QwertyCasino.com’s Review of the Year 2009
What a year it has been! In retrospect is has been more of a year for abbreviations rather than online casinos with great establishments such as the GPWA, APCW, GUA, AGD and the dreaded UIGEA making the headlines!
As always the GPWA (Gambling Portal Webmasters Association) and APCW (Association of Players, Casinos and Webmasters) have been at the forefront of this tricky yet rewarding online gambling industry providing up to the minute information on affiliate programs, gambling brands and invaluable information regarding the industry on the whole and in particular rogues establishments and the unfairly created UIGEA which continues to draw sighs from players and affiliates alike.
Then there is Affiliate Guard Dog who so selflessly dives deep into the ongoings and grey areas of affiliate programs, of whom without, would make the industry far less licit than can often be seen by those on the outside. Affiliate Guard Dog’s hard work and effort can be seen and felt by players and affiliates and will remain one of the places to visit, if you haven’t already, in 2010.
Probably the biggest highlight of 2009 was the creation of the GAU (Gambling Affiliates Union) which whilst still in its early stages has already helped a number of affiliates and it is always up to date regarding affiliate news that must be classed as inestimable.
One only has to read the mission statement at the GAU which states “The Gambling Affiliates Union recognizes the need for player protection within the industry and will consider player protection as an important objective in the interest of the affiliate community.” to realise the importance of this new union of which we at QwertyCasino.com are proud to be a member of. Much more than a breath of fresh air the GAU has been welcomed by all affiliates and many thanks have to be given to GPWA private members and GAU founders Chalkie and thepokerkeep for the hard work put in so far and the estimated workload for the future.
The UIGEA continues to rear its ugly head once a month but more so as December edges ever closer. December 1st 2009 is a possible date where Banks in the United States will have to abide by the UIGEA where payments to online gambling establishments are concerned. It is proposed that Banks will be required to prevent all debit and credit card payments to online casinos although checks and wire trasnfers will not blocked.
Everyone has an opinion on the UIGEA and most will agree it is a bad intention, in particular in a World credit crisis where much needed cash is required to flush through the poorly managed economic system. Should the Banks go ahead with the UIGEA come December 1st then many players, affiliates and online gambling establishments will feel harder hit that when the world economy begun its sharp decline just over one year ago. We wait with baited breath!
Another online gambling crisis has been in Europe regarding foreign sportsbooks poaching players from other countries. In Lehmans terms the decision was made by numerous European countries to stop players from that particular country gambling on a foreign sports book or bookmaker, meaning that Portugese gamblers could no longer register at Bwin who hold numerous European betting licenses IE Germany, Italy etc…
The change from Portugal does worry many affiliates who, since the UIGEA have looked to target more European based customers and it is hoped that few other European countries follow suit as rumours suggest France may also look to ban foreign bookmakers.
As far as QwertyCasino.com “The online casino list” is concerned, we shall continue to provide high quality online casinos, bookmakers, poker rooms and bingo halls until the law decides otherwise. Our returning guests will have noticed our casino list now being more compact with the removal of most online casinos. The reasons for many casinos being removed are due to a number of reasons, with reason one being the quality. In hindsight it was a “good thing” to have so many online gambling establishments listed and we were able to calculate which brands users found most compelling not just for games and playability but on an all round service ratio, the results, are now shown with more in-depth casino reviews and an easier navigational system.
Our Top 10 lists have now changed to simple lists of between two to ten brands providing the user a more efficient and userfriendly opportunity to chose what will be right for them. Also removed from our online casino list is the “who plays there?” section, which in reality was not something our users needed. When players register for certain casinos, the last item on the check list is which other nationalities play there, even for the hardest of fascists it seemed players would want to play regardless of who may be sat next to them. The move as also created more space to keep our readers up to date with casino news and player bonuses.
Without doubt our biggest highlight is our new online casino forum. Whereas previously we relied heavily on users sending us e-mails regarding their thoughts and opinions the forum has now added the extra dimension where players can simply add their comments related to any casino they wish.
The new forum was created specifically to give players a base to voice any concerns or issues they might have and with threads such as “The Chin Wag Centre” and “Odd Odds” there is much room for friendly banter and chit chat.
We were also able to create an “Exclusive Bonuses” section, which, with the help of the online casinos we list, was produced to give players that something extra if they decide to register or play at the numerous free roll poker tournaments we organise.
A major plus is the sports betting threads that cover sports betting related to football, cricket, basketball, American football and anything else related to online sports betting. The thread not only covers news and tips but gives an opportunity for users to explain what they do best when it comes to betting on certain aspects of sporting events such as yellow cards, corners, yards and much more.
Another tangent that we have proceeded to travel down is our new “How To Play” section which covers the basics on playing poker, black jack, rummy and other numerous online casino games. Whilst it is still in its development stage it is something that we have intended to do over the last 6 months and it gives those that are new to gambling a basic knowledge of what to do and what not to do, it is surprising how many players do not know the full rules and what they can do to make playing the games more advantageous in their favour.
Judging by our newsletter subscribers and interesting increase in our forum members it looks as though 2010 will be an even better year for the online casino list and welcome everyone to be part of our exciting future.
