Changes are ahead as the UK National Lottery switches focus to the increasingly popular digital platforms, with plans to discontinue the Saturday night live television draw on the BBC – a fixture for the past 22 years – in favour of presenting the results on the iPlayer digital platform.
The move, scheduled for early next year, illustrates the increasing focus on the online environment as the channel attempts to embrace a younger digital audience.
From January 7th 2017, viewers of terrestrial television will no longer be able see if their numbers come up, following a new three-year deal between the broadcaster and Lotto operator Camelot which has moved the show to a digital platform on Saturday nights.
Camelot’s digital director Tim Copper said Thursday in a statement: “As consumer habits show an unrelenting shift towards digital platforms, we’re embracing these changes in players’ results-checking habits – providing content that they can access at all times, across multiple different touch-points.”
Director of BBC content Charlotte Moore said: “This new deal reaffirms the BBC’s commitment to The National Lottery and our ongoing relationship with Camelot. We both recognise the need to provide audiences with more ways to access the draw results across a range of platforms that reflect changing behaviour.”