Online Casino Bonuses
Cash back bonuses
Cash back bonuses are given following a player loss. A portion of the player's loss is returned, often as cash. For example, a casino might offer a 25% cash back bonus each week. Any player who had a loss over the course of the week, would receive 25% of his loss back. Any player who had a win over the course of the week would not receive a bonus. Cashback bonuses are rare.[1]
Casino lottery
A Casino lottery, like bonuses, is aimed at reducing the casino's house edge. Participation in a lottery is generally free, but prizes usually depend on the player's bet size while playing casino games. Casino lottery terms are simple, just like a regular lottery. The player needs to select a certain amount of numbers from a group of numbers. The online casino has a specific multiplier ratio for each amount of correctly guessed numbers. For each correctly guessed number the ratio is multiplied by the player's bet size. The resulting amount is transferred to the player as a bonus. Because a lottery reduces the casino's house edge equally for all games, the bet sizes are generally calculated for games that have the same house edge. The multiplier for correctly guessed numbers is determined depending on this house edge.[2]
Comp points
Comps are commonly available at land-based casinos, but also exist online. Comp points can usually be exchanged for cash, prizes, or other comps.[3] The amount of cash given per wager is usually very small and often varies with game selection. A casino might offer three comp points for each $10 wagered on slots and one comp point for each $10 wagered on blackjack. The casino might give $1 for each 100 comp points. This example is equivalent to returning 0.3% of wagers on slots and 0.1% of wagers on blackjack.
Bonus hunting
Bonus hunting (also known as bonus bagging or bonus whoring) is a type of advantage gambling where turning a profit from casino, sportsbook and poker room bonus situations is mathematically possible. For example, the house edge in blackjack is roughly 0.5%. In the example above, $5000 in wagering with a house edge of 0.5% will result in an expected loss of $25. Since the player received a $100 signup bonus, after subtracting the expected loss of $25, the player has an expected gain of $75.
Sports betting
By taking advantage of 'free' bet promotions, users can back the event, and then lay the event on a betting exchange, at similar or same odds, thus ensuring that their 'free' bet is not a bet at all, instead more like a financial trade. No matter the outcome, it is possible (by using a betting / arb calculator) to calculate both the possible outcomes before the sporting event has started. By inputting the odds, the bet calculator then tells you what amount to bet, to ensure that whether the bet wins or loses, the return is the same.
Poker
Many online poker sites offer incentives to players in the form of bonuses. Usually the bonuses are given after a certain number of raked hands are played. For example, a site may offer a player who deposits $100 a bonus of $50 once he plays 500 raked hands.
In addition, several online cardrooms have developed VIP programs to reward regular players. Poker rooms often offer additional bonuses for players who wish to top-up their accounts. These are known as reload bonuses.
Bonus abuse
A large portion of online casino disputes relate to bonuses.[4] Casinos may label players who win using bonuses as "bonus abusers." Both players and casinos may commit fraud. An example of player fraud is creating multiple accounts and using the accounts to claim a sign-up bonus several times. An example of casino fraud is changing terms of a bonus after a player has completed the wagering requirements, then requiring the player to meet the new bonus terms.
Notes
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
