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GTECH SIGNS ONLINE LOTTERY AGREEMENT WITH NEW CUSTOMER IN SPAIN
(West Greenwich, Rhode Island -- December 23, 2002) GTECH Holdings Corporation (NYSE:GTK) today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, GTECH Corporation, has signed a five-year contract to provide an online gaming solution and handheld lottery terminals to Organización Nacional de Ciegos Espanoles (ONCE) in Spain. GTECH will also provide ONCE with game design and related services for the launch of a new online lottery game. ONCE, also known as the Spanish National Organization for the Blind, is authorized by the Spanish government to administer lottery and wagering games in Spain.
"ONCE is a highly respected organization in Spain providing employment to over 60,000 disabled people, many of whom are visually impaired," said GTECH President and CEO W. Bruce Turner. "As our newest customer, we appreciate ONCE's confidence in GTECH to bring their existing lottery activities online, as well as introduce a new online game to complement their popular passive game, El Cupón.
"ONCE will also be the first GTECH customer connected to an online lottery system through our new, highly secure handheld lottery terminals," continued Mr. Turner.
Under the terms of the online gaming solution agreement with ONCE, GTECH will install a turnkey online lottery system, including central system hardware and software, and provide ONCE with a non-exclusive software license and related services.
GTECH has teamed with Ingenico Iberia, the Spanish subsidiary of Ingenico S.A., a world leader in secure transaction systems, to produce an innovative, secure handheld lottery terminal for visually-impaired retailers in Spain. The handheld terminal integrates highly secure online transaction capabilities, with state-of-the-art GSM/GPRS wireless communications, an integrated receipt printer, array imaging technology, a Smart Card Reader and a Magnetic Card Reader for processing payment information, and Text-to-Speech technology, combined in a compact, ergonomic, and durable package optimized to aid the visually-impaired ONCE lottery retailers. The Text-to-Speech technology will read and translate incoming messages into Spanish for the retailer, while the GSM/GPRS wireless communication permits the retailer to roam.
ONCE will initially receive approximately 7,000 handheld terminals, with an option to add additional handheld terminals in the future.
"Ingenico is delighted to work with GTECH on this important project," said Gérard Compain, Managing Director of Ingenico. "As a leading provider of secure transaction systems in Spain, our contract with GTECH will help us to further expand our presence in this country."
GTECH will provide additional services to ONCE including initial project planning and management; marketing and field services consultancy; ONCE staff, hotline operator, and retailer training; and operations support.
With respect to its contract with ONCE, GTECH anticipates generating revenues in excess of $15 million over the term of the contract.
ONCE was established in 1938 to provide full care and employment opportunities for blind residents of Spain. This is achieved in part through a grant of exclusive rights to ONCE to sell a passive lottery game, Cupón Prociegos. ONCE has over 23,000 lottery retailers in Spain and generates approximately $2 billion in lottery sales annually.
Certain statements contained in this press release are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements include, without limitation, statements respecting GTECH's anticipated rights and performance obligations, and revenues to be earned, under its contract with ONCE. Such forward looking statements reflect management's assessment based on information currently available, but are not guarantees and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in the forward looking statements.
These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those set forth above, in the Company's subsequent press releases and on Reports by the Company on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, and other reports and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as risks and uncertainties respecting: (i) the potential impact of extensive and evolving government regulations upon the Company's business; (ii) the possibility of slower than expected growth or declines in sales of lottery goods and services by the Company or the Company's customers; (iii) exposure to foreign currency fluctuations; (iv) risks and uncertainties inherent in doing business in foreign jurisdictions; (v) the possibility of significant fluctuation of quarterly operating results; (vi) the intensity of competition in the lottery industry; (vii) the possibility of substantial penalties under and/or termination of the Company's contracts; (viii) the ability of the Company to respond to technological change and to satisfy the future technological demands of its customers; and (ix) the Company's ability to attract and retain key employees.
GTECH, a leading global information technology company with $1 billion in revenues and 4,300 people in 43 countries, provides software, networks, and professional services that power high-performance, transaction processing solutions. The Company's core market is the lottery industry, with a growing presence in financial services transaction processing. For more information about the Company, please visit GTECH's website at http://www.gtech.com.
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