Lottery may never be the same again from 6 pm today.

The Essel group promoted Super Lotto goes online at retail centres across the country from this evening, with Sikkim Lottery doing the honours initially. All 14 Indian states that legally allow the sale of lotteries have geared up to cash in on the growing online lottery business.

Playwin‘s Super Lotto comes with a jackpot of Rs 20 million. Prizes can be won from Rs 60 onwards after buying a ticket worth Rs 10 in all states except in Sikkim, where the ticket is priced at Rs 20. The country‘s first online "game of fortune" is being plugged aggressively with free ticket coupons for the first two days being supplied in ads in major newspapers.

Super Lotto claims complete transparency with computerisation at every stage. The inaugural draw will be held on 29 March at Gangtok and the results will be telecast live on Zee TV. The tickets can be bought at 300 departmental stores, grocery shops, ice-cream parlours, cyber cafes, apparel shops, restaurants, electronic goods stores, chemists and STD booths, each set up at a cost of Rs 300,000.

As per the license agreements between Playwin and the state governments, while the lotteries run on a virtual online network, they will also have a tangible presence in the form of actual tickets, which will have the number sequence of tickets bought by customers. Twenty-one per cent of the venture‘s profits go to the state, 50 per cent towards the prize monies and 7-8 per cent towards the retail and distribution network. Playwin‘s own share of the pie will be around 3-4 per cent of the sales, a part of which will be ploughed into a trust promoted by the Essel group.

While the paper lottery market in India currently stands at Rs 500,000 million, Playwin is investing around Rs 2000 million in developing the online gaming infrastructure in four states in the country in association with the state of the art technology provider, US based International Lottery Totalizer System (ILTS), which has installed such computerised wagering systems worldwide in 18 countries.

In addition to the state government audit, Ernst & Young too will audit and validate the online lottery process, say officials.

MIPTV 2002, the annual international television programme market held in Cannes, France, will look at the new trends of television programming and the emerging types of programs shaping the industry this April.

The event, to be held from 15 to 19 April will focus on the issues raised by the impact of digital technology on television and will explore the realm of new programming with Shaping Formats for the Future, a series of five high-key conferences. The series will look at how the development of interactive television services, thematic channels and Internet sites is opening the way to a whole new generation of programming which links established broadcasting with interactivity, according to a press release. In the opening keynote address What Will the Winning Program Formats Be? on 15 April, a top level industry player will outline the keys to create the successful programming of the future.

Leading industry figures will show how thematic and new channels are offering producers more outlets on the second day of the event. A MIPNET case study will investigate the success formula behind the most exciting TV talent show ever Pop Idol, which was created with an impressive array of revenue sources. Five executives linked to this property will look at how it came to life and became a smashing hit. On 17 April, experts will turn to new production techniques and show how digital filming and virtual editing can impact production methods and costs. The MIPDOC Documentary Screenings will take place on April 13 and 14.

The organisation has also decided to re-schedule the event next year - MIPTV 2003 will be held from 24 to 28 March instead of in April. The event will follow the MIPDOC Documentaries Screenings on March 22 and 23. Reed Midem, the organisers, have decided on these new dates after input from regular market participants from Asia, America and Europe. MIPTV scheduled in March will make it easier for producers and distributors to close deals before the summer. It will also allow professionals to have more time between MIPTV and other industry events in May, say the organisers.

The event featured 11,049 executives, 2,827 companies from 90 countries including 1228 exhibiting companies on 481 stands, and 2,167 buyers in 2001.

The fate of big-time film financier Bharat Shah, who has been incarcerated since early last year due to his alleged connections to the underworld, is to be decided on 2 April, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday.

A two-judge bench of the Supreme Court yesterday adjourned final hearing on Shah‘s bail plea after his counsel said he would be challenging the constitutionality of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), reports state. Shah is currently being held in custody under MCOCA.

Shah has already made four bail applications in the designated MCOCA court which were rejected. Four more applications in the Mumbai High Court were also rejected. It was following the series of denials that Shah moved a special leave petition (SLP) in the Apex Court in November last year.

The diamond jeweller was arrested in January last year. At that time the Mumbai police exposed his alleged connection with Pakistan-based gangster Chhota Shakeel in the making of the film Chori Chori Chupke Chupke.