British Comedy Guide

Online Betting

Hi,

I am doing research into the marketing of online gambling and to help construct my questionnaire I need to understand the right questions to ask.

If you could answer this questions I would be very grateful, any additional comments are welcome;

Why do you / don't you gamble?

If you do, how do you choose your betting site and what do you like/dislike about the site?

Thanks!!

Sure. No, I really don't gamble online as I don't trust it and have a somewhat addictive personality in many ways. I know that the Government were amending their gambling laws in regard to fruit machines a while back because they were seen to be a detrimental influence on youngsters. There do seem to be quite a lot of betting sites online though and I wonder how they're regulated.

I don't and certainly not an online casino.......picture behind the scenes - a lot of people bet on say number 12 on the roulette wheel, would it come up? I very much doubt it.

It's like these casinos you see on TV that I've glanced at now and then. There is one where a person actually spins the roulette wheel and puts the ball in, which seems to be fair; but there is another one that is electronic - no thank you!

As you say TBN, are they regulated? Are they random? Is there a little man in the background with a "preferential switch"?

One of the biggest cons going, completely fixed.

Quote: beaky @ 29th January 2015, 6:14 PM GMT

One of the biggest cons going, completely fixed.

Thank you :) Precisely.

It's the start of the slippery slope. Those who run them are only out to fleece gullible idiots.

Quote: beaky @ 29th January 2015, 6:14 PM GMT

One of the biggest cons going, completely fixed.

Which could equally apply to horse racing.

Quote: Oldrocker @ 30th January 2015, 1:02 AM GMT

Which could equally apply to horse racing.

Don't know about that..........certainly the most boring "sport".

I have had an online betting account for years. If you are sensible and not hooked on gambling, they are quite safe.

I don't actually bet very often - only when I think there is value to be had.
I never bet more than I can afford to lose and would never chase it.

All online betting sites are much of a sameness - they are all trying to entice you with the same things but out of them all - betfair and paddypower seem to give the better value.

Online gaming though is totally rigged. They say they are regulated but when you read the 'terms' it is mainly aimed at the compulsive gamblers to stop them getting into massive debt. The regulators have no access to the software that runs the games.

The internet is littered with examples of ex-employees of gambling sites spilling the beans - especially poker sites.

There's an old saying about gambling; If you want a guaranteed way of doubling your money - fold it in half and put it back in your wallet.

I don't gamble because I don't like to lose.

I love 2p 'Flipper Winner' type arcade games still, which is testament to my childhood spent at the seaside. It's really addictive though and that's why I avoid gambling temptation online. The Loan Sharks are vicious around here and I'm loathe to sell all of my worldly goods to Cash Converters.

Some interesting comments.

So it is fair to say people have strong views on gambling, which has been created one way or another. I shall ask questions in my research to try and find out how people have come to these views (though experience? reading?).

People also seem to know little about gambling regulation as well, and how companies are continuously aloud to advertise a potentially harmful product.

I shall mainly research why people choose the online site they gamble with, and be sure to post the questionnaire on here for people to complete.

Thanks guys.

Well! (tap tap tap)

The most amusing thing about online roulette is that the most recently occurring winning numbers are displayed at the bottom of the screen because a tremendous number of players think that, in roulette, the past is a guide to the future. It isn't.

Roulette can be a fun game to play as long as you realise that the odds are against you and, accordingly, you are absolutely certain to lose if you play long enough. If you accept that you are, in fact, paying for the pleasure of playing and you can afford to lose, that's fine.

Michael Winner's mother loved roulette and, over the course of several years, lost £6 million. No problem - she could afford it.

One thing many people don't realise about online betting is that it enables bookies to know which customers are costing them money and which customers are helping to make them rich.

Some years ago, I had my betting accounts closed down (or effectively closed down) by every online bookie.

Does that mean I'm a horseracing genius who was living a champagne lifestyle at their expense?

Far from it - William Hill, for example, restricted my betting to about 50p on any given race after I'd had the temerity to win about £1500 from them over the course of a year.

Bookies want only losing accounts: they don't mind you having a big win now and again but if you're winning on a regular basis and your account is costing them money (even if it's not very much) overall, they'll close you down.

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