United Tote is an American company that provides totalizator equipment and services for parimutuel wagering at racetracks. It is owned by Churchill Downs, Inc.

History

United Tote was founded in the 1950s by the Shelhamer family of Montana. The company made its

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

in 1984, raising $7 million. In 1986, United Tote bought

Sunland Park Racetrack Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino is a racino located in Sunland Park, New Mexico, a suburb in Southern New Mexico. Opened in 1959 as a Thoroughbred racing track, Sunland Park was the only legalized gambling venue in the region for many years. In 1 ...

in New Mexico for $3.5 million. In 1989, United Tote purchased one of its largest competitors, Autotote Systems, from Thomas H. Lee. Before the two companies' operations could be integrated, the merger was challenged by federal antitrust regulators. A 1991 court ruling forced the company to split back up, and the original United Tote assets were sold back to the Shelhamer family. In 1994, the company was purchased by Video Lottery Technologies, Inc., a maker of

lottery A lottery is a form of gambling that involves the drawing of numbers at random for a prize. Some governments outlaw lotteries, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of ...

equipment, for $19.6 million in cash, $10 million in

promissory notes A promissory note, sometimes referred to as a note payable, is a legal instrument (more particularly, a financing instrument and a debt instrument), in which one party (the ''maker'' or ''issuer'') promises in writing to pay a determinate sum of ...

, and an earnout agreement worth up to $10 million. Video Lottery Technologies, later named Powerhouse Technologies, was acquired in 1999 by Anchor Gaming, which was then purchased in 2001 by

International Game Technology International Game Technology PLC (IGT), formerly Gtech S.p.A. and Lottomatica S.p.A., is a multinational gambling company that produces slot machines and other gambling technology. The company is headquartered in London, with major offices in ...

(IGT). United Tote became part of IGT's newly formed lottery division. IGT sold United Tote in 2003 for $12.3 million. In 2006, Youbet.com purchased United Tote for $31.9 million plus $14.7 million in assumed debt. United Tote became part of Churchill Downs, Inc. in 2010, when that company acquired Youbet.com.

References

External links

*{{official website, http://www.unitedtote.com/, United Tote Churchill Downs Incorporated Horse racing companies Gambling companies of the United States