Profits slip at Zetters

HIGHER profits from football pools were not enough to offset a collapse in income from newspaper bingo competitions for Zetters Group. It reported a slide in pre- tax profits from pounds 1.13m to pounds 1.04m in the year to 31 March after improving in the first half.

Pools turnover slipped from pounds 22.7m to pounds 22.4m but the profits contribution rose from pounds 343,000 to pounds 470,000, boosted by tighter control of costs.

The Sun and News of the World abandoned their Lotto competitions in June 1991. Zetters' competitions arm, which ran Lotto, fell from a profits contribution of pounds 126,000 last time to a pounds 21,000 loss. It has been unable to find any replacement business.

Terry Yardley, finance director, said the expertise and technology used to handle 5 million Lotto entries could be adapted to help administer the proposed national lottery.

A final dividend of 4p (6.25p) makes an unchanged total of 8p.