Christmas is the time for winning at Spin Palace!
December 24, 2010
Christmas is really the time for winning at Spin Palace Online Casino! The month of December has seen over 300 winners to date, with winnings ranging from $4000 to $221,000 and the month’s not over yet!
Of the over 300 winners, many of the winning figures came from the new and very popular Thunderstruck II, Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring slots and the new Christmas themed Santa’s Wild Ride video slot as well as seasoned favourites Burning Desire, Avalon and Reel Gems online slots. The majority of table game payouts were made on European and French Roulette Gold variations as well as High Limit Baccarat.
Not only does Microgaming powered Spin Palace Casino make more winners more often, it also has one of the best all round online casinos offerings on the net with a $1000 bonus for new players, loyalty points and ongoing bonuses for existing players as well as regularly launched new games and a jam packed promotional calendar that currently includes the Great Gift Giveaway promotion, Christmas Cracker tournaments and more.
So if you’re looking for an extra special Christmas Casino treat this year, then visit Spin Palace now!
Ladbrokes and 888 in takeover talks
December 22, 2010
It has been confirmed that talks are currently underway between UK betting giant Ladbrokes and the 888 casino and betting group with regard to a potential £240m takeover bid that sent 888 share prices soaring this week.
Ladbrokes, which is currently headed up by CEO Richard Glynn, and has huge prominence offline, is reported to be eager to expand its already successful online operations to achieve growth targets set by the organisation.
While 888 did not pay dividends in August of this year, citing the need the remain liquid in a weak economy and the effects of the decline in bets after the World Cup soccer event ended, 888 shares rose by 18% to 58p this week, while Ladbrokes stock closed down by 1.2 % at 126p.
While there is no certainty that these discussions will ultimately lead to an offer being made for 888, investors still seem positive and eagerly await further announcements on the progression of the talks.
Should Ladbrokes, which currently operates over 2,700 betting shops in fact acquire 888, this would represent yet another move towards the current consolidation trend taking place within gaming industry which also saw PartyGaming and Bwin merging August of this year.
This is not the first time that Ladbrokes and 888 have held talks concerning a possible takeover. Four years ago both parties met on the issue but discussions were aborted due to Ladbrokes’ concerns over the threat of possible retrospective legal action against 888 due to its activities in the US prior to the industry being outlawed in 2006. Unlike rivals Sportingbet and PartyGaming, the 888 group has yet to strike a deal with US authorities to grant the company immunity from prosecution.
According to brokers in the know, this fact could yet ensure that the most recent talks between the two companies remain fruitless. Only time will tell… so watch this space!
UK Lottery - New Rules Halt Overseas Sales
December 20, 2010
British National Lottery fans are in for a great disappointment due to the implementation of a new rules policy which prohibits the purchase of lottery tickets by those who are not physically in the Great Britain, whether British expatriates, citizens travelling abroad or simply those from other countries who’d love to win a few pounds.
The Daily Mail recently reported that Camelot (the lottery operator) will be instituting a new rules policy which states that players must be physically present in Britain or the Isle of Man to play the lottery online or make amendments to their online lottery account. According to the operator, this is a standard practice in most countries, where it is illegal to buy an overseas lottery ticket. Should there be evidence that a player purchased a ticket from abroad, any prize money owing on the ticket will be declared null and void.
While Camelot was not willing to comment on the number of players entering the lottery online from abroad, the Daily Mail puts figures at tens of thousands of regular players who play from overseas locations, whether they are British citizens travelling on holiday or business, expatriates, or simply fans from other countries.
Camelot currently employs geo-location software to identify foreign internet service providers, which may indicate that the user is not UK based, and the system then sends a message warning the player about a potential breach of the rules. However, numerous UK based businesses, individuals and mobile phone users make use of foreign internet service providers, so the use of a foreign provider does not conclusively prove that a user is based overseas when purchasing a ticket online.
We have yet to ascertain how Camelot plans to circumvent this issue, but please be aware that if you do make use of a foreign provider, it may be best to purchase your tickets offline and rather leave your online activities to playing at online casinos until these types of issues are resolved.
Blackjack Card Counting App for iPhones & iPods
December 17, 2010
With the launch of the new Apple iPhone 4, land based casinos are once again on high alert for players using the Blackjack Card Counter application on their smart phones or iPods. The application can be installed onto an iPhone or iPod via the iTunes website and once on the phone, it enables the user whether they are a professional or amateur blackjack player, to keep track of their card count. Here’s a little more on the app’s features:
Keeping track of the True Count: The Blackjack Card Counter application enables you to calculate the “True Count” more accurately than any manual method. As the relevant buttons on the app are pressed, the total counted cards are recorded and adjusted to account for cards that are not recorded. This then gives the user a “total cards dealt” number which is subsequently divided by 52 to represent the cards in the total deck dealt, giving the user the true count. The app also for adjustment of the number of decks in the shoe within the information screen section.
Card Counting Methods: The application allows for a number of card counting strategy options to be employed by the player, and for each strategy he/she can press the relevant button that contains the face value of the cards drawn from the deck. Depending on the strategy selected and on the value of the card, the application will either add or subtract 1 or 2 from the Running Count in order to adjust:
* Hi-Lo: Low cards 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 (add 1 to total). High cards 10, J, Q, K and A (subtract 1 from total).
* Hi-Op I: Low cards 3, 4, 5, and 6 (add 1 to total). High cards 10, J, Q and K (subtract 1 from total).
* Hi-Op II: Low cards 2, 3, 6 and 7 (add 1 to total) 4 and 5 (add 2 to total). High cards 10, J, Q and K (subtract 2 from total).
* Omega II: Low cards 2 and 3 (add 1 to total) 4, 5 and 6 (add 2 to total). High cards 10, J, Q and K (subtract 2 from total).
After a shuffle the new deck button will have to be pressed in order to reset the strategy and count back to zero.
So what’s the fuss you may ask? Well, it seems many land based casinos, particularly in Las Vegas, have seen increased wins at the blackjack tables as a result of card counting. It was then discovered that some of the winners were using the Blackjack Card Counting app. One would think that this would be easy to spot but it’s not thanks to the “stealth mode” feature which ensures that the iPhone or iPod touch screen remains off and as long as the user knows where the keys are located, the program can be run without detection.
While card counting is not illegal, it will most certainly lead to expulsion from the casino if you’re caught! Card counting with an electronic device however is illegal and can get you arrested if detected! So be warned and rather keep these types of apps for measuring your own manual card counting abilities.
Understanding Keno Payouts
December 10, 2010
Keno is a very different game to most casino games, and while it may seem complicated, understanding the payoffs is really quite simple even though they are few and far between. This is usually because most people play eight and ten spot tickets so their chances of hitting a winning combination are alot lower than if playing the more simple two or three spot ticket. Also, casinos need to keep close to 30 percent of the total bets in order ot make it profitable for them to offer the game, nevertheless the game still pays 50% more than the lottery, so it’s not worth dismissing Keno completely.
A friend of mine and I often play three and four spot Keno respecively and while we don’t go in with any great expectations, we do get our expected occasional free plays. Keno is a game that you can play for quite a while because if you get two out of three on a card then you get your original $1 bet back so you can play again. Every now and again you get lucky and hit a solid three spot win when 1, 11 and 21 come up, which means you can pay for dinner or a few rounds of drinks with the $42 payoff.
The odds are pretty simple to work out, if one plays three hundred three-spot tickets a year, the odds are that you’ll hit the solid three-spot about four times which is worth $168, and hit “two out of three” about 42 times for another $42.
With these types of odds, the return is usually around 70% (which translates to $210), which as we mentioned before is the “norm” in live Keno. At the end of the day, you’ve spent $90 for a whole year’s worth of entertainment.
Obviously, different casino venues offer different odds, but no matter what number of spots you play on your ticket, the overall return payout is approximately 70 percent. If you stick strictly to three spot Keno then you are assured of a 1.4 percent chance of winning (which translates to 4 wins in every 300 games). If you play eight spot Keno on the other hand, you will only hit a win once in 230,000 games…see the difference? So if you’re only playing 300 games a year like my friend and I, you’ll be 766 years old before you win, unless you’re really lucky! So take our advice and stick to the three spot game, no matter how tempting more numbers seem, logic has to win out here, more numbers means you need more balls to come up and that decreases the odds of winning.
So now that you understand the payouts in Keno more, you can try and enjoy it next time you’re at a casino.
The Palace Group’s 10,000 Gifts Giveaway
December 6, 2010
Not only does The Palace Group bring you some of the webs best online casinos in the form of Spin Palace, Ruby Fortune and Mummy’s Gold, but this Festive Season they will also be giving away 10,000 gifts are more!
From November 25th 2010 to Janaury 24th 2011 the group will be running the “Great Gift Giveaway” promotion. Amongst the 10,000 gifts are Luxury Sports Cars (including Porsche Caymans, BMW 318i’s and Mini Firsts), VIP Holidays to the fabulous Las Vegas, designer watches, iMacs, iPads and generous cash rewards, but wait there’s more, there are special gift days where there is even more to win if you make a deposit!
So what do you have to do to be in line to win these great prizes? Play any casino games during the promotional period and the more you wager (of course), the quicker you will progress through a series of levels, of which there are 8. The higher up you go, the more chance you have to win. Also, the more you wager, the more loyalty points you get and the better gift you’ll get.
It sounds like it’s going to be a Festive Season of fun at Spin Palace Casino, so why not get in on the action and you just may get the gift of a lifetime!
Wanna bet on how cold it’s gonna get?
December 2, 2010
As mentioned in our previous article on the engagement of Prince William to Kate Middleton, the ever popular William Hill casino and sportsbook has some rather colourful betting options available with everything from TV specials including the outcomes of favourites like The X Factor, Strictly Come Dancing and even the BBC’s sports personality of the year, but we never really thought we’d be able to bet on the weather, but it seems we can!
Yes, that’s right, William Hill currently has a host of UK weather specials for punters to bet on. The options include Snow Or No Snow on Christmas day (listed by city) with Aberdeen (Pittodrie) and “yes” being the longest shot at 11/4.
And in light of the UK’s and Europe’s recent chilly weather, there are also temperate options including wagering on the Lowest Temperature in Scotland to be beaten by April 30th 2011, with the coolest temperature record sitting at a whopping -27.2c on January 10th 1982, the odds pay 10/1 for a yes bet. Other options in this genre include Lowest Temperature in Wales (coldest recorded temperature: -23.3c, 21 January 1940, Powys) and Lowest Temperature in England (record coldest temperature: -26.1c, 10 January 1982, Shropshire) to be beaten by April 30th 2011 at 16/1 and 20/1 odds for “yes” bets respectively. In spite of the current cold temperatures, we’d say these are safe bets for William Hill to offer as it is unlikely that temperatures will drop as global warming has had quite an effect on worldwide temperatures two decades after these recorded figures, but nonetheless, if there are two sides to anything, William Hill will make sure you can bet on it.
Another very entertaining betting notion on offer, no matter how unlikely it is, is the wager on whether Big Ben to fail to chime due being frozen solid by April 30th 2011…the odds are 100/1 and that’s not surprising considering that the famous clock is maintained by three specialized clock engineers who climb its 292 steps three times a week to wind it and have in the past used hairdryers on a particularly frosty New Year’s Eve to thaw the frozen bell hammers in time for midnight. They are such a dedicated crew that one of the members Paul Robertson once walked from his home during a February blizzard to wind the clock so it didn’t stop.
One thing’s for sure, with William Hill’s host of betting options from sports to TV and Weather specials, you’ll find it very difficult to ever be bored because it really seems like if it’s a thought in your head William Hill will offer the odds to match! Check them out today, you won’t be sorry you did!
