In the year of isolation – 2020, many of us had spent way more time at home, rather than the usual. While searching for some kind of entertainment, in staying at home atmosphere, many people had turned to iGaming. Overall, individuals do generally transition from gambling in land-based casinos to online gambling. But right now, even more people who used to prefer the conventional live gambling were forced to explore the online alternative and even some who had never previously tried any type of gambling found the excitement in it. With iGaming (or online gambling), we can all most certainly get entertained and elevate our spirit as it is such a thrill, especially when we are winning! So now, let’s explore some of the many betting options in the iGaming world.

Sports Bets

Big among all the sports fans out there! Sports betting gives fans an extra way to enjoy games. You are basically predicting the result of a sport event and placing a wager on the outcome. There are so many sports you can bet on, for example – Football, Basketball, Volleyball, Cricket, Horse Racing, Tennis, Formula 1, Chess and so on. This year gave a big commotion to many of the sports schedules, shortened seasons and cancelled lots of tournaments, but after all, it absolutely managed to go on.
Do you know that when you are gambling, your brain produces dopamine? This makes you feel good and leaves you seeking that feeling, again and again, boosting the sporting experience. Placing an online bet on a sports game is nearly an effortless action and a person feels an instant gratification from the immediate profits. It is true that you can bet without much knowledge on the particular event you place a wager and get lucky, but in general, in sports betting you need to know more about what you are gambling on. Most people put real thought behind what they are placing their bets on. The sports betting is adding another level to games for the majority of people who follow sports and it also gives fans something more to cheer for.

Poker

Online poker gaming is not entirely identical to live gaming. One obvious distinction is the lack of the ability to observe the body language and reactions of other players. This is why the online poker players learn to pay more attention on the reaction time, betting patterns and much more of their opposing players. In fact, there are loads of people making a living out of online poker. While playing on a daily basis, they are managing to earn some good money and right now, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the online poker traffic increased enormously. Lots of live gaming venues were indefinitely closed and numerous usually live poker players were instead directed to online platforms. But after all, poker is a game of adaptability, and as such, it should not be a challenge to master the online poker for a successful player.

Casino

You can find all different types of casino games on an online casino platform. A typical game selection would include games like Baccarat, Blackjack, Roulette, Poker, Craps, Bingo, Keno, Sic Bo and loads of Slot machines. Most of the online casinos also offer a free version of the games and this is considered a good way to get a better idea on how that particular game works before you put your money on it. One more advantage of the virtual casinos is the absence of lurkers. If the TV show Friends has taught us something related to gambling, it’s that nobody likes a lurker! With the major increase of the online casino traffic this year, the different platforms are even offering more and more bonuses, as the competition among online casinos these days is enormous. We can take advantage of the catchy offers many of them put forward, like great entry bonuses, along with monthly bonuses and promotions, game specific bonuses, high roller bonuses, VIP points, free spins and much more. Also, some of the top gaming software companies do provide excellent game versions that offer a realistic virtual casino experience.

It’s wildly known that gambling can be, and often is, a fun pastime that we choose to take part in when we feel like it. It doesn’t have to get out of hand, and it is always advisable to set our limits in advance and quit while we are ahead. Among all other things, there are loads of bizarre things you can place your bets on, like when will the world end, or proof that aliens exist. This might be amusing, but who knows if you ever see a return of those money. The art of life is living in the present moment and that is why we like to live right now and have fun!

Roulette is an exciting game that could be very profitable and entertaining. However, it could also be the source of disappointment and loss of funds. Although there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to guarantee you a win (if there was one, we’d all be billionaires, right?), there are some tips that could minimise your losses and maximise your profits.

5. Pick the Right Table

When I say the right table, I don’t mean there’s this one magic table where your luck is waiting for you but rather suggest choosing a European Roulette over American Roulette, sticking to the basic bets as opposed to risking money on side bets and staying at the same table for a while – who knows, you might notice a pattern.

4. Know Your Limits

If you’ve decided to spend an hour playing, don’t go pulling an all-nighter. And if you’ve decided you’d spare a maximum of £250, don’t go over that amount. Not even if you’ve lost a lot and you only need a spin or 10 to win your cash back. Maybe it isn’t your day – admit defeat and look forward to a better day.

3. Bet Wisely

If you have £200, don’t start by betting £100, not even £50. Instead, divide the sum by at least 20 and make that your basic bet – in this case, £10. This will make your cash last longer, giving you more chances to win and get a better payout. There are many basic roulette strategies but my favourite is the following: Say, you bet £10 and win, next time bet £20 and bet that sum for a while if winning. When you lose, go back to £10.

2. Stick to the Outside Bets

I know the payout of 35:1 is mighty tempting but it’s that impressive for a reason. It’s pretty unlikely that you get right the number that the ball is going to land on next. What would be wiser is to bet on the outside of the layout. Stick to odd/even, black/red, the column and dozen bets. Surely, they won’t have that great of a payout as straight-up bets but then you’re much more likely to win betting on those

1. Have Fun

It’s not all about money, you know. There are intangible things in life we should enjoy as much as possible. Don’t take the pleasure of placing a stake and the excitement of watching the wheel spin for granted. It’s such a thrill! Love every moment, even when you’re losing. Crazy right? Well, things do happen for a reason and maybe your loss today will be rewarded with a huge win tomorrow.

Those are my top 5 tips on how to get the most out of roulette. It goes without saying that you should always consider the site you’re playing at. Playing only at the best roulette sites is a must, especially if you’re planning on making real money. I have found roulettesites.org to be the perfect starting point for roulette fans. There you’ll get all the key facts like the best casinos in the UK, a beginner’s guide, a number of strategies explained and even bonuses.

Another year, another Affiliate Conference is behind us! For those of you who don’t know, the AC (not to be confused with air conditioning or the videogame series “Assassin’s Creed”) is one of the biggest conferences dedicated to gambling and casinos in the world, and is often held in huge cities across the world. There, delegates from all over the world can meet up, exchange contacts, make deals and arrangements and just have a good time in the company of their peers! This year, the conference was held in London and was the most successful yet, attracting over 4,500 people across the globe, both sponsors and attendees! The event was primarily sponsored by popular bookmakers William Hill and 888, but the various services, such as lunch and drinks, were provided by other sponsors such as bet365.

Overall, the conference exhibited the booths of over 200 major figures in the gambling business, including online casinos, casino providers, partners and representatives of physical casinos. The attendees were encouraged to walk around the showfloor, meet the figures behind some of the most recognizable brands in the industry and establish new connections. But the conference had much to offer even for those who weren’t looking to form new partnerships, but instead merely wanted to learn more about how their favourite industry functioned behind the scenes. LAC gave the stage to over sixty different speakers and presenters who stepped up, spoke about their life and experience and tried to give practical advice to those who chose to attend their panels. These included some major figures within the industry, such as Adam Gent, the senior search strategist for Branded 3, and Jake Pollard, the head of online content for iGaming Business, among many, many others.

The London Affiliate Conference lasted for four days, starting from the 4th of February and finishing on the 7th, though it bears notice that on the first day it was mostly the evening that saw any action, as the welcome drinks and the iGB Awards took place then. The awards took place for the first time ever and were free for anyone with a ticket to the conference. Afterwards, on the 5th and 6th there were several panels and conferences being held parallel to various events happening on the showfloor, so that everyone could mix and match to create their own, personalized schedule that they care about. On the 7th there was only one event – a Sunday session where you could catch up with friends and acquaintances from the industry over drinks.

The next Affiliate Conference will be happening in Amsterdam from the 7th of June all the way up to the 10th, as part of the iGaming Supershow. While it will most likely not be as big as the London one, it’s bound to attract just as many big names, and as such I’m very much looking forward to it!

While online gambling is legal in several states in the USA, it’s not anywhere close to being implemented in all of them. As a matter of fact, only a single state – Nevada – allows online gambling with absolutely no restriction whatsoever. There are several which allows certain forms of online gambling, such as California, Utah, Massachusetts and South Dakota, but almost everywhere else this form of entertainment is completely and entirely illegal. While a lot of states don’t have laws that explicitly prohibit it, fines may still befall anyone who makes their casino accessible there, and even so, there’s still some states where this is entirely illegal and people who play online casino may face fines and even jail time, and obviously they’re not eligible to receive any of the winnings that they’ve accumulated. But very soon, one more state may be added to the (slowly) growing list of those that allow online casinos to exist – Pennsylvania.

The first talks on the matter started in 2013, when a bill to legalize online gambling was proposed, but ultimately rejected. It would, however, spark a discussion about whether or not the state should go through with something similar, with numerous proponents and opponents of the notion expressing an opinion. That proposal eventually led to a study conducted among specialists which aimed to discover the impact that online gambling will have on the state in terms of market share and tax profits. Ultimately, though, that study led to very little until 2015, when John Payne was appointed as Chairman of the Gaming Oversight Committee and really began pushing for online gambling legalization, beginning to push aggressively for the approval of acts and legislations that will make legalizing online gambling easier, leading to a proposal titled HB 649 which was presented in February of 2015.

While the proposal was not accepted last year, many believe that it will be this year. It’s no secret that the state of Pennsylvania has been struggling with budgetary concerns for a while, and the taxes that would be placed on an industry as inevitably profitable as online gambling could potentially bring in enough profits to pull Pennsylvania out of that hole. There’s also the fact that neighboring states, such as New York, are planning to open up numerous additional casinos by 2020, which could lead to a vast oversaturation of the market. One possible solution to this issue is the legalization of online gambling, which will move potential gamblers away from physical casinos and towards online ones, which provide a completely new experience.

The proposal (HB 649) is set to be reviewed once again this spring, so whether citizens of Pennsylvania will be able to play online casino games or not will be known by the middle of this year. Experts, however, remain optimistic that this is a very real possibility.

One of the most exciting games (and notoriously popular as well) that you will find in any respectable virtual gaming site is online bingo. You have sure encountered at least, if not played, the well-loved game with numbers. Online even more so the game is completely random and winning depends on just your luck, which makes it very easy and light to play. This is why we decided to dedicate some time to it on our blog and try sum up what you need to know before you give it a go.

As you can imagine, the competition is fierce online. With technology advancing at a fast pace it is relatively easy for game providers to keep up the level of gaming user experience in design, functionality and variety. So if someone is in this business, especially for some time, likelihood is they are relatively good at all those and the only field left to lead the battles for customers is what extra can they give to people, thus sparking potential interest and gaining player’s loyalty. This is where bonuses and rewards come into play. Which is why we’re gonna skip all the sweet-talking and get straight to business – what is the best way to go with the extras and freebies you will be offered and how to get your hands on the good ones.

Thing is, there are so many websites out there, all falling over each other with perks and shiny offers. If you are serious about the way you spend your money and time it will take you ages to compare them all and we are not even going to go into keeping up with it all over time. So what we found is a great solution, is doing your homework once and picking a site that does all that for you. The one we chose, after conducting our own research, is bingobonuses.org.uk.We find it very simple to use, informative and most importantly – it contains a great choice of websites to look through, with frequently updated information on all and constant additions to the list. They also check for security and a list of other criteria that the game providers are rated for. Makes life much simpler. You can of course invest some time yourself and find something better – do let us know, we’d be happy to add to our collection of resources.

Now that we’ve got your back covered on finding the best incentives out there for playing some bingo, one thing to keep in mind is security (we touched on it above). You must have used PayPal one way or another, whether to accept or make a payment. On top of being quick and easy to get your finances sorted, it has that extra user protection element – you know your money are in safe hands. Transfers are instant, so whether it is to start playing quickly or get your hands on your cash if you’ve had a lucky day – this is our advised method of payment. Relax, we have done this for you as well – these bingo sites accept PayPal. You will find most also offer alternatives, in case you already have something else in place.

So, to summarise, if you decide to try your luck with bingo (why not?), look around, choose carefully as there is a lot to choose from. There are a lot of bonuses offered for newbies so to get the best out of it for You (and we mean personally you – a choice that fits your personality, playing style and choice of individual games) leave the research work for the experts and professionals in the area and just enjoy the show.

There are many aspects that could turn a gambling site into the best place to play at for users all around the world, but mostly for us Brits. Unfortunately though, there are many players that get distracted by the flashy commercials and the apparently generous bonuses, losing sight of what is really important such as safety, privacy, fairness and variety of the games, good wagering requirements and so on. For the untrained eye, having to choose between the hundreds of online casinos that offer their services in the UK will turn out to be quite the challenge and a poor choice could be more than discouraging. This is why it is imperative to find a reliable source of info on the best online casinos, before you jump in head first in what could be a total fiasco.

My long-time experience has showed me however, that sometimes one site can be perfect for you, but not remotely good enough for me, simply because we have different preferences in terms of favourite games, types of bonuses, preferred payment options and so on. Although this is true, fact to the matter is no one would choose a dodgy operator, with poor game selection if they were given a much better alternative. So, here they are, ladies and gentleman:

888 Casino – I am sure that they need no introduction, but still I would like to point out the factors that made me recommend this operator and support my choice with indisputable facts. First and foremost, the large number of safety certificates such as McAfee, GamCare and eCogra are solid proof that 888 Casino takes your safety seriously and would spare no efforts to offer a secure gambling environment. Moreover, their responsible gaming page includes useful links to help players that may have a problem with compulsive gambling. Their game selection is not exactly something to write home about in terms of quantity, but their quality and uniqueness sure makes up for that. New players receive quite the warm welcome, even before they make their first deposit. Overall, they must be doing lots of things right, since they already have over 25 million registered users worldwide.

Ladbrokes Casino – This is an operator that is also no stranger to safety certificates, proudly displaying no less than 5 of them on its website, among which Essa, GamCare and one from the Responsible Gambling Trust. As far as the games are concerned, I would say ‘Now that’s a rich collection to choose from’ and if you had a look over the over 500 Playtech titles that they offer, you would totally agree. And the best part is that most of their featured games and jackpot slots are also available on the go and their app for iOS can be downloaded from the official store.

Casumo – A fairly new addition to the UK gambling market, Casumo brings so many new things to the table, that it’s no wonder they claim to be from another universe. This operator’s intention is to transform you gambling experience into something unique, fun and easy as child’s play – an 18 year old child’s play, that is! Leaving aside the entertainment element, Casumo does surprisingly well for a casino launched only 3 years ago and actually much better than some gambling sites with a lot more experience in the field. It just seems to come naturally to Casumo to offer such a good product, with games from 5 of the best software providers and exciting promotions, bonuses and free spins.

Have you ever gone to a casino intent on making it big at the slot machines, only to leave broke and disappointed? No matter how many times you spin the reels, absolutely convinced that you will hit a good combination next time, you just can’t seem to win anything bigger than peanuts. You might chart it off as bad luck, or maybe a bad day, but in fact, it’s not just that – slot machine RTP has decreased almost 15% over the last 15 years across the country, according to new statistics.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, RTP, also known as “return to player”, is the amount returned to the players, under the form of winnings, out of all deposited cash. For example, if a slot machine’s RTP is set to 95% and $100 are deposited in it, on average $95 will be distributed among the various players as winnings while $5 will be kept for the casino. The opposite of RTP is known as “hold”, which is the percentage that the casino keeps for itself (in the example above, the hold would be 5%).

Throughout all of slot history, players have complained about them being “unfair”, but those complaints have often being dismissed as just sore loser talk. Well, Marcus Prater, executive director of the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers, finally decided to address these complaints by hiring Las Vegas-based advisory firm Applied Analysis to inspect slot machines nationwide and compile statistics that show whether or not there’s anything to the gamblers’ accusations. As it turned out, they were quite a lot more substantial than anyone had suspected.

According to the study, the nationwide hold in 1990 was only 5.9%, which has increased to 7.7% in 2014, which may not seem like much, but it’s a dramatic change, meaning that players were now a lot less likely to win than they were in 1990. The study examined statistics from each of the 12 states in which gambling is currently legal, determining that perhaps a part of the problem might be the decrease of gambling-free states. While in 1990 only 3 states allowed casinos on their soil, that number has grown 4 times over 15 years. In states such as Nevada, where gambling is a big part of the culture, the hold is as low as 6.4%, while in others like Iowa the hold percentage is 9.37% – almost twice as high.

However, that’s not the only possible answer to the riddle that Applied Analysis are contemplating. As sad as it is, a much more likely answer would be a “self-fulfilling prophecy”. Gamblers complain about slot machines being “too tight” and stop playing, and since there’s less people playing casinos are forced to increase the hold in order to profit, which makes gamblers complain, and the whole circle starts from the beginning. While certain slot machines (mostly the ones where profit is shared with the manufacturer) do not allow any adjustment to the RPM, most have left it almost entirely at the owner’s leisure. In theory, they could even make the hold 100%, though of course it’ll never come anywhere near that level. My point is that it’s mostly up to casino owners to adjust the RPM in order to meet market demands… And that adjustment isn’t always good.

To add some weight to this hypothesis, Applied Analysis have also collected statistics on casinos’ average profits throughout the 15-year period of the study. As it turns out, slot machine revenue has decreased by a full 5% over 10 years, from $7.09 billion in 2004 to $6.74 billion in 2014, which, again, might not seem like much, but we’re still talking hundreds of thousands of dollars here, especially when you consider that the all-time high for slot profits in Nevada came in 2007, where they brought a grand total of $8.4 billion – not even close to what they’re making these days. Sure, a lot of things could be blamed for this, such as the economic crisis and the subtle decrease in casino’s cultural relevance, but it’d be naïve to believe that the gradually increasing hold didn’t have anything to do with it. So we can quite clearly see that despite the decreased RTPs profit is not only not going up – it’s actually decreasing at an alarming rate.

Keep in mind, the above statistics were purely for the profit of the slot machines – how much the hold allows casinos to keep for themselves. But when it comes to overall player interaction, the numbers tell a similar story. In Nevada, slot machine wagering has gone down an astounding 23%, from $138 billion in 2006 to only $105.4 billion last year. If this rate keeps up, slot machines may continue to lose relevance and become nearly obsolete in the eyes of gamblers in the US. “Consumer spending has improved in most major gaming markets throughout the United States in recent years, while gaming volumes continue to contract”, the firm explained in their report.

According to executives of the trade association’s board, the study was done “to open a dialogue” between manufacturers and casino operators in order to come up with a solution to the problem that can benefit both parties and restore slot machine performance. According to Tom Jingoli, Senior Vice President of Konami Gaming, the study was meant “as a talking piece and not a broad brush stroke for the gaming industry”. Certain elements might help revitalize the declining medium, such as the legislative changes that were approved this year to allow for skill-based elements (such as the ones found in various videogames) to be aded to slot machines, but as a whole the future of slot machines remains in peril. While the decrease in profits may not seem dramatic or serious at the moment, if it continues it could snowball into something that could potentially hurt the entire industry.

G8 iGaming Summit is a conference/convention dedicated to iGaming in all of its forms – online casino, betting sites, video slots, video poker, etc. It will occur in Winchester, Hampshire on July 22-24, 2016, and will feature press conferences and appearances from almost all important figures in the UK iGaming market. Unlike other iGaming conventions, which are primarily meant as business events for making connections, G8’s goals is to provide a fun experience for the players.

What is iGaming

iGaming is a relatively new term coined to describe gaming activities in which real money is placed as a bet (gambled) on the outcome of a game or a sport, with the expectation of a higher return in case of a positive outcome. What distinguishes iGaming from regular gambling, though, is that iGaming is entirely dependent on technology – playing poker among friends in the living room would be gambling, but placing a bet on a football game online would fall under the definition of iGaming. Keep in mind that similar games where betting is not involved (such as casino-themed videogames that require a purchase, but no real bets) do not fall under the definition of iGaming. While electronic gambling, such as video poker machines and video slots, have been around for a while now, the term iGaming didn’t begin to exist until very recently (first coined in the early 2000s) when online casinos first started to become prominent worldwide.

Why is iGaming Important?

We, the organizers of the G8 iGaming Summit, sincerely believe that iGaming is the future of gambling. Casinos, while certainly good for a fun night of casual gambling with friends, aren’t really appropriate for serious gamblers, or for people with busy schedules. On the other hand, online gambling is always available, and with the increasing prominence of mobile gaming and 3G and 4G networks you can play casino games almost anywhere. While the profits accumulated by physical casinos are greater than those made by online ones (according to data from 2014), the gap is quickly closing in and online casinos will most likely soon overtake physical ones. It’s the same situation as with PC gaming – once online platforms such as Steam began appearing that were more convenient and provided cheaper, yet superior services, physical PC games almost stopped existing, and today the vast majority of PC games, and the majority of games in general, are sold digitally. Traditional gaming and iGaming have a lot in common, which is why we believe that iGaming is headed down the same path.