Technology |
The dogs are in their traps, the horses are champing at their bits and the roulette wheel is spinning - but is it spinning out of control? We look at the rise of gambling on the internet
Money, it seems, features in more cliche's than
just about anything except sex- 'take the money and run', 'money talks',
'money doesn't grow on trees' and, particularly relevant to
gambling, 'a fool and his money are soon parted'.
The pending lift-off of web-based business, also known as e-commerce, has
upped the ante and made it nigh on inevitable that one of the oldest forms
of organised entertainment would make its presence felt online.
One new internet casino has reported taking bets
worth £4.5m in its first month. The casino is called GalaxiWorld and
its parent company GLC has seen its stock rise by 30 per cent. Clearly, gambling
and the web go together like peaches and cream, Tom and Jerry, and Morecambe
and Wise all rolled into one.
The Galaxiworld casino, although by no means the first to go digital, is
just one of many that can be found with a simple search of the world wide
web. There is now a breathtaking variety of betting games on offer via your
modem - some intriguing, some familiar, others downright banal. The one thing
all these services have in common is that they have been set up to make a
profit. Naturally, opinions are divided on whether they offer the ordinary
punters at home yet another hole to pour their money into or simply an enjoyable
way to use late-20th century technology.
The choice is yours
As responsible adults, we all have to make decisions for ourselves every
day - online gambling is just another opportunity to exercise choice.
When it comes to making an informed decision, most of the gaming websites
make it clear that it is up to us. World Gaming's disclaimer, for example,
says: "It is impossible for us to determine the state of the law in every
country around the world on an ongoing basis.
'People forget ...the odds are astronomical and pin their hopes on getting lucky' Reader - John Gibson |
"Therefore, by clicking the 'I agree' button, you are acknowledging that
you have determined what the laws are in your jurisdiction, and that it is
legal for you to place a bet via the internet."
Without UK laws specifically designed to regulate online gambling, dawn raids
on e-gamblers seem unlikely. However, in the UK it is illegal to run websites
that feature casino games, as any such establishment requires a licence.
Players must be physically within the licensed premises when gambling - rather
difficult in a world of zeros and ones.
Gambling is a personal choice - that's the bottom line. We asked two
Computeractive readers and a former gambling addict about their personal
choices...
The price you can't afford to pay
A spokesman for Gamblers Anonymous, we'll call him Patrick, fears that the
more acceptable and accessible gambling becomes, the greater the danger to
those who
can't control their desire for a little more than a flutter. Patrick
hasn't placed a bet for more than seven years but sees the growth of both
the lottery and online gambling as merely increasing access to excess.
"Although we [Gamblers Anonymous] have no official
opinion on outside issues, I feel that gambling is more accessible, it is
seen as socially acceptable. We all have more exposure to it, especially
through the lottery and now the internet. It's very easy to come home and
go online for an evening's gambling.
"Since the nature of the web means that it is unregulated and easy to access,
people can soon find that their credit cards are eaten up by bets which they
might not have made otherwise. Gambling can be fun for millions of people
but if you have the propensity to overdo it the easy access makes online
gambling a real problem for some people."
Fancy a flutter?
Of course there are those gamblers who enjoy a flutter without encountering
the darker side of the addiction that can drive people to self-destruction.
Rachelle Nashner, 23, an American who works for the media industry in London,
looks to online gambling as a substitute for a night out in a West End casino.
While there are no lounge singers or showgirls, the thrill of gaming is
excitement enough to inspire her to return to the online tables two or three
times a week to stake her hard-earned cash.
"While no online gambling site can truly substitute
for the live casino experience, I must say that they still represent a wonderful
opportunity to have fun. It's not always so easy to have a flutter in the
States.
"Sometimes the
risk
of gambling a few pounds here and there really pays off. Even when it doesn't,
I'm left feeling that it has been a worthwhile experience, which just has
to be a good thing."
The stakes are high
It doesn't always stop at a few pounds though, and gambling can soon become
an obsession for some people.
Computeractive reader John
Gibson, 60, from County Antrim in Northern Ireland knows from his work in
the community the dangers of addiction and the highs and lows that
drive punters on the road to ruin.
"As someone who knows the destructive power of any addiction, be it alcohol,
web surfing or betting, I'm not keen on the boom in gambling.
The National Lottery
brought out the worst in many people when it started a few years
ago. It's easy to play and offers the chance to win huge amounts of money
for a small stake. People seem to forget the fact that the odds are astronomical
and pin all their hopes on getting lucky.
It seems to me that gambling on the internet has the potential to reach just
as many people, including children, as the lottery does. The important difference
is in the cost - how far will people go before they end up in serious
debt?"
Just a few pounds?
Most of us have no problem with gambling a few pounds here and there - we
either do it or we don't and it's just a bit of fun. However, there are people
for whom gambling can become an obsession.
As Gamblers Anonymous likes to say - just like Alcoholics Anonymous - an
addiction is no different from a disease. Luckily, it isn't a disease that
afflicts everyone, just a small minority. That minority is the group which
is most at risk from the proliferation of opportunities to gamble,whether
they are on the internet or not.
How safe is it?
In all forms of financial transaction on the web, the security issue has
been a major impediment to progress. It seems that many people are concerned
about losing money through lack of privacy in online card purchases.
As with many things in life, if you observe standard precautions and use
common sense, credit card use online should be safe. Don't reply to unsolicited
emails asking for your card details for confirmation purposes and don't give
out your details to any site you are unsure of - if it looks unprofessional,
it probably is.
All bets are off?
The easy access to online casinos and betting sites has to be a cause for
concern. Already, in the US bets that have been placed by minors using parents'
credit cards have been the subject of litigation, casting serious doubt on
the viability of the entire internet-based casino industry.
In the UK, Jonathan Raab of BETonline says: "We are keen to keep it as clean
as possible and we always telephone anyone who opens a new account to confirm
their identity."
On the international legal front, the most ludicrous case comes from California,
where a woman who burned her fingers in e-casinos to the tune of $70,000
is refusing to pay up. Since gambling is illegal in the state, she claims
Visa and Mastercard have aided and abetted her in committing a crime then
shared the filthy lucre with the casinos.
TELETUBBIES COME IN AT 10,000/1 |
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| To give an idea of what to expect when you try your hand at online gambling we liberated a few moths from the Computeractive wallet and headed for the online bookie. In this example we've used BETonline (www.betonline.co.uk) as it is UK-based and one of the more professional sites on the web. You can expect to find fairly similar procedures at most sites should you choose to place a wager or two, but remember - you might just lose your shirt. | |
STEP 1
On first arriving at the site
you need to and open an account. BETonline accepts all major debit but not
credit cards - fill in your details and click to accept its terms and conditions.
STEP 2 Once you've registered, log in and peruse the list of sports and other events. When you find what you'd like to stake a few quid on, just click on it to find out more. In this case, we've gone for a wager on the next permanent England football manager. |
STEP
3 The list of Contenders holds
a few surprises- we've decided to go for the people's favourites.
STEP 4
That's it - £25 on the Teletubbies to become
the next England manager. At 10,000/1 we can't wait for Kevin Keegan to get
back to Fulham.
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She is currently pursuing the credit companies
in the courts in an attempt to cancel out her losses.
If you strike it lucky, payouts from the gaming sites are usually made as
credits to your registered card, although some sites, such as River Belle,
will pay by cheque or bank transfer if asked beforehand. Most reserve the
right to make a small charge on withdrawals.
Another pressing issue for online gamblers is fairness - are the dice
loaded in the casino's favour or is everything above board? The odds
for blackjack or roulette, for instance, are exactly the same in an internet
casino as in the real thing. The outcome depends on random number generators,
which although never truly random do approximate the caprice of a real spin
of the wheel.
[Note: The real roulette wheel is loaded in the bank's favour to start with by virtue of the green zero.This means that in the long run you will lose,no matter how many wins you gain.Pseudo random numbers are usually based on modular arithmetic using prime numbers or some algorithmic sequence which may be "seeded" with and arbitrary number.This can only ever approximate true randomness.Statistical tests can reveal how random a sequence is.However one should not be fooled,whether real or pseudo you are being duped and conned when playing roulette.It is never "fair and above board" Ref: Davis and Hersh "The Mathematical Experience" {The Coin of Tyche} -LB]
SPORTS BETTING |
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| As we all know, the UK authorities are a little
more permissive of gambling than those in the US - after all, most high streets
in the country have at least one 'Turf Accountant'. Companies such as BETonline
(www.betonline.co.uk) operate entirely
within the law and have no need to exploit loopholes. However, William Hill
is one of the UK companies that operates from an offshore base for tax reasons.
Another similar site can be found at www.sportingbet.com - a company whose parent has recently been the subject of a share offer. |
A seemingly endless variety of bets are available, from each ways to parlays and teasers. This is one domestic site that is legally open to UK residents. Ladbrokes - the country's biggest bookie - has a substantial website (www.ladbrokes.co.uk), which goes into great detail on all the company's betting products, but doesn't yet offer the opportunity to gamble online. There are also numerous adverts for telephone betting services and explanations of the different kinds of bet and a beginner's guide to gambling. |
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E-CASINOS |
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 We took a stroll down the virtual strip by going
to an internet search engine (www.yahoo.co.uk
in this case) and heading for the gambling subsection of the entertainment
classification. One of the first sites we logged on to was World Gaming
(www.worldgaming.net), which offers
the opportunity to lose money in seven languages other than English. As with
many gambling sites, the first task is to download the software necessary
to run the games on your PC. The hefty 5Mb file could take up to half an
hour to download, depending on the time of day and speed of your modem.
Installing is a simple matter of clicking on the file and answering a few
questions. World Gaming is one of the few e-casinos to give the option of
playing for fun as well as for hard cash - useful if you want to get a feel
for the games before committing your readies. When registering for a real gamble we discovered that the company behind World Gaming is based in Antigua in the West Indies. This is a common tactic for US online casinos, since gambling is illegal in most states.
The theory is that by taking advantage of grey areas in laws that pre-date the internet, e-casinos can reach gamblers across both the US and the globe. |
Of the other sites we tried,
the River Belle (www.riverbelle.com)
has a nifty hook. It claims to be the first online riverboat casino to set
sail on the waters of the internet. The site certainly sticks to the nautical
theme throughout and even has a picture of a recent pleasure cruiser who
took home almost $83,000. Home Casino (www.homecasino.com) is one of the strangest sites on the web, hosting various games, including virtual scratch cards. The owners thoughtfully say: "It is not necessary to cash in your winnings at the end of every session. You are welcome to leave a balance in your account for your next visit to the casino." How very generous of them. Although playing the stock market isn't exactly the same as a spin of the roulette wheel or a game of craps, the experience on offer at The Great Game (www.thegreatgame.com) isn't all that different from a casino. The site runs an investment game based on buying and managing a portfolio of shares on the London market. It is free to enter and offers regular small prizes as an incentive.
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With slot machines and video poker the payout
percentages are determined by the casino, and many will post their payout
figures online. When a punter hits the jackpot the casinos are rarely shy
of publicity and most love to splash images of happy winners across the website.
The US Senate has already voted to ban all net gambling, although quite how
it intends to enforce any ensuing legislation on non-US companies remains
to be seen. US Attorney General, Janet Reno, says:
"To internet betting operators everywhere we have a simple message - you
can't hide online and - you can't hide off-shore.
Amid the web of uncertainty, one thing is clear - net gambling is here today,
and probably - tomorrow, but the day after? Probably. However, it surely
can't be long before we see the issue of law enforcement and policing of
the net raise its head in this country.
J Mark Lytle
