8/3/2011 12:25 PM
EasyStreet targeting former BetJamaica, Greek, BETED, VIP customersEasyStreet (SBR rating D) is sending promo emails to players offering a 35% cash signup bonus. While the email is titled "Attention all Greek and BetJamaica Clients", the opening lines also address former
BETED, Nine.com and VIP Sports players. EasyStreet's promo mailer states that the sportsbook has no intent of leaving the US market.
Prior to each football season, all online sportsbooks begin to pump up their marketing and bonuses in an attempt to retain or reel in customer business for the coming pigskin year. Players are advised to avoid lowly rated sportsbooks with histories of unfairly dealing with players. In addition to the already established sportsbooks, many fly-by night scam attempts are made by rogue operators in possession of industry mailing lists. While
EasyStreet Sports is not designated as a
blacklisted sportsbook, its poor rating is largely attributed to the
theft of $46,000 from a winning casino player accused of robot play. |
EasyStreet spams former sportsbook players
6/26/2011 01:29 PM
Costa Rican scammers look to profit from industry shakeupSportsbook Review has learned that at least two readers received phone calls demanding payment from alleged Costa Rican attorneys. The scammers attempted to piggyback off the recent
BETED closure, claiming that the players had to pay a penalty imposed by the CR government for depositing into the sportsbook. A measley $787 was requested from one player. The scammers threatened that if payment was not received, the players information would be made available to United States authorities.
It is not uncommon for mailing lists to be sold by rogue sportsbook employees, or for an employee gone bad to pocket customer data to setup a scam. Players are urged not to engage in any transactions with third-parties that claim they are attorneys or Costa Rican authorities - these are scams.
The only relevant federal law with respect to online gambling is the UIGEA bill passed in 2006, which makes it illegal for banks to knowingly process online gambling transactions. A player funding or making bets with a sportsbook is not covered in this bill. Players with any concerns over the legality or tax requirements of online wagering should seek legal council. |
Sportsbook player targeted by CR scammer
6/8/2011 01:17 PM
BETED sportsbook bailout watch - day 19BETED players funds have been up in the air since May 25th, 2011.
BETED Sportsbook had its domain seized by US authorities in connection to a federal indictment for money laundering and violating portions of the UIGEA law passed in 2006. |
BETED sportsbook bailout?
6/1/2011 02:14 PM
Highly rated sportsbook offers to cover BETED balances in fullOn May 25th, 2011, Sportsbook Review reported that
BETED Sportsbook closed its doors after losing its domain following charges of money laundering and violating US banking laws. SBR is monitoring a potential
BETED Sportsbok bailout. |
BETED Sportsbook report
5/28/2011 08:34 AM
BETED sportsbook players lose their account balancesLetters from
BETED players who lost their account balances when the sportsbook went off-line continue to hit the SBR mailbox.
BETED was a small, recreational sportsbook that had a good financial track record.
BETED had a controversial past however due to "gotcha" rule enforcements in select account disputes.
BETED reportedly had the largest involvement with a bogus processing company setup by US authorities to entrap online sportsbooks.
BETED allegedly had a number of bank accounts frozen which severed their ability to make payments.
BETED has not responded to SBR inquiries or been able to document the amount of funds withhold, and has to date not written their customer base with an explanation for why sufficient funds were not in reserve in the case of a doomsday scenario.
The other online sportsbooks named in the federal indicment on March 23rd continue to operate as normal under new domains. The US continues to go after .com sportsbook domain names, prompting leading industry sportsbooks to alternate to the .ag and .eu endings, which are presumably beyond the US grasp. |
BETED forum discussion
5/25/2011 11:24 AM
BETED Sportsbook out of businessBREAKING NEWS UPDATE - SBR TV's Judie Russell is on location outside
BETED headquarters.
Sources tell SBR that BETED Sportsbook has physically moved its
hardware out of its office. Management is unreachable and players have
not received any response to questions about their funds.
On May 23rd, SBR reported on
sportsbook domain seizures which effected seven gambling websites.
BETED reportedly had the largest involvement with a bogus processing company setup by US authorities.
5/24/2011 01:17 PM
BETED downgraded from C+ to C
5/23/2011 06:03 PM
Bookmaker statement on domain changeBookmaker (SBR rating A+) has changed their domain name to www.Bmaker.ag. The original domain (Bookmaker.com) was seized along with seven other gambling websites—including industry sportsbooks BetDsi.com, Betmaker, and
BETED.com—by US authorities pursuing banking violations.
Bookmaker has provided an official statement on the move which is posted below, as well as on
SBRforum.
Bookmaker: As you may already know, Bookmaker has temporarily lost the rights to the Bookmaker.com domain. We are confident that in time, it will be returned to us, until then, we have launched a new, temporary site:www.bmaker.ag.
Despite having lost the domain, none of the business operations have otherwise been affected. Player account balances and information are safe and secure. Effective immediately, players can log on to www.bmaker.ag.and it's business as usual.
You likely won't notice any other changes at all and will experience all the same features and benefits as our original site; just on a new address.
We sincerely apologize if you were affected by our interruption. As always, if you have any questions or concerns please call our customer service department at 1-866-9Bookmaker.
9/16/2010 07:56 AM
BETED voids two casino players winningsTwo
BETED (SBR rating C+) players have written to SBR that their casino winnings were confiscated. Player 1 had $4,000 removed from his account, player 2 had his balance of $1000 zeroed.
BETED stated that each player purposely went through a sequence of actions to benefit from a technical loophole that affected Blackjack games. SBR has asked
BETED to provide proof that the two unrelated players cheated, and to document the amount of winnings that were attributable to the alleged exploitation of the software.
On January 29th, SBR reported that
BETED voided $15,090 in casino winnings. In the January cases, neither player that had winnings confiscated disrupted, hacked into, or in any way altered the casino software. It could not be shown that either player understood they were playing corrupted games. The fault for the game failures rested entirely with
BETED and the programmers contracted to design its games.
BETED's handling of those cases and their arbitrary rule enforcement, such as the August 16th case where
$14,300 in winning were voided due to a mismatched name on a players Neteller account, prompted their downgrade to C+ in the SBR
Sportsbook Ratings guide.
9/3/2010 05:51 PM
TheSportsbook enters the SBR Rating Guide at C+TheSportsbook enters the SBR
sportsbook rating guide at C+. The book is the newest member to the
Great Bet Gaming Systems platform, which also powers and shares ownership with
BETED (SBR rating C+).
TheSportsbook tells SBR that Great Bet Gaming is supplying a full turnkey solution that includes processing, player and odds management, as well as customer support. TheSportsbook states that it intends to be player-friendly and give bettors the benefit of the doubt with disputes however, with
BETED as decision maker behind player management, these goals may be overly ambitious. |
BETED voids winnings
8/17/2010 11:59 PM
BETED downgraded from B- to C+
8/16/2010 02:05 PM
BETED voids $14,300 in winnings in deposit identity case
BETED (SBR rating B-) voids $14,300 in player winnings. On April 27th, a player opened an account with
BETED. He made two deposits totaling $2,700 using a friend's Neteller account. His friend does not have a
BETED account and gave consent for the deposits. After a few weeks of play, the player successfully withdrew $3,000. On May 24th the account balance was up $14,300 (total balance $17,000).
BETED became aware that the name registered to the account was not the same as that on the Neteller account, and required proof of ID. The player sent both his and his friend's ID.
BETED then cited the following rule and voided the account balance:
All information provided by a player must be accurate and verifiable. If you have provided false information or are unable or unwilling to provide documentation to confirm your information, your account may be terminated and all activity within the account considered invalid.
BETED asserts that the player committed fraud due to the name on his account not matching the Neteller account used.
BETED does not claim that either person had an account previously or that it faced any fraud risk by accepting the deposits. |
Full BETED report
1/29/2010 07:52 AM
BETED voids $15,090 in casino winnings citing software malfunctions
BETED (SBR rating B-) has voided $15,090 in casino winnings for two players citing software malfunction. The first player began playing Baccarat with $20, running his balance up to $10,068. His winnings were voided, and he was given $220 in credits for his play leading to
BETED finding the alleged error.
BETED explains that there was a programming mistake made during a game update in the last month.
BETED: When both sides were bet, the banker side was dealt twice in the initial draw. This leads to a lower average banker total on the initial draw, as only the first two cards are used, in ascending order of their value. This resulted in a higher player-side win rate in this situation. If the customer bet both sides, and bet a higher amount on player side, he would win at a much higher rate than standard house odds.
Player #2 took $50 into slot game Mystic Number. He increased his balance to $5022 before his winnings were voided.
BETED has stated that the expected odds of each slot symbol is weighted with a certain value, and in the case of Mystic number there was a programming error which prompted
BETED to remove the game from its casino.
In both of these cases, the software operated as it was programmed. Neither player hacked into the software or did anything to change its operation. The fault for the game failure lies entirely with
BETED and the programmers contracted to design its games. Online casinos are obligated to ensure its game operate correctly before offering them to the public. SBR is asking that
BETED reconsider its decision and pay the players.
10/27/2009 07:45 PM
BETED upgraded from C+ to B-
6/30/2009 06:04 PM
BETED back online; FiestaBet still off-line. No reason was given by
BETED as to their phone downtime, but the website is back online after experiencing server and ISP issues.
FiestaBet (SBR Rating C-), which shares resources with
BETED, continues to be offline.
6/29/2009 10:56 AM
Server issues result in BETED (SBR C+) off-line for second day.BETED's phone lines are functional but callers are sent to voice mail after a brief hold time.
BETED.com site message says the book expect "to be online shortly."
BETED management states there is an issue with its main Internet Service Provider, as well as well hosting facilities.
FiestaBet (SBR Rating C-) which shares resources with
BETED is also offline.
2/8/2009 12:15 AM
On
1/23/2009 SBR reported that a
BETED (SBR rating C+) player's winnings were removed from his account due to a deposit rule stating that the eCheck deposit must come from a checking account in the player's name. The player deposited using a checking account belonging to his father, who authorized the transaction. The policy is not unusual but failing to prevent the deposit from being processed is.
BETED collected the deposit and cited the rule only after a winning run of nearly $7,000. In last month's report SBR asked if players had deposited in this matter, lost their funds, and not received a refund. One player claims this was the case years earlier, despite the rule being present on the website. Earliest archived rules pages show it was in print in late 2005.
BETED management also confirmed that the player's funds were at risk since the sportsbook does not audit deposits that are lost. SBR's position is that
BETED should pay the player due to the fact that his funds were in play without the possibility of a return on his investment.
BETED has refused to pay the player. SBR remains in communication with
BETED on the matter as well as other lesser complaints.
BETED was downgraded from B- to C+ on February 6th. |
Dispute details and discussion
2/6/2009 05:52 PM
BETED downgraded from B- to C+
1/23/2009 10:22 PM
BETED (SBR rating B-) player makes $6,931 mistakeThe player made an eCheck deposit for $50 using a bank account owned by his father, who he lives with. In two weeks time the player turned the deposit into a balance of $6,931. After requesting a withdrawal for his winnings,
BETED reviewed the account and found the source of the deposit to be his father's checking account.
I looked at my account today and they have completely zeroed out all of my winnings, I went from having over $6900 and now I HAVE A $0 balance!!!! Their accounts mngr emailed me stating that my transactions were not valid and violated their terms and conditions. He stated that my email was invalid, which it's not, it's just not my primary email address. He also wrote, Per these clear and serious violations, your account has been closed and the deposit refunded to the actual bank account holder. Now I try to log in, and my account doesn't even exist!!!!!!! I earned that money, or won that money fair and square and if they would take the time to cooperate with me, and speak with myself and my parents, they would know that everything was authorized.
The player points out that the $50 eCheck deposit was accepted and eligible to be lost. Unlike eChecks, credit card purchases are normally declined if the name on the card is not identical to the name on the user account.
BETED cites rule 14 which states "For security purposes, your bank account information must match the information supplied during your initial registration." If any players have made a deposit with a third party checking account,
before subsequently losing their funds, they should be sure to contact
BETED
for a refund. Players are reminded to read all rules carefully before depositing with a sportsbook. |
Player discussion
3/24/2008 09:37 PM
Corrected Report 3/25/2008 5:22:13 PM: Fiestabet enters the SBR rating guide at C. The sportsbook's website is in Spanish and is a turnkey sportsbook hosted by
BETED (SBR rating B-), located in Costa Rica. The operation uses
BETED's proprietary software called
ThrillX.
BETED and ThrillX Systems do not stand for FiestaBet player funds. |
Original FiestaBet Report
11/9/2007 04:45 PM
BETED (SBR rating B-) changes teaser rules after SBR reader complaint
BETED previously graded teasers involving three or more plays as a push if any of the teaser legs pushed (tied with the spread resulting in no action) with the other legs winning. If the teaser contained a push and a losing play, the bet would lose.
BETED revised its rules so that all teasers made up of three or more legs that contained a push would be recalculated as a teaser with one less leg. This conforms to the online industry and Las Vegas standard.
BETED also credited the player for a winning teaser despite the bet coming in under the old rule and containing a push.
8/30/2007 01:07 AM
BETED raised from C+ to B-
8/1/2007 05:51 PM
BETED upgraded from C to C+
10/19/2006 02:24 PM
BETED (SBR rating C) agrees to pay player $1674 after initially confiscating half of winnings. The sportsbook claims that the player "took a shot" at them by continuing to play soccer line moves despite repeatedly being warned not to do so.
BETED management agrees that the correct course of action should have been to remove the player without retroactively debiting his account.
BETED states that the player will be paid the remainder of his winnings today.
1/10/2006 01:24 AM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: BETED(SBR rating C) blames payout complaint on unresolved Moneybookers issue and says they will discontinue using this banking option. Management is offering the player payment through an alternate method free of charge. SBR to follow withdrawal with player and discuss email service complaints with
BETED management.
1/8/2006 11:52 PM
SBR Bill Dozer reports: Bettor files payout complaint against BETED (SBR rating C). The player was told on 12/22 that the book was "
experiencing some temporarily difficulties with our MoneyBookers account" and that Moneybookers would be available before the new year. The player complains that emails have since not been returned. SBR to contact
BETED on player’s behalf.
9/23/2005 04:38 PM
GrandSlam - SBR initiates coverage at C+,
BETED upgraded from C- to C
6/17/2005 02:48 PM
BETED - SBR initiates coverage at C-