12 / 76
12
// PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL // January/February 2016
PUBLIC GAMING
INTERVIEWS
Hansjörg
HÖLTKEMEIER
Chief Executive Officer, Deutsche Klassenlotterie, Berlin
President, European Lotteries Association (EL)
Paul Jason, PGRI:
What are your top
priorities for the EL Association in 2016?
Hansjörg Höltkemeier:
Government
Lotteries have established the highest
standards of Integrity, Solidarity, and
Precaution in the games-of-chance sec-
tor. My priority for EL in 2016 is to fi-
nalize our renewed strategy and to make
these well-respected Lottery-Principles
more relevant to European politicians
and shapers of public policy. All EU
member states and society in general
will be well-served for these principles
to be adopted by the entire games-of-
chance sector. This will directly lead to
more acceptance of the need for indi-
vidual member states to decide what is
best for its citizens when it comes to the
regulation of Lottery and gambling. The
Lottery-Principles approach will also
lead to a better understanding of the role
of the EU institutions to help to enforce
rules that are deemed to be best for the
protection of the consumer and the sup-
Transitioning from the “Lottery-Model” to Lottery-Principles. Setting the
standard for Integrity, Solidarity, and Precaution that is applied to the
Games-of-Chance industry.
PGRI Introduction:
Every other year, the European Lottery (EL) Association holds the EL Congress, a combination
of conference with presentations and panel discussions, and a mind-expanding trade show. The last one was held
in Oslo in June of 2015. (Next one will be held in Krakow, Poland in June of 2017. One reason for making this a bi-
annual event instead of an annual event is that the World Lottery Association also holds its global conference/trade
show every other year. The next World Lottery Summit will be held in Singapore in November of 2016.) It was at the
EL Congress in Oslo that Hansjörg Höltkemeier was elected to the position of President of the European Lottery As-
sociation (EL). He has been a member of the Managing Board and CEO of the Deutsche Klassenlotterie Berlin since
2005, and a member of EL Executive Committee since 2009.
The business of government-gaming and Lottery is in flux all over the world, but more so in Europe than anywhere
else. There is tremendous pressure on the lawmakers to make regulatory decisions that are unfavorable to govern-
ment-Lotteries. Online private commercial gambling operators have for years been pressuring the European Commis-
sion to treat gambling like any other commodity or service, with little regulatory control. Hansjörg Höltkemeier and the
EL are evolving their approach to enlisting the support of the European Commission for a more balanced framework
that recognizes the special nature of Lottery and gaming.
These are interesting times indeed to be President of the EL!