A recent blunder by Norway's state-owned gambling provider, Norsk Tipping, mistakenly informed numerous players they had won extravagant lottery prizes—only for it to be revealed as a conversion error that inflated sums by a factor of 100.
Lottery Glitch Leaves Thousands in Norway Dreaming of Millions: CEO Resigns Amid Controversy
Lottery Glitch Leaves Thousands in Norway Dreaming of Millions: CEO Resigns Amid Controversy
A massive error in the Eurojackpot notifications sparked excitement followed by disappointment for thousands of Norwegians.
Norsk Tipping’s CEO Tonje Sagstuen resigned shortly after the error caused widespread disappointment across the nation. The confusion stemmed from an incorrect conversion of Eurocents to Norwegian kroner. Instead of reducing the prize amounts, the calculations mistakenly multiplied them, leading to misleading notifications for "several thousand" lottery participants.
The company acknowledged the mistake occurred during its routine processing of prize amounts received from Germany in euros. After the incorrect notifications were sent on Friday, the accurate figures were published the following Saturday evening, ensuring no erroneous payouts had occurred.
Apologizing for the error, Sagstuen stated, “I am terribly sorry that we have disappointed so many,” recognizing the justified anger from the public. She recounted messages from individuals who were making plans for trips or renovations based on the erroneous winnings. One affected woman, who thought she had secured 1.2 million kroner (about $119,000), was devastated to discover she would receive much less.
Following an emergency meeting with the Ministry of Culture, Sagstuen announced her resignation, taking responsibility for the blunder. The minister of Culture and Equality, Lubna Jaffery, emphasized the unacceptability of such mistakes, particularly given Norsk Tipping’s exclusivity in providing gambling services in Norway.
Norsk Tipping has faced increasing scrutiny for several technical errors in recent months, admitting to past problems that warranted criticism from both regulators and customers.
The company acknowledged the mistake occurred during its routine processing of prize amounts received from Germany in euros. After the incorrect notifications were sent on Friday, the accurate figures were published the following Saturday evening, ensuring no erroneous payouts had occurred.
Apologizing for the error, Sagstuen stated, “I am terribly sorry that we have disappointed so many,” recognizing the justified anger from the public. She recounted messages from individuals who were making plans for trips or renovations based on the erroneous winnings. One affected woman, who thought she had secured 1.2 million kroner (about $119,000), was devastated to discover she would receive much less.
Following an emergency meeting with the Ministry of Culture, Sagstuen announced her resignation, taking responsibility for the blunder. The minister of Culture and Equality, Lubna Jaffery, emphasized the unacceptability of such mistakes, particularly given Norsk Tipping’s exclusivity in providing gambling services in Norway.
Norsk Tipping has faced increasing scrutiny for several technical errors in recent months, admitting to past problems that warranted criticism from both regulators and customers.
