INTERVIEW | Rodney Andriolo: Smaller jackpots, but more frequent winnings

Prior to co-founding Honeypotlotto, Rodney Andriolo operated his own IT Management consulting firm and has worked for some of the largest Australian and international technology and management consulting organisations.

Rodney has over 20 years senior consulting, business and commercial management experience as an IT advisor, manager and consulting professional.

Honeypotlotto is owned and operated by Honeypot Lotto Limited, a fully Class 3 registered online micro lottery business registered and regulated by the Malta Gaming Authority (License No: MGA/B2C/526/2018). Honeypot Lotto Limited’s goal for Honeypotlotto is to provide a global audience with the best micro lottery experience and lottery odds in the world.

What is the concept behind Honeypotlotto - what was your idea and motivation behind setting it up?

Honeypotlotto is a start-up company and a new player within the online lottery sector. We saw a niche in the lottery market and see our games as a bit of disrupter to traditional lottery models. Our motivation is to provide a global audience with the best micro lottery experience and lotto odds in the world.

How does the micro lottery format work?

The micro lottery format is very transparent. It relies on small game pools so that games can turnover quickly with known fixed odds. For example, if you buy one ticket in our €5 game, you have a 1 in 5,000 chance of winning €10,000. It supports our philosophy of a “small win goes a long way’.

There are many competitors in the market - how is Honeypotlotto different to the more traditional mega lotteries which people in Malta are accustomed to, such as the “Super 5”?

Honeypotlotto does not aim to compete against more traditional mega lotteries. We are a niche lottery catering for more frequent smaller wins.
For instance, the chance to win any five numbers from 42 in the Super 5 Lottery is 1 in 850,668.
In comparison, if you were to purchase a ticket in our €10 game you have a 1 in 15,000 chance of winning €20,000.

Realistically speaking, what are the odds that someone playing one of your lotteries will win? And what kind of winning sums can players expect?

Our entry level lottery game starts at €1 and you have a 1 in 2,000 chance to win €1000. Depending on how much you want to spend at Honeypotlotto you can also purchase tickets in various games, such as, €5, €10, €20 or €100 games. Again, if you were to play the €20 game you have 1 in 20,000 chance of winning €40,000.

Honeypotlotto is not about big jackpots, it is all about more frequent smaller prizes with better odds of winning when compared to the mega jackpot lotteries.

How does one go about playing in Honeypotlotto’s micro lotteries? Are ticket purchases and playing all done online?

Yes, you can only purchase tickets online at honeypotlotto.com.

Why did you decide to set up your business in Malta – what was attractive about the Maltese jurisdiction?

Malta is an ideal launch pad for the European market.

By commencing our operations in Malta, we have so far engaged with a highly talented workforce, gained a licence from a progressive and a well-respected gaming regulator and continue to focus on growing our market within a stable economic and legal environment. These are all important to us as a business.

You are still very new, but how has the initial reaction from the public and from the sector in general been?

The launch of our business is in the early stages. At the moment it is all about raising awareness and marketing our message. It is important for us to engage with our customers via our social media and word of mouth to build an online community that can engage with each other and relish in our philosophy of a “small win goes a long way’.

Once that momentum builds, we believe that the micro lottery format will become a complementary lottery platform to the traditional mega jackpot lotteries.   

What challenges do you foresee operating in Malta as a newcomer in the sector?

As a newcomer we rely heavily on our Maltese partners and suppliers and sometimes we miss the local nuances of doing business the Maltese way. Hopefully, we can bring an Australian flavour to doing business in Malta.

And what opportunities do you envisage in terms of growing as a company?

Our plan is to establish a market presence in our home market of Malta and then expand into Europe and the UK.

As we grow, we will build Malta into a regional hub for our operations and with access to a bilingual and talented remote gaming workforce, the opportunities are boundless.