Big change to how Kiwis can buy Lotto tickets announced

  • 13/06/2024

Lotto has announced it is phasing out a method of buying lottery tickets.

Its Text to Play service is ending, which means customers will no longer be able to buy a ticket via text.

The Crown entity said the decision to scrap the service came about because fewer people were using it.

"Don’t worry, there are heaps of other ways to play, like setting up a subscription, or playing on the MyLotto App," a statement on Lotto's website said.

Text to Play was an SMS service where customers could set up Powerball jackpot reminders straight to their phone and reply to the text to buy their ticket.

It began in 2016 and ends on Sunday.

Those with a Text to Play subscription don't need to do anything, as Lotto said any subscriptions will automatically end on Sunday.