the app can also play in groups or with friends. And it calculates who's contributed how much, and their share of the prize money, should there be any.
"It's easier to do, it's more convenient and again, we enable that fun stuff that you can't get by going into a store," Midoplay CEO Greg Ovalle told KPIX 5.
• Tiny Stateline Town Becomes Ground Zero For Powerball Lottery Hopefuls
Once the company gets an order, it prints out a paper entry form, and takes that form to a licensed lottery seller in San Francisco.
The California Lottery wouldn't weigh in on the app, but said it urges players to be cautious about buying lottery tickets any way other than directly from a licensed seller. "A physical ticket is a bearer's instrument," according to Nick Traverso of the lottery.
Still, the app does offer something the state can't. "California Lottery is prohibited by law from selling (tickets) on-line," Traverso said.
Ovalle and his team insist the app takes precautions and offers security and safety to buyers as well as a guarantee they'll collect their winnings, should there be any. He also says it imposes limits on ticket buying, to prevent buyers from spending more than a certain amount on tickets.
Midoplay is currently testing the app. The developers hope to make it available to the public later this year. Users would pay a 10 percent fee for the convenience.