South Korea will launch a mobile-based system on Aug. 18 that automatically pays winnings from registered paper lottery tickets bought at retail outlets, extending to offline buyers a convenience long available for online purchases. Under the measure approved by the Korea Lottery Commission under the Ministry of Planning and Budget, buyers who register Lotto 6/45 tickets through Payco, a mobile payment app, will receive regular win alerts and have unclaimed prizes deposited automatically on the final day of the one-year claim period. Physical ticket redemption still takes priority until that deadline, meaning holders must keep the paper ticket safe. The change targets a longstanding gap in paper lottery sales, where buyers could not previously verify identity and small winnings were often lost to forgetfulness or misplaced tickets before reverting to the lottery fund. Unclaimed Lotto 6/45 winnings totaled 58.1 billion won ($41 million) last year, largely from lower-tier awards including 50,000 won fourth-prize winnings and 5,000 won fifth-prize winnings. The commission also moved to improve buyer convenience and retailer traffic by sharing real-time information for about 9,500 lottery outlets with Naver Map and Kakao Map, piloting pension lottery gift vouchers of 5,000 won or less for corporate promotional prizes, and using stores to promote lottery fund projects. It is also running a lottery fund drawing contest through Sept. 11 for Korean citizens aged 19 or older.