SBR review: BetEd

EasyStreet targeting former BetJamaica, Greek, BetEd, VIP customers

EasyStreet (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
 | Read more

Costa Rican scammers look to profit from industry shakeup

Sportsbook 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

BetEd sportsbook bailout watch - day 19

BetEd 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?
 | Read more

Highly rated sportsbook offers to cover BetEd balances in full

On 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
 | Read more

BetEd sportsbook players lose their account balances

Letters 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

BetEd Sportsbook out of business

BREAKING NEWS UPDATE - SBR TV's Judie Russell is on location outside BetEd headquarters. 

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd downgraded from C+ to C

Bookmaker statement on domain change

Bookmaker (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.

[quote]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.[/quote]

BetEd voids two casino players winnings

Two 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.

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

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd downgraded from B- to C+

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:

[quote] 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.[/quote]
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  | Read more

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: [quote]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.[/quote] 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.

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd upgraded from C+ to B-

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.

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.
 | Read more

BetEd Sportsbook refuses to pay player winnings due to eCheck policy

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

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd downgraded from B- to C+

BetEd player makes $6,931 mistake

BetEd (SBR rating B-) player makes $6,931 mistake
The 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. [quote]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.[/quote]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

Fiestabet enters the SBR rating guide at B-

BetEd (SBR rating B-) changes teaser rules after SBR reader complaint

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd raised from C+ to B-

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd <a class=ab href="http://www.sportsbookreview.com/sbr/beted">BetEd</a>&nbsp;upgraded from C to C+

BetEd to pay player $1674

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.

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.

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.

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd GrandSlam&nbsp;- SBR initiates coverage at C+, BetEd upgraded from C- to C

Rating Change: BetEd

BetEd BetEd&nbsp;- SBR initiates coverage at C-