Jackpot wagering with supplementary draw
A jackpot wagering system includes a number of player terminals, a random event generator and an accumulation facility. Each player terminal is operable by a respective player to place a corresponding wager on one or more different turns of a game of chance, while the accumulation facility is responsive to placement of each wager to accumulate a portion thereof in an accumulation account; The random event generator is activatable by placement of each wager to generate a random event upon which an outcome of a turn of the game of chance is based, the outcome being one of a number of possible outcomes that includes a favorable outcome causing the player who placed that wager to win the contents of the accumulation account. The jackpot wagering system also includes an enrolling means capable of enrolling each player in a lottery during a predetermined time period as a function of that player's corresponding wagers on the one or more different turns of the game of chance, and a selection means activatable to randomly select one of the enrolled players as a winner of the lottery, the winner of the lottery being awarded the contents of the accumulation account.
1. A method of operating a jackpot wagering system, comprising the steps of:
providing via a gaming server a game of chance for a plurality of players, wherein a player places a wager on a turn of the game of chance and obtains an outcome based on a random event generated by the gaming server, the outcome being one of at least a favorable outcome in which the player wins the contents of an accumulation account, an intermediate outcome in which the player wins the wager at fixed odds, and an unfavorable outcome in which the player forfeits the wager;
accumulating, via an accumulation facility, a portion of each wager in the accumulation account, wherein the accumulation facility is in communication with the gaming server via a communication network;
defining, via a lottery server, a time interval for a lottery associated with the game of chance, wherein the lottery server is in communication with the gaming server via the communication network;
during the defined time interval, rewarding, via the lottery server, each player participating in the game of chance who qualifies for enrollment with at least one enrollment in the lottery;
determining, via the lottery server, whether the favorable outcome of the game of chance occurs during the defined time interval, wherein the lottery server is programmed to (i) if the favorable outcome of the game of chance occurs during the defined time interval, cancel the lottery and void all enrollments in the lottery and (ii) if the favorable outcome of the game of chance does not occur during the defined time interval, randomly select one of the enrollments in the lottery and award the contents of the accumulation account to the player with the selected enrollment as winner of the lottery.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein rewarding, via the lottery server, each player participating in the game of chance who qualifies for enrollment with at least one enrollment in the lottery comprises: rewarding, via the lottery server, a player participating in the game of chance with multiple enrollments in the lottery in proportion to the player's participation in the game of chance.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein rewarding, via the lottery server, each player participating in the game of chance who qualifies for enrollment with at least one enrollment in the lottery comprises: rewarding, via the lottery server, a player participating in the game of chance with one enrollment for every 10 turns of the game of chance on which the player has placed a wager.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein rewarding, via the lottery server, each player participating in the game of chance who qualifies for enrollment with at least one enrollment in the lottery comprises: rewarding, via the lottery server, a player participating in the game of chance with one enrollment for every 15 turns of the game of chance on which the player has placed a wager.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the defined time interval has a fixed duration.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the defined time interval expires when the balance of the accumulation account exceeds a predetermined threshold.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein each enrollment in the lottery is uniquely identified by a unique code.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the lottery server is programmed to randomly select one of the enrollments in the lottery by a process comprising:
generating a random number that maps to one of the unique codes associated with the enrollments in the lottery.
9. A jackpot wagering system, comprising:
a gaming server that communicates with a plurality of player terminals across a communication network, wherein the gaming server is configured to generate random events upon which outcomes of a game of the chance are based, wherein each player terminal is operable by a respective player to place a wager on a turn of the game of chance and obtain an outcome based on a random event generated by the gaming server, the outcome being one of at least a favorable outcome in which the respective player wins the contents of an accumulation account, an intermediate outcome in which the respective player wins the wager at fixed odds, and an unfavorable outcome in which the respective player forfeits the wager;
an accumulation facility in communication with the gaming server via the communication network, wherein the accumulation facility is configured to accumulate a portion of each wager in the accumulation account;
a lottery server in communication with the gaming server via the communication network, wherein the lottery server is programmed to: (i) run a lottery that is associated with the game of chance during a defined time interval; (ii) during the defined time interval, reward each player participating in the game of chance who qualifies for enrollment with at least one enrollment in the lottery; (iii) determine whether the favorable outcome of the game of chance occurs during the defined time interval; (iv) if the favorable outcome of the game of chance occurs during the defined time interval, cancel the lottery and void all enrollments in the lottery; and (v) if the favorable outcome of the game of chance does not occur during the defined time interval, select a winner of the lottery by randomly selecting one of the enrollments in the lottery, wherein the winner of the lottery is awarded the contents of the accumulation account.
10. The system of claim 9 , wherein the lottery server is able to reward a player participating in the game of chance with multiple enrollments in the lottery in proportion to the player's participation in the game of chance.
11. The system of claim 9 , wherein the lottery server is programmed to reward a player participating in the game of chance with one enrollment for every 10 turns of the game of chance on which the player has placed a wager.
12. The system of claim 9 , wherein the lottery server is programmed to reward a player participating in the game of chance with one enrollment for every 15 turns of the game of chance on which the player has placed a wager.
13. The system of claim 9 , wherein the defined time interval has a fixed duration.
14. The system of claim 9 , wherein the defined time interval expires when the balance of the accumulation account exceeds a predetermined threshold.
15. The system of claim 9 , wherein each enrollment in the lottery is uniquely identified by a unique code.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the lottery server is programmed to randomly select one of the enrollments in the lottery by generating a random number that maps to one of the unique codes associated with the enrollments in the lottery.