Blog 4 Techies Table of Contents
Online Casinos
Gambling is a massively popular pastime virtually everywhere. According to research, 1.6 billion people on the planet regularly test their luck on games of chance and sporting competitions, and 4.2 billion do this at least once a year. Naturally, the rise of the online sphere is responsible for these stats, as now, it is easier than ever for people to partake in this activity. The Google search volume for terms like casino bonus Canada is through the roof, as the interactive gaming industry is marching towards pulling annual revenues of $158 billion in the next six years.
All one needs today to gamble online is a smartphone, an internet connection, and the debit/credit card they have in their pocket. However, while the accessibility of this hobby is at an all-time high, it is not precisely smooth sailing for everyone, as casino sites feature several pitfalls that newcomers can quickly fall into if they do not educate themselves regarding this sector before playing. Below, we break down a few of the top aspects of this activity that everyone considering it should know.
Online Gambling Regulation
The first online casino launched in 1996, but things now stand a whole lot different than they did back then. Online gaming licenses today play a pivotal role in this sphere. For example, a licensor sets the minimum return-to-player percentage of the games its licensee’s host. The Malta Gaming Authority, launched in 2001, mandates that all its approved sites only house gaming products with an RTP above 85%. Return-to-player, or RTP, is a theoretical percentage that informs players how much of the funds bet on a specific gaming product it will pay back to its gamblers over time. That means that the same game can feature different odds at different online casinos, depending on their license.
The UKGC is Britain’s online gambling regulator, and it implements a wait time of two-and-a-half seconds in-between slot spins to stop people from getting overzealous with their gameplay. Moreover, different overseeing bodies have distinct game approval requirements, restricting their markets to only a specific group of game providers who fulfill their defined criteria. Thus, regulators play a massive role in outlining the online gaming experience.
Know Your Customer Procedures
Know Your Client or Customer policies get defined by governments and financial institutions. Their goal is to ensure that businesses transact with real customers and not groups using their service to launder money. KYC procedures are now mandatory at almost all online casinos, as members have to complete them upon sign-up or the first time they attempt to withdraw funds from their gaming balance.
The KYC process usually entails a user having to supply a photocopy of an ID, proof of address, such as a utility bill, and in some rare instances, proof of funds. The operator then has to verify and store this information within 24 to 48 hours. Until that happens, the player cannot transact with the operator. UKGC-sites force players to complete this process upon sign-up.
Video Poker Offers the Best Odds
The classic train of thought is that blackjack is the best casino product to play because, when implementing optimal strategy, players can lower the house edge of this game from 2% to 0.5%. Nevertheless, the casino still holds the advantage, as it does in all the gaming products it features, except for video poker. If gamblers utilize a strategy chart on specific virtual video poker machines, that can tip the odds in their favor, helping them acquire a 1% advantage over their operator.