Lotto will be available online next year

The government will allow people to buy Lotto, the country’s most popular lottery ticket, online by the end of next year. It said online sales would not surpass 5 percent of its total sales, but concerns are rising over the policy.

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said Friday that it had made the decision during a recent Korea Lottery Commission meeting. The ministry, which started discussing the issue early last year, concluded the new measure will improve buyer convenience.

The government also said it would introduce the 5 percent cap as well as limiting the amount each individual can buy online due to concerns over addiction.

Purchasing Lotto online would also require a confirmation process of checking whether the buyer is an adult.

But some experts raised concerns.

“Poor and uneducated people are typically the most avid buyers of Lotto. Hence, critics call the lottery a tax on the poor,” said a professor at a Seoul-based university, who asked not to be named.

“The online sales would lead to easier access to Lotto, which would prompt more people to buy Lotto. I am concerned that the poor would become addicted.”

A Lotto ticket costs 1,000 won. On average, a winner gets 60 percent of the total collected in prize money. The remaining 40 percent goes would go into a state fund. Winners have to pay taxes on their winnings. There are also huge amounts of unclaimed lottery winnings, mostly the lowest 5,000 won prizes. They also go into the fund.