Method and apparatus that control risk and uncertainty in a variable priced promotional lottery game

A method comprising:

• generating a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• printing a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• indicating a first price category and a second price category from which one or more promotional lottery tickets can be purchased such that (i) the first price category corresponds to a first predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and the second price category corresponds to a second predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and (ii) a ratio of the second price category to the second predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets is less than a ratio of the first price category to the first predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets;
• indicating a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match;
• indicating a secondary prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a partial match;
• providing at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game;
• randomly selecting a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• providing the maximum prize to a player if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected;
• and
• providing the secondary prize to a player if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a partial match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A method comprising:

• generating a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• printing a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• indicating a maximum prize that a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match wins;
• establishing an initial maximum prize value for the maximum prize;
• providing at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• incrementing the maximum prize above the initial maximum prize value if ticket sales surpass a predetermined ticket sales threshold;
• indicating a variable price at which a promotional lottery player can purchase a promotional lottery ticket;
• maintaining the variable price at a first price until the maximum prize increases over a predetermined maximum prize threshold, the predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the initial maximum prize value;
• incrementing the variable price to a second price after the maximum prize increases over the predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• randomly selecting a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• providing the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the variable price being the first price or at the variable price being the second price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A method comprising:

• generating a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• printing a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• indicating a maximum prize that a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match wins;
• establishing an first maximum prize value for the maximum prize;
• providing at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• incrementing the maximum prize above the first maximum prize value if ticket sales surpass a predetermined ticket sales threshold;
• indicating a variable price at which a promotional lottery player can purchase a promotional lottery ticket;
• maintaining the variable price at a first price until the maximum prize increases over a first predetermined maximum prize threshold, the first predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the first maximum prize value;
• incrementing the variable price to a second price after the maximum prize increases over the first predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• maintaining the variable price at the second price until the maximum prize increases over a second predetermined maximum prize threshold, the second predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the second maximum prize value;
• incrementing the variable price to a third price after the maximum prize increases over the second predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• randomly selecting a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• providing the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the variable price being the first price, the second price, or the third price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A method comprising:

• generating a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• printing a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• indicating a maximum prize that a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match wins;
• establishing an initial maximum prize value for the maximum prize;
• providing at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• incrementing the maximum prize above the initial maximum prize value if ticket sales surpass a predetermined ticket sales threshold;
• indicating a first variable price category and a second variable price category from which one or more promotional lottery tickets can be purchased such that (i) the first variable price category corresponds to a first predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and the second variable price category corresponds to a second predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and (ii) a ratio of the second variable price category to the second predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets is less than a ratio of the first price variable category to the first predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets;
• maintaining the first variable price category at a first initial price and the second variable price category at a second initial price until the maximum prize increases over a predetermined maximum prize threshold, the predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the initial maximum prize value;
• incrementing first variable price category to a first subsequent price and the second variable price category to a second subsequent price after the maximum prize increases over the predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• randomly selecting a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• providing the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the first initial price, the first subsequent price, the second initial price, or the second subsequent price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A method comprising:

• generating a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• printing a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• indicating a maximum prize that a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match wins;
• providing at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• incrementing the maximum prize by at least a portion of each ticket sold;
• indicating a variable price at which a promotional lottery player can purchase a promotional lottery ticket;
• maintaining the variable price at a first price until the maximum prize increases over a predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• incrementing the variable price to a second price after the maximum prize increases over the predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• randomly selecting a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• providing the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the variable price being the first price or at the variable price being the second price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A system comprising:

• a sub-combination generation module that generates a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• a printer that prints a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• a display module that indicates a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match and a secondary prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a partial match;
• a ticket distribution module that provides at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game;
• a random selection module that randomly selects a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• a maximum prize distribution module that provides the maximum prize to a player if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected;
• and
• a secondary prize distribution module that provides the secondary prize to a player if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a partial match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A system comprising:

• a sub-combination generation module that generates a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• a printer that prints a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• a price display module that indicates a first price category and a second price category from which one or more promotional lottery tickets can be purchased such that (i) the first price category corresponds to a first predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and the second price category corresponds to a second predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and (ii) a ratio of the second price category to the second predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets is less than a ratio of the first price category to the first predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets;
• a prize display module that indicates a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match and a secondary prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a partial match;
• a ticket distribution module that provides at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game;
• a random selection module that randomly selects a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• a maximum prize distribution module that provides the maximum prize to a player if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected;
• and
• a secondary prize distribution module that provides the secondary prize to a player if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a partial match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A system comprising:

• a sub-combination generation module that generates a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• a printer that prints a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• a display module that indicates a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match;
• an establishment module that establishes an initial maximum prize value for the maximum prize;
• a ticket distribution module that provides at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• a maximum prize increment module that increments the maximum prize above the initial maximum prize value if ticket sales surpass a predetermined ticket sales threshold;
• a variable price display module that indicates a variable price at which a promotional lottery player can purchase a promotional lottery ticket;
• a variable price maintenance module that maintains the variable price at a first price until the maximum prize increases over a predetermined maximum prize threshold, the predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the initial maximum prize value;
• a variable price increment module that increments the variable price to a second price after the maximum prize increases over the predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• a random selection module that randomly selects a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• a maximum prize distribution module that provides the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the variable price being the first price or at the variable price being the second price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A system comprising:

• a sub-combination generation module that generates a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• a printer that prints a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• a display module that indicates a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match;
• an establishment module that establishes a first maximum prize value for the maximum prize;
• a ticket distribution module that provides at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• a maximum prize increment module that increments the first maximum prize above the first maximum prize value if ticket sales surpass a predetermined ticket sales threshold;
• a variable price display module that indicates a variable price at which a promotional lottery player can purchase a promotional lottery ticket;
• a first variable price maintenance module that maintains the variable price at a first price until the maximum prize increases over a first predetermined maximum prize threshold, the first predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the first maximum prize value;
• a first variable price increment module that increments the variable price to a second price after the maximum prize increases over the first predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• a second variable price maintenance module that maintains the variable price at the second price until the maximum prize increases over a second predetermined maximum prize threshold, the second predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the second maximum prize value;
• a second variable price increment module that increments the variable price to a third price after the maximum prize increases over the second predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• a random selection module that randomly selects a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• a maximum prize distribution module that provides the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the variable price being the first price, the second price, or the third price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A system comprising:

• a sub-combination generation module that generates a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• a printer that prints a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• a display module that indicates a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match;
• an establishment module that establishes an initial maximum prize value for the maximum prize;
• a ticket distribution module that provides at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• a maximum prize increment module that increments the maximum prize above the initial maximum prize value if ticket sales surpass a predetermined ticket sales threshold;
• a frequency price display module that indicates a first variable price category and a second variable price category from which one or more promotional lottery tickets can be purchased such that (i) the first variable price category corresponds to a first predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and the second variable price category corresponds to a second predetermined known quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets and (ii) a ratio of the second variable price category to the second predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets is less than a ratio of the first price variable category to the first predetermined quantity of one or more promotional lottery tickets;
• a variable price category maintenance module that maintains the first variable price category at a first initial price and the second variable price category at a second initial price until the maximum prize increases over a predetermined maximum prize threshold, the predetermined maximum prize threshold being greater than the initial maximum prize value;
• a variable price category increment module that increments the first variable price category to a first subsequent price and the second variable price category to a second subsequent price after the maximum prize increases over the predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• a random selection module that randomly selects a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• a maximum prize distribution module that provides the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the first initial price, the first subsequent price, the second initial price, or the second subsequent price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.

A system comprising:

• a sub-combination generation module that generates a predetermined number of unique sub-combinations of a set of game numbers, each of the sub-combinations having the same quantity of numbers;
• a printer that prints a set of promotional lottery tickets for a promotional lottery game such that each of the promotional lottery tickets in the set of promotional lottery tickets distinctly corresponds to one of the unique sub-combinations of the set of game numbers;
• a display module that indicates a maximum prize that is won by a player having a promotional lottery ticket with a full match;
• a ticket distribution module that provides at least a subset of the set of promotional lottery tickets to a plurality of players in the promotional lottery game through ticket sales;
• a maximum prize increment module that increments the maximum prize by at least a portion of each ticket sold;
• a variable price display module that indicates a variable price at which a promotional lottery player can purchase a promotional lottery ticket;
• a variable price category maintenance module that maintains the variable price at a first price until the maximum prize increases over a predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• a variable price category increment module that increments the variable price to a second price after the maximum prize increases over the predetermined maximum prize threshold;
• a random selection module that randomly selects a single subset of the set of game numbers that has the same quantity of numbers as each of the sub-combinations;
• and
• a maximum prize distribution module that provides the maximum prize to a player, irrespective of whether the player purchased the promotional lottery ticket at the variable price being the first price or at the variable price being the second price, if the player has a promotional lottery ticket with a full match between the unique sub-combination corresponding to the promotional lottery ticket and the single subset of the set of game numbers that is selected.