Norsk Tipping Faces $1M Fine After Eurojackpot Error
Summary
The Norwegian Lottery Authority has issued a notice of violation to state-owned Norsk Tipping and warned the operator could face a fine of up to NOK 10 million (about $940,000) after a major Eurojackpot calculation error earlier this summer. The mistake — which produced erroneously inflated prize notifications — has prompted a full review of the operator’s lottery systems.
On 27 June roughly 47,000 players were incorrectly told they had won much larger prizes; about 30,000 of those received the false alerts via SMS or push notifications. The cause was a faulty conversion formula that multiplied euro cents by 100 instead of dividing, although the draw itself was correctly conducted. Regulators criticised Norsk Tipping’s testing and internal controls for failing to catch the mistake.
CEO Tonje Sagstuen publicly apologised and resigned amid the fallout; she said she understood the anger from players who had made plans based on the incorrect notifications. The Eurojackpot incident adds to a series of compliance and technical problems at Norsk Tipping — including skewed odds for group players, an erroneous NOK 25 million casino payout, long-standing draw issues and other platform glitches — and has triggered inspections of major games including Lotto, Eurojackpot and Vikinglotto.
Key Points
- Norsk Tipping may be fined up to NOK 10 million (~$940,000) after a Eurojackpot calculation error.
- About 47,000 players received incorrect prize notifications on 27 June; ~30,000 were directly alerted by SMS or push.
- The error stemmed from a flawed conversion formula that multiplied euro cents by 100 instead of dividing.
- The draw was valid, but regulators criticised Norsk Tipping’s testing and internal controls for not detecting the fault.
- CEO Tonje Sagstuen resigned and apologised after admitting the operator breached public trust.
- The incident is part of wider operational issues at the state operator; the Lottery Authority is conducting a comprehensive inspection of major games.
Why should I read this?
Short version: if you care about fair play, state-run services or how tiny tech slip-ups ripple into big public trust problems, this one’s for you. It shows how a simple maths/IT error can mess up thousands of players and trigger regulatory action — plus a CEO exit. Fast, important and a good cautionary tale for anyone involved in gambling, payments or consumer tech.
Author style
Punchy: This is not just a one-off blunder. A state lottery, tens of thousands misinformed, a CEO resignation and a regulator probing several flagship games — read the detail to understand the scale and the likely fallout for compliance and trust in Nordic gaming markets.
Source
Source: https://www.gamblingnews.com/news/norsk-tipping-faces-1m-fine-after-eurojackpot-error/