The New Jersey Lottery is making social media history on Friday. It'll be the first lottery in the country to use Facebook for live drawings.
"It's such a smart move," said PR Manager Jacquie Fiorito. "This way people can get it on their iPhone or their smartphone."
The Facebook initiative will lower their cost, hopefully expand their reach and give lottery players a better experience, overall. The NJ Lottery Facebook page has more features and players have the ability to interact with each other.
The daily drawings were done live on NJN, but the lottery's six-figure contract with the network ended June 30, 2011. Coincidentally, that turned out to be NJN's last day on the air due to budget cuts.
Although New Jersey is the first state to take advantage of the trend towards social media, Fiorito expects other states might follow soon.
"It's just the future and the future is now," Fiorito said.
