One other aspect that wasn’t in the article is how vehemently states enforce their monopoly status on lotteries. I’ve worked at companies that run various swee

One other aspect that wasn’t in the article is how vehemently states enforce their monopoly status on lotteries. I’ve worked at companies that run various sweepstakes, and there is a huge legal concern around not accidentally turning into an illegal lottery. You think just by not charging people to enter you avoid it? Oh no - the laws are setup where basically if you are running any kind of contest, you are an illegal lottery by default unless you meet certain criteria. A “contest” must be a game of skill. A “sweepstakes” may have winners randomly chosen, but you must have (free) alternative method of entry. Etc States are very clear: they are the only lottery games in town!