Will camelot be able to restore lottery lustre? Once again, camelot's profits are in decline. What initiatives can it employ to replicate its previous success and overcome new competitors. (National Lottery).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)

The National Lottery seems to be on a losing streak these days. Last week, operator Camelot announced its third consecutive slide in annual ticket sales, which fell by 5.4% for the six-month period to September and sent profits plummeting by 27.3%.

All those unlucky numbers add up to an estimated [pounds sterling]35m loss for the government's good causes piggy bank.

Camelot, which narrowly retained, the Lottery last year after a bruising legal battle with the National Lottery Commission and rival Richard Branson's People's Lottery, says the wrangling over the contract is partly to blame. The company all but froze marketing spend for the Lottery amid the uncertainty but is now pressing ahead with a series of campaigns to break in the spring.

The Lottery has had its successes in recent years. The introduction of the Lim instant-win card last spring, for …