6 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026 Visit Our Family Of Websites PublicGaming.com industry news & information PGRITalks.com videos of conference presentations PublicGaming.org PGRI conference information PGRIDigitalLibrary.com magazine archive of past issues PGRIDirectory.com listing of lotteries and vendors PGRIAwards.com Showcase of industry honorees recognized by the Lottery Industry Hall of Fame PGRI Lifetime Achievement Award Sharp Award for Good Causes Lottery Industry Statesman and Stateswoman Award Rebecca Paul Mentorship Award Collaboration Award Subscribe To Our Free Digital Newsletters Receive our daily newsletters at no charge, published 5 times a week to bring you the latest breaking news in the global lottery industry. Send an e-mail to: sjason@PublicGaming.com with “add to Daily Digest list” in the subject line. 8 FROM THE PUBLISHER Paul Jason 37 SCENES FROM EL CONGRESS BERN, SEPTEMBER 14-17: Photo Collage 42 HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY AT EL CONGRESS, BERN: Photo Collage 45 TIME TO ACT….THE DUTY TO DEFEND THE LOTTERY MODEL ALL OVER THE WORLD Philippe Vlaemminck, Managing Director of Vlaemminck.law Beata Guzik, Lawyer and Director EU public Affairs, Vlaemminck.law DEPARTMENTS 14 IOWA LOTTERY AT 40: SCRATCHING OFF $6.1B IN PRIZES SINCE 1985 CEO Matt Strawn reflects on how the operation became ‘one of the quietest’ half-billion-dollar enterprises in the state 16 GET READY TO BE INSPIRED! ENGAGING STAKEHOLDERS, OWNING THE NARRATIVE, AND GETTING LOUD ABOUT THE MISSION Harjinder Shergill Chima, Director of the California Lottery Dolly Garfield, Executive Director, South Carolina Lottery Helene Keeley, Executive Director, Delaware Lottery Adam Prock, Executive Director, Minnesota Lottery Brian Rockey, Director, Nebraska Lottery Alec Thomson, Executive Director, Arizona Lottery 20 BIG LESSONS FROM A SMALLER LOTTERY MARKET: LITHUANIA’S GROWTH STORY SCIENTIFIC GAMES 22 FROM NETFLIX TO iLOTTERY & LEVERAGING AI: Inside Brightstar Lottery’s Game Recommendation Engine 30 FROM DABBERS TO DOWNLOADS: AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE EVOLVING PLAYER Tina Wolf, VP of Business Development, Aristocrat Interactive 32 TEST, VALIDATE, INNOVATE: HOW CAN YOU REFINE A GAME POST-LAUNCH TO MORE FULLY SATISFY PLAYER PREFERENCES? Brightstar Lottery FEATURED ARTICLES
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTg4MTM=