Fair Gaming Advocate’s latest report shows that disputes per accredited operator remain impressively low.

The independent player protection and standards body eCOGRA has released its latest report on remote gambling disputes handled by the organisation’s Fair Gaming Advocate, showing remarkably low levels of player disputes at online gambling sites (Dispute Statistics) bearing the eCOGRA Safe and Fair seal of accreditation.

Online gambling sites bearing the seal are the subject to constant monitoring and annual inspections and reviews by the London-based non-profit organisation, now in its seventh year of operations. One of the requirements for accreditation is an operator’s commitment to work with eCOGRA in the event of player disputes.

Fair Gaming Advocate Tex Rees reports that over the first half of 2010 there were a total of 376 complaints submitted to eCOGRA, 33 of which were at non-accredited operations over which eCOGRA has no influence, and therefore cannot mediate. A further 56 of the complaints were declared invalid due to insufficient detail, irrelevance, abuse or anonymous origin.

The remaining 287 disputes – 76 percent of the total received – were resolved by the Fair Gaming Advocate normally within 48 hours, with 47 percent settled in favour of the player.

“These numbers are similar, and in fact compare favourably with last year’s numbers, despite the fact that eCOGRA now has 11 more accredited venues than last year,” Rees reports. “We have actually seen a decrease in dispute mediation requests.

“We can attribute a portion of this drop in disputes to the fact that we have now been working with many of the Seal operations for several years and as a consequence a number of policies and procedures have been developed that translate to less cause for disputes. Our operators are also better equipped and motivated to deal with disputes at the operator level, which results in eCOGRA receiving fewer complaints.”

Rees detailed Cash-in (43 percent), Bonus issues (21 percent) and Locked Accounts (21 percent) as the principal causes for dispute, with the number of cash-in complaints easing from last year’s 51 percent.

“We dealt with an average of 11.03 disputes a week in the first half of 2010,” Rees revealed, adding that this represented an average dispute rate per Seal operation per month of 0.34 disputes – slightly lower than last year’s 0.37 disputes.

“This level of performance is satisfactory and well within the standards we have set for our operators,” she commented. “Viewed against the very high number of transactions these well established, tier one online gambling venues experience on a daily basis, the number of disputes continues to be remarkably low.”

Coral, the sports betting brand of Gala Coral Group, has joined forces with online betting and gaming software specialist, Geneity, as part of a multi-million pound investment to further enhance customer experience across its retail, online and telebetting channels.

Geneity’s cutting-edge ‘GenBet’ sportsbetting platform has successfully been integrated into Coral’s existing account management system allowing its customers the possibility to use a single account, across online, mobile, retail and telebet channels. GenBet’s ‘single point of data receipt’ allows Coral to offer consistent betting opportunities across all channels so customers can use whichever channel they prefer for each sport or event, making their Coral experience a seamless and enjoyable one.

Geneity’s software also powers Coral’s recently relaunched website, which now features enhanced Live Betting functionality allowing the bookmaker to manage live events more efficiently while offering customers both a richer experience and more in-play betting options. Unique personalisation of preferred markets is an additional key feature.

Damian Cope, Chief Information Officer of Gala Coral Group, said: "Our objective was to replace our previous system with a solution that provided our customers with a first class, multi-channel, sports betting product. We also needed to ensure that the new product provided the necessary flexibility to allow Gala Coral’s expert internal odds compilers and trading team to rapidly react to events and create new betting opportunities across our 1,600 betting shops, via telebetting and online/mobile. Working closely with the hugely experienced team from Geneity we succeeded in creating a solution that was right for both our customers and our employees alike."

He added: "We have already received significant positive feedback from our customers regarding the specific enhancements that are now being offered on Coral.co.uk thanks to the new GenBet Platform. We’re looking forward to working closer with Geneity in the future on further enhancing the betting experience of our customers."

Will Slater, Managing Director of Geneity said: "We’re proud Coral chose GenBet as the basis for their next generation multi-channel betting platform. The success of the project was made possible by close collaboration and making use of the significant expertise residing in both companies, we look forward to the continued growth of this relationship and the ongoing development of the GenBet platform"

Live dealer provider Evolution Gaming, which has offices in London, Malta and Stockholm and high tech Internet video-streaming studio facilities in Latvia, has become one of the first in its sector to achieve the high standards required for the eCOGRA Certified Live Dealer Seal.

The company is an acknowledged leader in its sector, and counts many major European Internet gambling operators among its clients, including 888, Bet-At-Home, Expekt, Gala Coral Group, Ladbrokes, PaddyPower, Party Gaming and Unibet.

Explaining the significance of the Certified Live Dealer Seal, eCOGRA CEO Andrew Beveridge said this week that the relevant eGAP or international best practice standards required had been specifically designed for the distinct nature of live dealer operations, in which live games are streamed over the Internet in real time from casino studio environments managed by pitbosses and staffed by croupiers.

"The genre differs from the more common and purely software-powered online casino concept in that it features live staff using real gambling devices and tables," said Beveridge. "This requires a very specific set of operating standards and requirements to ensure absolutely fair, safe and independent gaming in which both hardware and software systems are reviewed.

"Along with our usual tests for problem gambling and dispute facilities, we also look at anti-money laundering systems, staff training, operator probity, player information security, staff access to sensitive areas, the retention of video recordings of all sessions, collusion controls and overall game statistical performance on the roulette, baccarat and blackjack games offered."

Chartered Accountant Gareth Muirhead, who spent several days in Riga, Latvia conducting the review, said that his compliance plan had included the examination of both return-to-player and RNG elements, and ensuring that eCOGRA’s Total Gaming Transaction Review system was securely in place, continuously monitoring all gaming activity.

"Evolution Gaming operates a very tight ship, and the cooperation of chief operating officer Svante Liljevall and the technical and operational staff in Riga was outstanding," Muirhead wrote in his report to the Independent Directors controlling the issue of eCOGRA seals.

Congratulating the management and staff in Riga on achieving the eCOGRA accreditation, Evolution Gaming chief executive officer Jens von Bahr said: "As a company we have always tried to lead rather than follow, and I am delighted that you have been successful in satisfying a tough but very practical set of international best practice standards.

"This can only boost our confidence in the commercial arena, knowing we are among the first to successfully put our technology, systems and people to this type of rigorous test."

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