#1 RATINGS and REVIEWS of SPORTS BOOKS thread. Poster input appreciated.

[Rating Place]

News: DirectBet grades both Gold Medal winners in a dead heat as a win. DirectBet has added rules clarifying dead heats.

The Dead Heat Rule applies to bets where there are more winners than expected, as was in this case (there were 2 gold medal winners).
 
As a result, your payout was twice as much as it should have been.
 
However, since it wasn't clear from our rules that we are following the Dead Heat Rule on the Winter Olympics, the extra winnings are yours to keep.
 
The reason why I'm sending you this e-mail is to notify you that we are following this standard rule on all sports so that there would be no misunderstanding in future bets.
 
We have updated the rules page. You can read more about it here : http://www.directbet.eu/Rules.cshtml

[evo34]

Peep, What 2 or 3 books would you say are the best when looking strictly at safety of funds?

[Rating Place]

Peep, What 2 or 3 books would you say are the best when looking strictly at safety of funds?

Not in order, just top 3.

Anonibet
SBOBitcoin
BitBook

[info@anonibet.com]

Peep, What 2 or 3 books would you say are the best when looking strictly at safety of funds?

Not in order, just top 3.

Anonibet
SBOBitcoin
BitBook

Hi,

As Anonibet we keep all our bitcoins in cold storage. We are fervent believers in Bitcoin and we do not exchange our Bitcoins to any currency. We did not exchange any of our Bitcoins in April 2013 when the Bitcoin price skyrocketed at 266 USD or recently at 1260 USD. We have other Bitcoin investments (sorry, company policy I can not name them) and we believe Bitcoin will hit 10.000 USD in the coming 2-3 years.

In terms of security, in order to protect our customers we have recently introduce Google Authenticator and email verification code for withdraws.

Regards,
Michael

[Cloudbet]

Hi folks,

Great initivate by Peeps Place. Please let us know if you have any questions or if there is anything we can help with.

At Cloudbet, we too store all player funds in cold storage, and do not ever take any currency risk.

Please feel free to contact us if we can be of any assistance.

Cheers,
Cloudbet

[DirectBet]

Peep, What 2 or 3 books would you say are the best when looking strictly at safety of funds?

For your Bitcoins to be safe in a sportsbook account, the sportsbook needs to store all user-owned Bitcoins (deposits and winnings) in a separate account from the account used to pay for their daily operations, in a similar way that Poker Stars is doing for its Poker players. In addition, it needs to make sure that there is always more than enough funds in the segregated account to cover all user balances in the event that everyone will want to withdrawal their entire balances at the same time.

Furthermore, they need to prove that they control the Bitcoins in the segregated account, and allow an independent 3rd party to audit it at any time.

Finally, they need to demonstrate that access to the cold storage of Bitcoins is not limited to one or two persons, otherwise, in the unfortunate event that something terrible happens to them, the Bitcoins will be gone. For this reason, the sportsbooks need to provide a 3rd independent and trusted escrow service with an access to the segregated Bitcoins that are used to cover user balances, and an authorization to distribute them to their owners in unfortunate circumstances.

To the best of my knowledge, none of the Bitcoin sportsbooks follow this practice or a similar one, and therefore your Bitcoins are not safe in any of them.

Stating that they have the Bitcoins in a cold storage is meaningless. They need to prove it, they need to allow an independent 3rd party to audit it at any time, and they need to show how you will get your Bitcoins in the unfortunate event that the people in control of it die.

Recently, there have been many Bitcoin sportsbooks that disappeared with all user balances. Unfortunately, as history has learned us, this will continue as long as there is no true protection to the users, similar to the one provided by Poker Stars in the poker industry.

[waylon james]

Nice stuff guys. I agree with Direct Bet but doubt anyone is going to do a Poker Stars type of verification.  If a book consistently pays out quickly and often, that is good enough for me.

[evo34]

DirectBet, Are you saying that you have all these safeguards in place at your book?

[DirectBet]

DirectBet, Are you saying that you have all these safeguards in place at your book?

We took a different approach than other Bitcoin sportbooks.

We don't take deposits and park your Bitcoins on our website. Instead, you send your bet to a designated Bitcoin address and your winnings are sent back directly to your Bitcoin wallet, automatically, within minutes after the result is determined.

[Rating Place]

Is anyone having any current problems in getting paid?

[Gogo ppp]

What criteria did you use in making these evaluations?

Some of these books are only a few months old.

Hopefully you evaluated based on better criteria than "They gave me a freeplay".

[CoinBet]

What criteria did you use in making these evaluations?

Some of these books are only a few months old.

Hopefully you evaluated based on better criteria than "They gave me a freeplay".

I can tell you that he not only did NOT ever request any free plays or credits, but he invested his own funds, and a significant amount, in playing our sportsbook.

[Rating Place]

What criteria did you use in making these evaluations?

Some of these books are only a few months old.

Hopefully you evaluated based on better criteria than "They gave me a freeplay".

How the books will be rated and weighted emphasis in order.

1. A heavy emphasis will be placed on speed of payments. Several books immediately pay out after the game has been graded. Those are the books with the least risk involved. Sweat the game, not the payout is not just a slogan. It should be a way of life for these bitcoin books. Bitcoin books have a much higher standard involved than post-up books because there are no fees involved and no need for a third party processor.

2. Grading time. Most postup books have automated grading; the winners and losers are determined minutes after the game is over. Bitcoin books that do this show that they have invested in their software. Books that rely on an individual to grade all games tend to have a high degree of risk.

3. Books not requiring personal information including an email address will be graded higher. Anonymity is a plus.

4. Date opened if less than 2 years. Bitcoin has just taken off in the past year, so it's unfair for one to compare a top bitcoin book with a post-up book like Pinnacle. But it is still important that a book shows itself to not be a flash in the pan. The longer a period of time a book has been open, the better its track record.

5. Limits. In general, the higher the limits, the deeper the bankroll of the sportsbook. If a bitcoin book takes high limits and pays out quickly, it shows its strength.

6. Sports and options offered. Uniqueness of lines and betting options is a positive.

7. Mobile betting. The ability to bet on the go can be important to some.

8. Live betting. The more, the better. Offering live betting isn't easy; the ones that do offer live betting lines tend to be stronger in general.

9. Customer service. The better the customer service, the more professional the book.

10. Interface. Ease of use is important.

11. Whether or not the book requires a deposit account. Depositing into a bitcoin book is a much bigger risk to the bettor, especially since these books have not built up a strong history that shows their staying ability.

[Rating Place]

What criteria did you use in making these evaluations?

Some of these books are only a few months old.

Hopefully you evaluated based on better criteria than "They gave me a freeplay".

I can tell you that he not only did NOT ever request any free plays or credits, but he invested his own funds, and a significant amount, in playing our sportsbook.

Your payments have become very fast. Coinbet is also progressing at a fast rate as far as software/interface.

[Rating Place]

Forum input plays a major role in determining each point.

[Gogo ppp]

SBObitcoin opens at "A"

SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall. SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc., and are licensed and regulated by the Government of the Philippines under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

There have been no reports of payout problems with SBObitcoin.

"SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall."

How did you confirm the "six months" and especially the "seven years overall"?
_______________________________________________________________________________


"SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc."

What is the Ole Group Philippines Inc. and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ________

"and regulated by the Government of the Philippines..."

Did you confirm this?

And if true, does the Government regulation mean anything realisitically? We all know how meaningless "Government regulation" of all offshore sportsbooks has been thus far, regardless of location.
_______________________________________________________________________________ __


" under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation."

What is  First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation, and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ___________

Hopefully you investigated further than simply reprinting their own pr.

[Rating Place]

SBObitcoin opens at "A"

SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall. SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc., and are licensed and regulated by the Government of the Philippines under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

There have been no reports of payout problems with SBObitcoin.

"SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall."

How did you confirm the "six months" and especially the "seven years overall"?
_______________________________________________________________________________


"SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc."

What is the Ole Group Philippines Inc. and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ________

"and regulated by the Government of the Philippines..."

Did you confirm this?

And if true, does the Government regulation mean anything realisitically? We all know how meaningless "Government regulation" of all offshore sportsbooks has been thus far, regardless of location.
_______________________________________________________________________________ __


" under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation."

What is  First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation, and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ___________

Hopefully you investigated further than simply reprinting their own pr.

 I'd suggest you do your own research about the laws in jurisdictions outside of Costa Rica and where these books are located. Then look at the licenses that Pinnacle Sports and SBOBET hold. I'm very surprised that you have never heard of the First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

[Gogo ppp]

SBObitcoin opens at "A"

SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall. SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc., and are licensed and regulated by the Government of the Philippines under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

There have been no reports of payout problems with SBObitcoin.

"SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall."

How did you confirm the "six months" and especially the "seven years overall"?
_______________________________________________________________________________


"SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc."

What is the Ole Group Philippines Inc. and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ________

"and regulated by the Government of the Philippines..."

Did you confirm this?

And if true, does the Government regulation mean anything realisitically? We all know how meaningless "Government regulation" of all offshore sportsbooks has been thus far, regardless of location.
_______________________________________________________________________________ __


" under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation."

What is  First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation, and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ___________

Hopefully you investigated further than simply reprinting their own pr.

 I'd suggest you do your own research about the laws in jurisdictions outside of Costa Rica. Then look at the licenses that Pinnacle Sports and SBOBET hold. I'm very surprised that you have never heard of the First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

Thanks for the non-answer to some simple questions.

It's evident that you simply reprinted their own on-site pr without investigating any of it.

[CoinBet]

Your payments have become very fast. Coinbet is also progressing at a fast rate as far as software/interface.

We appreciate the kind words. We are working hard over here! Thanks for noticing

[Rating Place]

SBObitcoin opens at "A"

SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall. SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc., and are licensed and regulated by the Government of the Philippines under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

There have been no reports of payout problems with SBObitcoin.

"SBObitcoin has been in business for six months with bitcoin accounts and seven years overall."

How did you confirm the "six months" and especially the "seven years overall"?
_______________________________________________________________________________


"SBObitcoin states that they are one of the products of Ole Group Philippines Inc."

What is the Ole Group Philippines Inc. and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ________

"and regulated by the Government of the Philippines..."

Did you confirm this?

And if true, does the Government regulation mean anything realisitically? We all know how meaningless "Government regulation" of all offshore sportsbooks has been thus far, regardless of location.
_______________________________________________________________________________ __


" under First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation."

What is  First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation, and why does this give credibility?
_______________________________________________________________________________ ___________

Hopefully you investigated further than simply reprinting their own pr.

 I'd suggest you do your own research about the laws in jurisdictions outside of Costa Rica. Then look at the licenses that Pinnacle Sports and SBOBET hold. I'm very surprised that you have never heard of the First Cagayan Resort & Leisure Corporation.

Thanks for the non-answer to some simple questions.

It's evident that you simply reprinted their own on-site pr without investigating any of it.

You have made so many ill informed statements, I don't even know where to start. Ask a civilized question and I'll answer it but I'm not going to argue.