Mega Millions reportedly considering significantly raising ticket prices
This is just a rumor at the moment, but there are reports that Mega Millions is considering significantly increasing the price of the base game.
Brett Smiley of LotteryGeeks.com reports that sources close to the discussions believe the Mega Millions Consortium, which operates interstate lottery games on behalf of the 47 participating member states, ) is willing to increase the lottery ticket price from $2 to $5. Ticket costs are likely to increase, according to Smiley's sources.
As far as I know, their price has been stuck at $5. " said one of Smiley's sources. "I think this is as close to a final as you can get. "
Smiley's tipster said there has been no discussion about the cost of the additional $1 Megaplier add-on, which allows winnings on non-jackpot winning tickets to be doubled, tripled, quadrupled or quintupled.
Mega Millions last raised ticket prices in 2017, from $1 to the current $2. The price increase comes as the consortium overhauls the game format to make it harder for players to win the jackpot.
Format Changes
In the 2017 Mega Millions overhaul, the number of golden Super Balls increased from 15 to 25, while the number of White Balls decreased from 75 to 70. The change increases the odds of winning a ticket that matches the six numbers drawn from about 1 in 258.9 million to 1 in 302.5 million.
Mega Millions Official voted in favor of the change after Powerball underwent a similar overhaul two years ago.
Powerball, run by the Multi-State Lottery Association, increased the number of white balls by 10 to 69 in 2015 while reducing the number of red Powerballs by nine. The change increases the game's jackpot odds from 1 in 175.22 million to 1 in 292.2 million.
Format changes to Mega Millions and Powerball resulted in fewer jackpots being won, which in turn caused the popular interstate lottery games to make headlines. The 10 largest lottery jackpots in U.S. history, all from Mega Millions and Powerball, have been won since 2016.
Lottery officials refer to it as "lottery hysteria," and the seemingly endless stream of promotions for a generation-changing jackpot has been a major win for lottery organizations and their participating jurisdictions. This, in turn, has resulted in record-breaking economic benefits for the many causes benefiting the state lottery, such as property tax relief, education and senior programs.
Five is too many?
Increasing the base price of a Mega Millions lottery ticket by 150% is certainly not without risk. Many lottery applicants are not particularly wealthy, and the argument that lotteries tax the poor is backed up by statistics.
Researchers at the University of Maryland and Boston University concluded in 2022 that the lottery relies heavily on low-income players and people of color, particularly Blacks and Hispanics. The report, titled Big Billions: Lottery Wealth Transfers, concluded that lotteries often divert vital funds from socioeconomically disadvantaged communities.
For many players, spending an extra three bucks for a hope and dream may be hard to swallow. For those who continue to gamble, wealth transfers or poverty taxes may only continue at a faster pace.
The biggest beneficiary of this change may be Powerball. In addition to better jackpot chances, the game will also be $3 cheaper to play.
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Source: www.casino.org
