DJI to launch Qingdao sports lottery mobile sales

DJI’s joint venture Qingdao Taifa Network Science Technology Service will conduct the field trials, which if successful could lead to approval for the app throughout the heavily populated province, which has around 90 million residents. Testing will commence almost immediately.

The mobile app provides access to a number of sports lottery games, digital scratch cards and sports betting games, and DJI said in a statement that it will use its relationships with the  Arsenal and Manchester City football clubs to promote and support the new product.

“Despite the continuing suspension of online sales of lottery products in China, we now have an opportunity to recommence sales in a new area and utilize both our unique soccer club resources and sales channel partners to maximize this opportunity,” DJI chief exec Darren Mercer said.

DJI Holding’s first-half revenues fell 36 percent this year as a consequence of the suspension, which has yet to be lifted.

“The popularity of lottery products based around soccer was growing in excess of 200 percent year-on-year prior to the suspension of online sales,” Mercer added. “We believe that a full roll-out of the mobile app throughout Shandong, together with our unique positioning and promotional offers based on soccer, will quickly generate significant lottery revenues.”