The state of Ohio has reported that Ohio residents have continued to buy lottery tickets despite the rough economy. Many believe that the sales have remained steady as a result of the addition of Keno and EZ Play games.

From December 2007 to December 2008 one county in Ohio spent over $17 million on tickets according to Jeannie Roberts the Ohio lottery spokeswoman. This amount is a 1.4 increase from the previous year, which attributed to the addition of Keno and the EZ Play games.

Roberts also commented that even though sales are good they are not what the state expected to be making with the addition of Keno. Roberts commented: "Our Keno sales are not where we expected them to be and are actually below projections, but we are more than hopeful that that will turn around. We are still educating players on how to play the game and we are planning our first full-fledged TV and radio advertising of the game."

The goal for Keno was to earn $292 in revenue but the sales will fall short of that goal. Officials are hoping the month of December’s reports will show an increase in game play and that the next year will bring an increase in revenue.



- 2008-12-23