Does anyone know who invented online casino bonuses?

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10-30-2021, 11:24 AM
turkeyostrich

Does anyone know who invented online casino bonuses?

Gambling for fun sorta runs in my family. My grandparents met in Vegas, and my dad has been playing poker online and with friends for as long as I can remember. I also find myself learning about Texas Hold’em, Caribbean Stud, and other poker games along with my dad. But, recently, I witnessed an interesting conversation between my dad and my grandpa over a family dinner.

Gramps was going on about how Vegas used to be all about glamour and prestige in the old days. He talked about how casinos today try to do more of everything, bigger and better, all for the sake of profits. He complained that everything nowadays was artificial and that he didn’t enjoy himself the last time he was there (shortly before COVID19).

My dad agreed, and suggested that he should try gambling online like he did. Long story short, they went into a full-on argument, but then they got to the subject of casino bonuses. Dad kept saying how nowadays bonuses offer more value for money, actual cash, free spins, and whatnot. On the other hand, gramps countered with the whole “all I ever needed was a complimentary drink and I could hit the slots all night long” argument.

That’s when it hit me: I had no idea when and how casino perks went from free drinks to sign up bonuses, welcome offers, cashbacks, reloads, and all that other stuff. That’s a pretty big jump. I researched online, but all I managed to find were articles like https://stardewvalleyinfo.com/guides...asino-bonuses/. Although useful, they still don’t explain the transformation.

Can anyone shed some light on this topic? Was it a person who created online bonuses that are different from the usual casino perks, or maybe a casino team? Does anyone know? I think this is a very interesting thing to discover, especially for a gambling enthusiast like me!
10-30-2021, 12:40 PM
MisterV

I cannot answer and I doubt that anyone here can (I could be wrong).

However, if you post your question at the latest casino bonuses forum I am certain someone can tell you.

see: https://lcb.org/onlinecasinobonusforum
10-30-2021, 06:09 PM
Advantageplay

Same way credit cards went from
A convenience to cash back. It’s all marketing incentives and one persons efforts to get a leg up on competition just like rakeback in poker. Bob stupek mastered it- research him for a good start in vegas
11-02-2021, 02:39 AM
AxelWolf

For this, you probably have to go back and research the first couple of casinos online such as Casino-on-net. There were companies that offered various different casino packages for about 7k I have a feeling it was someone working for them in the marketing department who suggested the bonus scheme and once it proved successful they suggested it to other people who were starting online casinos, it caught on and become the standard. The first 100% match up to $500 I ever noticed was at Winward casino 1998-2000. They also had Full pay Deuces Wild.
11-02-2021, 07:08 AM
tableplay

1 Attachment(s)

Quote:

Originally Posted by AxelWolf

For this, you probably have to go back and research the first couple of casinos online such as Casino-on-net. There were companies that offered various different casino packages for about 7k I have a feeling it was someone working for them in the marketing department who suggested the bonus scheme and once it proved successful they suggested it to other people who were starting online casinos, it caught on and become the standard. The first 100% match up to $500 I ever noticed was at Winward casino 1998-2000. They also had Full pay Deuces Wild.

Axel, recall that Winward used Parlay Entertainment software, so they actually had 104.8% deuces wild because the full house and the four of a kind returned 5 coins for a 1 coin bet, and the flush paid 3 coins for a 1 coin wager (Parlay thought that short paying the straight flush, wild royal flush and five of a kind would counteract this, but they didn't neuter the payback of those hands enough). Later, Parlay discovered the error because players were ass-raping casinos and bingo places that used this software (and casinos/bingos were complaining about it to Parlay I guess) and they changed it to the highly conventional 4-4-3 for the 4K-FH-FL, but didn't change the short pay on the higher hands noted above, so it went from super full pay to horrible. Of course Winward had a very bad reputation for non-payment as did Vic's Bingo which was owned by them. I think they owned a couple other sites too, but I forgot their names because it's been so many years now.
11-02-2021, 08:53 AM
AxelWolf

Quote:

Originally Posted by tableplay

Quote:

Originally Posted by AxelWolf

For this, you probably have to go back and research the first couple of casinos online such as Casino-on-net. There were companies that offered various different casino packages for about 7k I have a feeling it was someone working for them in the marketing department who suggested the bonus scheme and once it proved successful they suggested it to other people who were starting online casinos, it caught on and become the standard. The first 100% match up to $500 I ever noticed was at Winward casino 1998-2000. They also had Full pay Deuces Wild.

Axel, recall that Winward used Parlay Entertainment software, so they actually had 104.8% deuces wild because the full house and the four of a kind returned 5 coins for a 1 coin bet, and the flush paid 3 coins for a 1 coin wager (Parlay thought that short paying the straight flush, wild royal flush and five of a kind would counteract this, but they didn't neuter the payback of those hands enough). Later, Parlay discovered the error because players were ass-raping casinos and bingo places that used this software (and casinos/bingos were complaining about it to Parlay I guess) and they changed it to the highly conventional 4-4-3 for the 4K-FH-FL, but didn't change the short pay on the higher hands noted above, so it went from super full pay to horrible. Of course Winward had a very bad reputation for non-payment as did Vic's Bingo which was owned by them. I think they owned a couple of other sites too, but I forgot their names because it's been so many years now.

At that time, I had only played 1 or 2 online casinos prior, so my online experience was limited and I was skeptical.

I'm 100% confidant it was the 100.7 version of the game at Winward when I played, I don't remember the exact year, but it had to be the soon after they started up.

I absolutely crushed the game. I turned $500 into 10's of thousands in a short period of time playing short sessions here and there, usually after getting home from Vegas casinos over a month or so, It was like I couldn't lose when I played, I ran like God as if it was gaffed in my favor. I have no idea why I didn't make any intermittent cash-outs. I think it's possible someone told me they had received large cashouts. I may have not thought to ask if they were big winners or not.

Unfortunately, they also had a +EV blackjack game off the top. I dabbled with smaller bets. I was doing well playing small bets, so I figured it was legit. I ramped up to higher limits and I lost my ass. I believe it may have been gaffed on bigger bets. I remember that being one of the most emotional downswings I have ever had. I don't think I left my house for 2 days after that. Even though it was money I had won from Winward, there's no such thing as house money, it's my money. It wasn't just the fact that I lost so much back, it was the fact that I allowed myself to continue playing knowing there was a possibility I was being cheated. knowing there was a chance they wouldn't have paid me so much anyways helped soften the blow.

There have been other FPDW online I did well at. 5Dimes had FPWD and various other versions later.
11-02-2021, 09:28 AM
tableplay

Quote:

Originally Posted by AxelWolf

Quote:

Originally Posted by tableplay

Quote:

Originally Posted by AxelWolf

For this, you probably have to go back and research the first couple of casinos online such as Casino-on-net. There were companies that offered various different casino packages for about 7k I have a feeling it was someone working for them in the marketing department who suggested the bonus scheme and once it proved successful they suggested it to other people who were starting online casinos, it caught on and become the standard. The first 100% match up to $500 I ever noticed was at Winward casino 1998-2000. They also had Full pay Deuces Wild.

Axel, recall that Winward used Parlay Entertainment software, so they actually had 104.8% deuces wild because the full house and the four of a kind returned 5 coins for a 1 coin bet, and the flush paid 3 coins for a 1 coin wager (Parlay thought that short paying the straight flush, wild royal flush and five of a kind would counteract this, but they didn't neuter the payback of those hands enough). Later, Parlay discovered the error because players were ass-raping casinos and bingo places that used this software (and casinos/bingos were complaining about it to Parlay I guess) and they changed it to the highly conventional 4-4-3 for the 4K-FH-FL, but didn't change the short pay on the higher hands noted above, so it went from super full pay to horrible. Of course Winward had a very bad reputation for non-payment as did Vic's Bingo which was owned by them. I think they owned a couple of other sites too, but I forgot their names because it's been so many years now.

At that time, I had only played 1 or 2 online casinos prior, so my online experience was limited and I was skeptical.

I'm 100% confidant it was the 100.7 version of the game at Winward when I played I dont remember the exact year but it had to be the soon after they started up. I absolutely crushed the game. I turned $500 into 10's of thousands in a short period of time playing short sessions here and there, usually after getting home from Vegas casinos over a month or so, It was like I couldn't lose when I played, I ran like God as if it was gaffed in my favor. I have no idea why I didn't make any intermittent cash-outs. I think it's possible someone told me they had received large cash outs. I may have not thought to ask if they were big winners or not.

Unfortunately, they also had a +EV blackjack game I dabbled with smaller bets. I was doing well playing small bets, so I figured it was legit. I ramped up to higher limits and I lost my ass. I believe it may have been gaffed on bigger bets. I remember that being one of the most emotional downswings I have ever had. I don't think I left my house for 2 days after that. Even though it was money I had won from Winward, there's no such thing as house money, it's my money. It wasn't just the fact that I lost so much back, it was the fact that I allowed myself to continue playing knowing there was a possibility I was being cheated. knowing there was a chance they wouldn't have paid me so much anyways helped soften the blow.

It's neither here nor there, but I wish I could remember the name of Winward's sister casinos. There were a few of them. My take on the whole thing is that they would not have changed to the 4/4/3 DW if there were not some legit settings that were getting used for this software that players were killing (of course it's possible that they did this as camouflage to hide the fact that it was gaffed). As you wrote, at higher levels various games may have been gaffed more frequently than the lower denoms/bet sizes. So I agree with you that it could be gaffed if the casino wished to activate it.
There was also a demo mode of the software and that was probably gaffed in the players favor. I played at an online casino with the 5/5/3 version and I think they had it in demo mode for the real wagering by mistake because I kept getting 4 ducks and wild royals way more than I should and made a lot of money. Eventually the Winward group was blacklisted by Casinomeister ("Rogue Casinos"); I had only played the free chip offers there, and the other sister sites except Vic's Bingo prior to the blacklisting IIRC. Vic's Bingo had a 500% deposit bonus and they allowed video poker to be played to meet the wagering requirements , not just bingo (you were allowed to play "side games" to meet the wagering requirements). So even if it was gaffed, it was not to the degree that you would lose your bonus and deposit. I think it was only a 10x rollover or something sick like that and there weren't terms and conditions restrictions on bet sizes (the software had restrictions, but they were quite large).
Another big mistake that was made at an online casino I played at was the Parlay Entertainment craps. Each roll would count towards meeting the wagering requirements where it should have been set such that each bet resolution (made point, etc.) would count towards the wagering requirements.
I'm sure you remember that Rival software initially had full pay deuces wild and people destroyed it at the casinos that were Rival powered, so they changed it to the 98.91% game you find nowadays.
Well those days are gone forever most likely but it was fun while they lasted.
11-02-2021, 10:28 AM
The Boz

Remember Golden Palace where they would pay boxers to display their website on their bodies during matches? I think that was in the mid to late 90’s.
11-02-2021, 02:03 PM
AxelWolf

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Boz

Remember Golden Palace where they would pay boxers to display their website on their bodies during matches? I think that was in the mid to late 90’s.

Yes, I do remember that. They actually paid a few other non-public people to do the same type of thing including some housewife who had it done on her forehead.
They had some big bonuses but I avoided them since they had a bad reputation, perhaps a mistake on my part, I was overly cautious when it came to choosing what casinos I played online, that was definitely a mistake.
11-02-2021, 02:52 PM
jdaewoo

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Boz

Remember Golden Palace where they would pay boxers to display their website on their bodies during matches? I think that was in the mid to late 90’s.

They were the originators of the sticky bonus if I recall. Wagering requirements were skyrocketing due to the metric shittons of bonus whores betting $5 a hand at BJ to clear bonuses. Sticky bonuses were a goldmine for anyone who wasn't a variance pussy since the wagering was way lower. Fast to clear, reloads flowed like wine, and the casinos thought it didn't cost them anything.