States Up the Online Ante on Online Lottery

When the U.S. Justice Department in December narrowed its interpretation of the 50-year-old Wire Act, saying it banned only sports betting and not other forms of online gambling, the decision sparked hope in state capitals that lotteries could start selling tickets online and lead a charge into online gambling.

But the convenience-store lobby in New York protested the state's plan, and now the plan is under review as the governor's office re-examines state gambling policy. Lottery directors in other states also are sparring with store owners fearful of losing customers who buy tickets. The battle is one front in a broader struggle among state lotteries, casino operators, Internet companies and convenience stores that could determine how an expected wave of legal online gambling takes shape in the US.