Case Study Response

SharedTickets Case Study

Senior Business Analyst / Product Owner Perspective

Candidate: Marjan Jovanovski

1. Brief Introduction / Feature Understanding

SharedTickets is understood as an extension of an online iLottery draw-game purchase flow. It combines two related capabilities:

For example, the base Powerball game requires 5 main numbers + 1 Powerball. Selecting 6 main numbers + 1 Powerball creates 6 valid 5+1 line combinations. Selecting 7 main numbers + 1 Powerball creates 21 valid 5+1 line combinations. The Powerball/special ball remains a single standard selection for the proposed scope.

Once created, the SharedTickets purchase is treated as one ticket bundle. Players who buy portions receive ownership shares in that bundle. If the bundle wins, the prize is distributed according to the final ownership record.

This response is structured around the two requested case-study tasks: backlog structure and potential topology/dependencies.

2. Reference Materials Reviewed

ID Source / Material File / URL Purpose Used In This Response
REF-001 Case Study PDF Case_Study_-_iLottery_Product_Owner.pdf Primary assignment scope and requested deliverables.
REF-002 Illinois Lottery, How to Play Powerball > Online https://www.illinoislottery.com/dbg/how-to-play/powerball Baseline online purchase flow: number selection, lines, Power Play, draw selection, cart, purchase receipt.
REF-003 Illinois Lottery, How to Play Powerball > About Powerball https://www.illinoislottery.com/dbg/how-to-play/powerball Baseline Powerball game structure and draw context.
REF-004 Illinois Lottery, How to Play Powerball > Ways to Win https://www.illinoislottery.com/dbg/how-to-play/powerball Baseline prize tiers, Power Play treatment, and online prize handling context.
REF-005 Illinois Lottery, When You Win https://www.illinoislottery.com/claim-a-prize/when-you-win Public prize-claim guidance, online wallet thresholds, e-Claim/Claim Center paths, and claim timing context.
REF-006 Illinois Lottery, Draw Game Rules - Master DBG Rules Draw Game Rules - Master DBG Rules V.2025.11.16.pdf; https://www.illinoislottery.com/content/dam/il/how-to-play/Master%20DBG%20Rules%20V.2025.11.16.pdf Baseline eligibility, account, ticket validation, ticket finality, prize claim, and settlement controls.

3. Assumptions

ID Category Assumption Rationale Source Ref
A-001 Scope SharedTickets is scoped to selected online draw games and to a single draw for the proposed MVP. Multi-draw and subscription-based shared ownership are excluded from the initial scope. Current Powerball supports multi-draw and subscription behavior, but shared ownership across future draws would add ownership duration, repeat purchase/payment, cancellation, and settlement complexity beyond the core case-study ask. REF-002 REF-006
A-002 Number selection Additional number selections apply to the main number pool only. The Powerball/special ball remains a single standard selection and is excluded from additional-number expansion unless explicitly configured in a future release. The baseline Powerball model separates the main number field from the Powerball field. The case study refers to additional number selections, but does not explicitly require expansion of the special-ball selection. REF-002 REF-006
A-003 Game configuration The maximum number of additional main-number selections is configurable per eligible game. Different games may have different number pools, price models, limits, and responsible-gaming considerations. A configurable limit avoids hardcoding +1 or +2 as the product rule. REF-006
A-004 Funding and ownership For the MVP, the creator fully funds the ticket bundle before publishing portions for sale. Unsold portions remain owned by the creator. This avoids conditional-funding refunds, operator-funded remainder conflicts, and ambiguity around partially funded ticket eligibility at draw time. The tradeoff is that the creator carries the full initial cost until portions are sold. REF-006
A-005 Ownership granularity SharedTickets portions represent ownership of the created ticket bundle, not ownership of individual generated lines. The case study refers to selling portions of created tickets. Treating the generated lines as one ticket bundle keeps ownership, settlement, audit, and player explanation simpler for the MVP. REF-001
A-006 Listing lifecycle Unsold portions remain owned by the creator and are automatically removed from public sale at the defined sales cutoff before the draw. This keeps the ownership model stable, prevents late purchase ambiguity, and ensures the final ownership record is clear before draw and settlement processing. REF-001 REF-006

4. Open Questions

The questions below are not blockers for this proposal. The proposed scope proceeds based on the assumptions stated above. These open questions highlight decisions that could affect final scope, dependencies, or implementation detail in a real project. The affected epics are indicated in the Potential Impact column to show where answers may influence scope or implementation detail.

ID Category Question Status Current Position Potential Impact Source Ref
Q-001 Game configuration Should each game define a limit for how many additional main numbers a player may select? Open The proposal assumes this is configurable per game. The exact limit should be defined by game rules, pricing, responsible-gaming policy, and usability considerations. E-001 E-002 REF-002 REF-006
Q-002 Ownership lifecycle Should purchased ticket portions be resellable, or is secondary resale excluded from the MVP? Open The proposal assumes secondary resale is excluded from the MVP. Allowing resale would add ownership transfer, audit, pricing, eligibility, notification, and settlement complexity. E-003 E-004 E-007 REF-001 REF-006
Q-003 Listing lifecycle What sales cutoff should apply to SharedTickets portion purchases before the draw? Open The proposal assumes unsold portions are removed from public sale at the defined sales cutoff before the draw. The exact cutoff should be defined by the operator based on draw cutoff, payment processing, final ownership record, and responsible-gaming controls. E-001 E-003 E-004 REF-001 REF-006
Q-004 Prize settlement Which prizes are paid automatically to wallets, and which require manual claim handling when multiple owners are involved? Partially Answered Current online prize handling already distinguishes automatic wallet credit from claim handling. SharedTickets must preserve those paths while adding proportional prize shares and auditability. E-005 E-006 E-007 REF-004 REF-005 REF-006

5. Task 1: Backlog Structure

5.1 Epics Required For Full SharedTickets Implementation

ID Epic Title Objective Short Description Related Assumptions
E-001 SharedTickets Configuration Allow authorized configuration of SharedTickets rules for eligible draw games, including additional-number limits, portion rules, and cutoff controls. Extends game/product configuration so SharedTickets can be controlled per draw game without hardcoding number limits, portion behavior, or cutoff rules in the player journey. A-001 A-002 A-003
E-002 Ticket Creation And Initial Purchase Allow an eligible player to create and purchase a valid SharedTickets ticket bundle. Covers creation and purchase of the initial creator-owned ticket bundle, including expanded main-number selection, game-line generation, pricing, validation, and wallet payment. A-001 A-002 A-003 A-004
E-003 Publish And Sell Ticket Portions Allow the creator to publish available ownership portions and allow eligible players to purchase them. Covers publication and sale of ticket portions, including listing, browse/detail view, reservation, purchase, sale confirmation, cutoff handling, and oversell prevention. A-004 A-005 A-006
E-004 Ownership And Lifecycle Control Maintain the official ownership record for the ticket bundle. Covers ownership and lifecycle control for the ticket bundle, including sold portions, creator-retained portions, lifecycle states, listing cutoff, and the final ownership record used before draw and prize processing. A-004 A-005 A-006
E-005 Prize Distribution Distribute winnings according to the final ownership record. Covers evaluation and settlement of SharedTickets prizes, including result evaluation, ticket-bundle prize aggregation, proportional allocation, wallet credit, claim handling, rounding, and reconciliation. A-004 A-005
E-006 Player Communication Keep creators and portion owners informed at key lifecycle moments. Covers player communication across the SharedTickets lifecycle, including confirmations, listing status, portion purchase notifications, ownership finalization, result notifications, and claim-required guidance. A-004 A-005
E-007 Operations, Audit, And Support Provide operational visibility and controlled recovery for SharedTickets. Covers operational control and support for SharedTickets, including support search, lifecycle timeline, audit trail, exception handling, reconciliation, and evidence for payments and prize distribution. A-001 A-004 A-005

5.2 Sample Stories With Short Descriptions

ID Parent Epic ID Story Title Short Description
US-001 E-001 Configure SharedTickets availability Allow authorized admin users to configure whether SharedTickets is available for a selected online draw game, with changes tracked for audit purposes.
US-002 E-001 Configure additional-number limits Define minimum and maximum additional main-number selections per eligible game.
US-003 E-001 Configure ticket portion and sales cutoff rules Define how ticket portions can be sold, and when portion sales must close before the draw.
US-004 E-002 Select additional main numbers Allow eligible players to select additional main numbers within configured limits.
US-005 E-002 Generate valid game lines Create all valid game lines from the player's expanded main-number selection.
US-006 E-002 Calculate and present total price Calculate total price based on generated line count, draw count, and allowed game add-ons such as Power Play.
US-007 E-002 Purchase SharedTickets bundle Validate eligibility, funds, cutoffs, and configuration before purchasing the full ticket bundle.
US-008 E-003 Publish ticket portions for sale Allow the creator to publish available ownership portions of the purchased ticket bundle.
US-009 E-003 Browse available SharedTickets Allow eligible players to view available SharedTickets with key ticket, draw, price, and ownership information.
US-010 E-003 Purchase a ticket portion Allow an eligible player to buy an available ownership portion while ensuring total sold portions cannot exceed the available ownership amount.
US-011 E-003 Close unsold ticket portions Allow unsold portions to be removed from sale while keeping already sold portions valid.
US-012 E-004 Maintain ownership records Record who owns each portion of the ticket bundle, including the creator, buyers, related transactions, and timestamps.
US-013 E-004 Freeze final ownership before draw processing Lock the final ownership record before the draw so it can be used for prize distribution.
US-014 E-004 Show ownership status to players Allow creators and buyers to see their owned portions, listing status, and final ownership record.
US-015 E-005 Evaluate generated game lines Check generated game lines against draw results using the existing result process.
US-016 E-005 Calculate proportional prize shares Calculate each owner's prize share from the final ownership record and prize amount.
US-017 E-005 Distribute winnings or start claims Credit wallet-eligible winnings and route claim-required prizes through the existing claim process.
US-018 E-006 Notify players about SharedTickets events Send confirmations for purchase, listing, portion sale, final ownership, and results.
US-019 E-006 Explain claim-required winnings Tell players when winnings cannot be paid automatically to wallet and must follow the claim process.
US-020 E-007 Search SharedTickets records Allow support and operations users to find SharedTickets by player, ticket, listing, draw, or transaction reference.
US-021 E-007 Reconcile payments, ownership, and prizes Compare creator purchase, portion sales, any refunds, ownership records, and prize distribution to confirm they match.
US-022 E-007 Audit SharedTickets changes Keep traceable evidence of configuration, purchase, listing, ownership, result, and prize distribution changes.

5.3 Selected Stories With Indicative Acceptance Criteria

Indicative acceptance criteria (AC) for three selected user stories.

AC Story 1: Generate Valid Game Lines

Field Value
Story ID US-005
Story title Generate valid game lines
Reason selected Demonstrates the core additional-number logic behind SharedTickets. 
Scenario: Generate combinations from expanded main-number selection
  Given an eligible Powerball-style game requires 5 main numbers and 1 Powerball
  And SharedTickets configuration allows 7 main numbers for that game
  When the player selects 7 valid main numbers and 1 valid Powerball
  Then the system generates all unique valid 5+1 line combinations represented by the selected numbers
  And the generated line count is shown before purchase
  And the Powerball remains a single standard selection

Scenario: Reject a purchase request outside configured limits
  Given the configured maximum is 7 main numbers
  When a purchase request contains 8 selected main numbers
  Then the request is rejected
  And the player is informed that the configured maximum has been reached

AC Story 2: Purchase A Ticket Portion

Field Value
Story ID US-010
Story title Purchase a ticket portion
Reason selected Demonstrates portion sale, buyer eligibility, payment, ownership creation, and oversell protection. 
Scenario: Successfully purchase an available portion
  Given a SharedTickets bundle has available published portions
  And the buyer is eligible to play the game
  And the requested portion is still available
  When the buyer confirms the portion purchase
  Then the buyer is charged the confirmed amount
  And ownership of the purchased portion is recorded for the buyer
  And the available portion quantity is reduced
  And the creator and buyer can view the completed transaction

Scenario: Prevent overselling during concurrent purchase
  Given only one portion remains available
  When two eligible buyers attempt to purchase that portion at the same time
  Then only one purchase is completed
  And the unsuccessful buyer is not charged
  And the ownership records do not exceed 100% of the ticket bundle

AC Story 3: Calculate Proportional Prize Shares

Field Value
Story ID US-016
Story title Calculate proportional prize shares
Reason selected Demonstrates the most important downstream integrity point: prize allocation based on final ownership. 
Scenario: Allocate winnings using final ownership record
  Given a SharedTickets bundle has a confirmed winning prize amount
  And the final ownership record has been frozen before result settlement
  When the system calculates prize shares
  Then each owner receives a prize share proportional to their ownership portion
  And the total allocated amount reconciles to the payable prize amount
  And any rounding treatment is recorded according to the configured rule

Scenario: Route claim-required prize handling
  Given one or more owner prize shares require manual claim handling
  When prize settlement is prepared
  Then wallet-eligible prize shares follow the wallet credit process
  And claim-required prize shares follow the existing claim process
  And no owner can receive more than their final ownership share

6. Task 2: Potential Topology & Dependencies

6.1 Proposed System Topology

The proposed topology introduces SharedTickets as a new capability around the existing iLottery platform. Existing platform capabilities should continue to own their respective rules, including game setup, ticketing, wallet, account, draw/result, and prize handling. SharedTickets should coordinate the new lifecycle: expanded selection, ticket bundle creation, portion sale, ownership control, and proportional prize distribution.

High-level topology diagram showing SharedTickets capability connected to player channels, ticket management, ownership records, wallet payments, draw results, prize claims, notifications, and audit reporting.
Figure 1: Proposed SharedTickets High-Level Topology

Existing platform systems remain the source of record for their own rules, while SharedTickets coordinates the ownership and lifecycle flow around them.

Layer / Capability Proposed Role
Player channels Extend web/mobile journeys for expanded selection, ticket bundle purchase, portion listing, portion purchase, ownership view, and result view.
API / experience layer Provide channel-facing APIs while keeping business validation in backend services.
SharedTickets capability Coordinate bundle lifecycle, listing state, ownership state, and the start of prize settlement.
Combination and pricing capability Generate valid game lines from expanded selections and calculate price from the configured game rules.
Listing and reservation capability Manage published portions, availability, temporary reservations, purchase confirmation, and listing closure.
Ownership records Maintain creator and buyer ownership records and freeze the final ownership record before settlement.
Existing game configuration Remain the source for eligible games, number pools, draw rules, pricing, add-ons, and configured SharedTickets limits.
Existing ticket management / wagering Submit and store the valid game lines represented by the ticket bundle.
Wallet / payments Process creator purchase, buyer portion purchase, creator proceeds from sold portions, any refunds, and wallet-eligible prize credits.
User/account, eligibility, and responsible gaming Validate player status, jurisdiction, age/account eligibility, limits, and responsible-gaming controls.
Draw results and prize management Evaluate winning lines, determine prize amount, and support wallet or claim-based settlement paths.
Notifications and operations Communicate lifecycle events and provide support, audit, reconciliation, and exception handling.

6.2 Areas Of Impact / Affected Components

This section is included because the case study explicitly asks to identify affected modules/components.

ID Area / Component Existing / New / Extended Expected Impact
C-001 Web / Mobile Channels Extended Add expanded selection, ticket bundle preview, publish portions, browse portions, purchase portion, ownership status, and result views.
C-002 Game Configuration Extended Add SharedTickets eligibility, additional-number limits, portion rules, cutoff settings, and add-on compatibility rules.
C-003 Ticket Management / Wagering Extended Accept generated valid lines for a ticket bundle and preserve draw/ticket validation references.
C-004 SharedTickets Capability New Coordinate the SharedTickets lifecycle across creation, listing, ownership, draw readiness, and the start of prize settlement.
C-005 Listing / Reservation New Manage portion availability, reservations, purchase confirmation, listing closure, and prevention of selling more portions than available.
C-006 Ownership Records New Maintain creator-owned portions, buyer-owned portions, and the frozen final ownership record.
C-007 User / Account Management Extended Validate creator and buyer eligibility, account state, jurisdiction/location rules, and ownership visibility.
C-008 Responsible Gaming / Limits Extended Apply spend, deposit, self-exclusion, and product-specific controls to creator purchase and portion purchase.
C-009 Wallet / Payments Extended Support full creator purchase, portion buyer payment, creator proceeds from sold portions, any refunds, and prize credits.
C-010 Draw Results Extended Ensure all generated lines are evaluated and linked back to the SharedTickets ticket bundle.
C-011 Prize Management / Claims Extended Allocate winnings by ownership portion and route large or claim-required prizes through existing claim processes.
C-012 Notification Service Extended Notify players about purchase, listing, portion sale, ownership finalization, draw result, and claim-required events.
C-013 Operations / Support / Audit Extended Provide lifecycle search, audit trail, exception handling, reconciliation, and customer-support visibility.

6.3 Key Dependencies Between Teams / Modules

ID Dependency Teams / Modules Involved Why It Matters
D-001 Game configuration before expanded selection Product / Game Configuration / Player Channels / SharedTickets Eligible games, number limits, add-ons, pricing, and cutoff rules must be defined before the purchase journey can validate and price a ticket bundle.
D-002 Game-line generation before ticket purchase SharedTickets / Ticket Management / Game Rules Generated game lines must match the format and validation rules accepted by the existing ticketing system.
D-003 Creator purchase before portion listing Wallet / Ticket Management / SharedTickets A ticket bundle should be fully funded and valid before portions are published for sale.
D-004 Eligibility and responsible-gaming checks before purchase User Management / Responsible Gaming / Wallet / SharedTickets Both creator purchases and buyer portion purchases are gambling-related transactions and require controls.
D-005 Reservation and payment consistency Listing / Wallet / Ownership Records A buyer should not be charged without ownership being recorded, and ownership should not be recorded without successful payment.
D-006 Final ownership record before prize distribution Ownership Records / Draw Results / Prize Management Prize allocation must use the frozen final ownership record, not the current listing or account view.
D-007 Prize rules before settlement automation Prize Management / Wallet / Claims / Legal / Compliance Wallet credits, manual claims, tax/withholding, and rounding rules must be clear before settlement is automated.
D-008 Audit and reconciliation across the full lifecycle SharedTickets / Wallet / Ticketing / Prize / Operations Support teams need a consistent chain from configuration and purchase to ownership, result, prize distribution, and exception handling.

7. Traceability Map

ID Source Item Related Items Purpose
T-001 A-001 E-001 E-002 C-002 D-001 Single-draw MVP scope drives configuration, purchase flow, and eligible draw-game boundaries.
T-002 A-002 E-001 E-002 US-004 US-005 C-002 C-003 Main-number-only expansion drives selection, game-line generation, validation, and pricing behavior.
T-003 A-003 E-001 US-002 D-001 Configurable limits keep the solution adaptable per eligible draw game.
T-004 A-004 E-002 E-003 E-004 US-007 US-008 US-010 C-009 D-003 Creator-funded purchase affects payment flow, listing eligibility, and ownership handling.
T-005 A-005 E-003 E-004 E-005 C-006 D-006 Bundle-level ownership drives ownership records and prize-share allocation.
T-006 A-006 E-003 E-004 US-003 US-011 US-013 C-005 C-006 D-006 Listing cutoff behavior keeps sale availability and final ownership processing clear before draw and prize settlement.
T-007 Q-001 E-001 US-002 C-002 D-001 Additional-number limits affect configuration, player selection limits, pricing, and responsible-gaming controls.
T-008 Q-002 E-003 E-004 E-007 C-005 C-006 C-013 D-005 D-008 Resale decisions affect listing lifecycle, ownership transfer, audit, payment handling, and support visibility.
T-009 Q-003 E-001 E-003 E-004 US-003 US-011 US-013 C-005 C-006 D-006 Sales cutoff decisions affect listing availability, purchase cutoff, and final ownership record timing.
T-010 Q-004 E-005 US-016 US-017 US-019 C-011 D-007 Prize settlement rules affect prize-share calculation, wallet credit, manual claim handling, and player communication.

8. Final Notes / Scope Boundary