I am announcing my lottery pool service, which can be found on lotteryconnect.i2p
For those not on i2p, you can access via inproxy using lotteryconnect.i2p.xyz
LotteryConnect.i2p
You can't win unless you play!
Now you can participate in a lottery pool no matter where you live. Using the cryptocurrency Monero you can participate in this lottery pool (I'll use your money to go buy more tickets), and I will send any winnings back to you using Monero.
Currently we are limited to the PowerBall. If people are interested in MegaMillions, I can also start a pool for that.
( see i2p site for updated tables, or posts below)
(Note: if the dates in the above table are not current, then there is no pool for the current drawings. This means that I am out of town and/or otherwise unable to operate the pool for these drawings)
Current File Links
(see i2p site or posts below)
How to participate in a poolDecide what pool you want to be a part of (from the “Pools” column in the table – only Powerball currently available). Decide how many tickets you want to have bought for you. Multiply that number by the number in “Monero (XMR)” column in the table.
Example: you want to have 10 Powerball tickets bought for you. 10 X 5 = 50. You would need to send 50 XMR to me.
To obtain a monero address to send to, please send me an email to create an account. You can either send your monero address (for eventual winnings payouts) in that email or wait until we win! I will then provide you with a custom address with embedded payment ID. The Monero needs to be sent by the date indicated in the “Payment Due Date” column.
Note: you need to use the latest version of Monero (0.9.1) to use the embedded payment ID. I will not use the 0.8.8.6-style exposed payment ID.
Please send an email to:
lotteryconnecti2p@tutanota.com(if you are in i2p, you can use
lotteryconnect@mail.i2p )
I can also be contacted on i2p-irc. My handle is woodenships and I have create a #lotteryconnect channel. I might not always be there. Please only send monero to addresses obtained from my email accounts,
woodenships@mail.i2p,
lotteryconnect@mail.i2p,
lotteryconnecti2p@tutanota.comWhat happens next?I will purchase and scan the tickets 1 day prior to the draw date. I will purchase “quick pick” tickets, which are randomly generated numbers. Once I have purchased the tickets, I will scan them all and provide a download link to a compressed folder containing the ticket images one day prior to the drawings (or ASAP). You can then match the numbers yourself to see if we win! (I can also store a hash of this image file in a cryptocurrency blockchain if people are worried about me trying to cheat people).
The odds of winning the lottery is ridiculously low. I don't need to tell you how stupid playing the lottery is. But we do it anyway, right?
Weekly Open SlotsEvery drawing I will buy between 3 and 5 lottery tickets. If you send me monero before the drawing and there is a weekly open slot available, you will be in that drawing (for up to n-1 slots. So if I buy 5 tickets, there are 4 slots). If your open slot payment comes in late, it will roll to the next drawing. The payment due date is for sending me Monero for anything above my weekly open slots. So if you wanted me to buy 10 tickets for you, you would have to have the payment to me by the payment due date above. If you don't make the due date, your payment will either use one of the available open slots or just roll forward.
Fees on winningsWe will obviously use the instant payout, not the payments over time option. For instance, the cash value of a 60 million USD jackpot is about 38 million USD.
1. Taxes: 30% to 40% of winnings
Unfortunately, my state of residence taxes lottery winnings. The taxes are usually withheld, so they are taken out before the recipient even receives the money. So taxes can take 30-40% of the official jackpot. I reserve the right to use up to 10% of the winnings to cover any additional taxes I may incur due to a shift in my tax bracket.
2. Operating fees: 10% of winnings
I will hold 10% of the winnings to cover operational costs and to provide motivation to continue running this thing.
3. Donations to open source software development: 5%
I will hold 5% of the winnings and send 2.5% to Monero core development and 2.5% to i2p development.
Distribution of winningsThe remainder of the winnings will be distributed to those participating in the pool apportioned by their amount of participation. If you sent monero for 10 tickets and there were 40 total tickets, you will receive 25% of the winnings remaining after fees, taxes, and donations.
Other details1. Minimum payouts / “finders fee” / Roll forward
Winnings that would cause an individual payout to be under 15 XMR will not be paid out, but either rolled forward into the next drawing or paid to me as a finders fee. This decision is my discretion.
In general, everyone will get their share after I make sure that all of my legal stuff (taxes) is taken care of.
FAQ“Why Monero?” Because Monero is the only truly private and fungible cryptocurrency available.
“Will you accept bitcoin?” No
“Will you accept (insert some other coin here)” No
“Why only these games?” Because I am not ready to expand this pool yet. If it takes off and people ask for it, I can see what is possible.
“Is this legal?” As far as I know, running a lottery pool is legal. This is just a lottery pool between friends. The difference is, you are my internet friends.
“This requires that I trust you... a lot. How can I trust you?” You can't. You'll either have to give it a shot or wait until others do. Unfortunately, the ultimate trust building will occur if we win something, and that may never occur. Hopefully we will win some small amount (50,000 USD) and then I can earn your trust.
