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The Best and Worst of 2004 represent an opportunity to look back at the year that just came to an end. Here we have highlighted the good and the bad of the online betting industry.
For the bookmakers, we have taken into consideration (either in positive or negative way) a combination of the results achieved by each operation, punters' experiences (in terms of quality), originality and variety of the services offered by each bookmaker and the positions they eventually hold in our lists.
For the rest we have attempted to single out the jurisdictions, payment providers, and events that have characterized the betting industry in 2004.
The Best
Pinnacle Sports - A well established bookmaker based in Curacao, in an industry dominated by "recreational players only" operators, has adopted a strategy to cater to professional players. As well, its outstanding reputation has finished attracting lower stakes punters.
Betfair - They’ve invented and still control the betting exchange market. Over the past four years, they have been at the forefront of a process that has revolutionized the betting industry. They have influenced existing fiscal and betting legislations. In many instances, traditional bookmakers have had to reinvent their business model in the face of the implied threat, which the Betfair's model posed.
Victor Chandler - The leading UK's independent bookmaker and a very innovative firm that has developed one of the most sophisticate betting platforms in the world. Today "the gentleman bookmaker" offers a wide range of gaming products tailored to each individual market.
Gamebookers - A big player in the recreational European market with a top-notch software and website which offers person to person betting together with traditional bookmaker's services.
Interwetten - Although a "small" operator in terms of turnover, it is very well placed and one with the biggest potential for growth on the European market.
Neteller - A strongly financed online payment provider which has successfully moved into the European market with a growing reputation for efficiency and trustworthy. They have a plan to expand into the huge Asian betting market in 2005.
Antigua - The small Caribbean island has successfully upheld to the WTO, a complaint against the US prohibitions on offshore online betting. Antigua successfully contended that the US is violating the commitments they have made as a member of the WTO.
European Betting Association - A non-profit association of the European sports betting operators, which promotes the right for members licensed in one EU state to promote their services and accept business from all other EU member states.
The Worst
Sportingbet - A network of more than 50 sites, over one million customers, the recent acquisition of Paradise Poker and a profitable business model - probably the major player on the market. However, this is a player that simply fails to provide a satisfactory standard of quality service to its customers.
BetonSports - One of the biggest bookmakers worldwide and a leader in the movement to legitimate the online betting sector in the US. Otherwise known for refusing to pay big winners, canceling winning bets, odds rigging and deceptive marketing practices.
SportsInteraction - One of the most popular and oldest bookmakers on the internet, but far too many players complaints ranging from slow pays to regrading of bets to plain incompetence.
English Sports Betting and SSP International - It is very hard to say which one of these two operations has the longest and largest history of no pays. They are total scams and menaces to the industry.
Costa Rica - The impact of a rapidly growing online betting industry has been profound on the economy of this Central American country. Several reputable online bookmakers are based in Costa Rica and some of them are world-scale operations. However, nothing has been done in this country to legitimate the online betting industry, to establish formal licensing standards or to introduce a board of regulators to deal with bad operations. Hundreds of operations operating from Costa Rica are nothing more than "accidents just waiting to happen."
U.S.A. - Whereas – land-based gambling is undergoing a great boom, with most states introducing Indian native casinos or legalized casino-style and lottery games, the U.S. administration is campaigning to shut down the online gambling industry. They are pressuring businesses with heavy-hand approaches and American companies which provide services to offshore online betting sites. They are banning the use of credit cards to place bets and prosecuting those who publish advertising for offshore gambling.
European States monopolies - They pursue aggressive marketing strategies designed to stimulate demand for gambling products. At the same time, they restrict access, for their citizens, to online foreign-based betting services, justifying their restrictions on the grounds of public interest concerns, without proving that their bans comply with EU law.
Russian hackers / extortionists - Earlier in the year a UK's law enforcement agency, which investigates computer crimes, has cracked down a major criminal group responsible to have launched a denial of service attacks against bookmakers' sites that refused to pay protection money. Notwithstanding these attacks have recently resurfaced and nearly every betting site on the Internet has suffered from at least one assault. This forces the websites offline for long times and caused endless worries to punters worldwide.
For the bookmakers, we have taken into consideration (either in positive or negative way) a combination of the results achieved by each operation, punters' experiences (in terms of quality), originality and variety of the services offered by each bookmaker and the positions they eventually hold in our lists.
For the rest we have attempted to single out the jurisdictions, payment providers, and events that have characterized the betting industry in 2004.
The Best
Pinnacle Sports - A well established bookmaker based in Curacao, in an industry dominated by "recreational players only" operators, has adopted a strategy to cater to professional players. As well, its outstanding reputation has finished attracting lower stakes punters.
Betfair - They’ve invented and still control the betting exchange market. Over the past four years, they have been at the forefront of a process that has revolutionized the betting industry. They have influenced existing fiscal and betting legislations. In many instances, traditional bookmakers have had to reinvent their business model in the face of the implied threat, which the Betfair's model posed.
Victor Chandler - The leading UK's independent bookmaker and a very innovative firm that has developed one of the most sophisticate betting platforms in the world. Today "the gentleman bookmaker" offers a wide range of gaming products tailored to each individual market.
Gamebookers - A big player in the recreational European market with a top-notch software and website which offers person to person betting together with traditional bookmaker's services.
Interwetten - Although a "small" operator in terms of turnover, it is very well placed and one with the biggest potential for growth on the European market.
Neteller - A strongly financed online payment provider which has successfully moved into the European market with a growing reputation for efficiency and trustworthy. They have a plan to expand into the huge Asian betting market in 2005.
Antigua - The small Caribbean island has successfully upheld to the WTO, a complaint against the US prohibitions on offshore online betting. Antigua successfully contended that the US is violating the commitments they have made as a member of the WTO.
European Betting Association - A non-profit association of the European sports betting operators, which promotes the right for members licensed in one EU state to promote their services and accept business from all other EU member states.
The Worst
Sportingbet - A network of more than 50 sites, over one million customers, the recent acquisition of Paradise Poker and a profitable business model - probably the major player on the market. However, this is a player that simply fails to provide a satisfactory standard of quality service to its customers.
BetonSports - One of the biggest bookmakers worldwide and a leader in the movement to legitimate the online betting sector in the US. Otherwise known for refusing to pay big winners, canceling winning bets, odds rigging and deceptive marketing practices.
SportsInteraction - One of the most popular and oldest bookmakers on the internet, but far too many players complaints ranging from slow pays to regrading of bets to plain incompetence.
English Sports Betting and SSP International - It is very hard to say which one of these two operations has the longest and largest history of no pays. They are total scams and menaces to the industry.
Costa Rica - The impact of a rapidly growing online betting industry has been profound on the economy of this Central American country. Several reputable online bookmakers are based in Costa Rica and some of them are world-scale operations. However, nothing has been done in this country to legitimate the online betting industry, to establish formal licensing standards or to introduce a board of regulators to deal with bad operations. Hundreds of operations operating from Costa Rica are nothing more than "accidents just waiting to happen."
U.S.A. - Whereas – land-based gambling is undergoing a great boom, with most states introducing Indian native casinos or legalized casino-style and lottery games, the U.S. administration is campaigning to shut down the online gambling industry. They are pressuring businesses with heavy-hand approaches and American companies which provide services to offshore online betting sites. They are banning the use of credit cards to place bets and prosecuting those who publish advertising for offshore gambling.
European States monopolies - They pursue aggressive marketing strategies designed to stimulate demand for gambling products. At the same time, they restrict access, for their citizens, to online foreign-based betting services, justifying their restrictions on the grounds of public interest concerns, without proving that their bans comply with EU law.
Russian hackers / extortionists - Earlier in the year a UK's law enforcement agency, which investigates computer crimes, has cracked down a major criminal group responsible to have launched a denial of service attacks against bookmakers' sites that refused to pay protection money. Notwithstanding these attacks have recently resurfaced and nearly every betting site on the Internet has suffered from at least one assault. This forces the websites offline for long times and caused endless worries to punters worldwide.
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