August 16, 1999 Web posted at: 12:55 p.m. EDT (1655 GMT) by Dan Caterinicchia

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(IDG) -- The D.C. Lottery and Charitable Games Control Board is upgrading its computer network to meet Year 2000 compliance requirements. The upgrade, under a $5 million contract with the OAO Corp., began last month. It must be completed by Oct. 23 in order to meet the Multistate Lottery Association's requirement and Washington, D.C.'s own gaming guidelines, said Georgia Bailey, project manager at Greenbelt, Md.-based OAO, an aerospace and information technology service provider.

"If the board didn't meet those guidelines, they wouldn't be allowed to sell tickets," Bailey said. "Our system will be completed by the week of Oct. 23 and has no sensitivity to dates."

Under terms of the five-year contract, OAO and Gtech Corp., an online lottery products and services provider located in West Greenwich, R.I., the central office-based local-area network that was installed by Bell Atlantic in 1992 will be replaced.

The new network will be a secure, real-time communications link between 580 retail agent located in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area and the central office computer system, which processes wagering data.

OAO will monitor the system and respond to any problems, and Gtech will install and maintain the wireless network.