Comments on: Bookmaker Mergers – How Will They Affect Matched Betting?

By: Norman Freegard

Norman Freegard — Sun, 06 May 2018 20:31:33 +0000

Bookmakers want it all their own way

They are happy to bleed mug punters dry with their slot machines with no guilt at all

By contrast smart punters are banned if the bookie discovers them

It should be a level playing field, if bookies are happy to destroy peoples lives by not

banning mug punters they should not be allowed to ban smart punters

I believe that if we could raise 100,000 signatures the government may take notice

By: Mike Cruickshank

Mike Cruickshank — Sun, 06 May 2018 08:50:24 +0000

In reply to Ian.

Ladbrokes & Coral do have a lot of similar offers such as the 1 free spin per goal on Saturdays Premier League games and bet £20 on the football for a £5 virtual sports free bet.

The reason bookies don’t like our sort is because we are hammering their promotions & best odds which they lose money on. They want the sort of customer that isn’t interested in taking value as they WILL lose money over the long term.

By: Ian

Ian — Sat, 05 May 2018 20:29:49 +0000

So far even after merger I’m not seeing that coral and ladbrokes are acting as one. I’m restricted on one and not the other and their odds are not always the same. If you read the t and c’s of some bookies they do say they can share your data and some even say that links from sites such as yours will get you banned (look at Bookee’s they don’t like you it seems). No bookie seems to want people with brains. Betting to win is not the problem it’s betting not to lose or ‘investing’ to get a certain return they don’t like. One even banned me although I never had a winner with them which makes no sense but their reply made it clear they share information about customers with each other.

By: Mike Cruickshank

Mike Cruickshank — Sat, 05 May 2018 18:24:44 +0000

In reply to Gerry. I don't really think using a different email or username makes any difference. They can still track you by your name, DOB, address & payment details. Using a separate email is way too much hassle. However you could use a different username is you use last pass to save & remember them all.

By: Gerry

Gerry — Sat, 05 May 2018 17:03:06 +0000

Do you think there is value in using a different username for each bookie? Or, going further, using a different email address? You can buy & host a domain name for pennies and set up multiple email aliases so you could easily use a different one for each bookie. I know they could still other personal data such as postcode, credit card etc to identify a common account across different bookies, must might be worth considering.

By: S Massey

S Massey — Sat, 05 May 2018 16:08:03 +0000

Re the merging of bookies, I thought that was what the Competition and Markets Authority was there for, to prevent huge entities forming and stifling competition, acquiring an unfair market share and generally having a disproportionate influence on their industry sector. Rupert Murdoch has been forced to take action (he offered to sell Sky News) to satisfy the media regulator so I don’t see why the same shouldn’t apply to bookies.

Although it could be argued that media organisations, due to their ability to influence public opinion, are a special case, I assume the same antitrust rules apply to all large businesses, regardless of the sphere they operate in.

As you know, the gambling regulator has shown its teeth, sort of, by forcing online casinos to separate bonuses from deposits and may take further steps to combat unfair practices, hence it seems odd that this is happening yet bookies are being allowed to form massive conglomerates with the aforementioned negative impact on punters.

By: Mike Cruickshank

Mike Cruickshank — Sat, 05 May 2018 10:54:54 +0000

In reply to S Davies.

I’ve written about that already here https://mikecruickshank.com/does-matched-betting-still-work/ – scroll down to recent matched betting changes.

Best thing to do it make hay whilst the sun shines. Yes the offers do get a bit worse each year but that’s always been the case. There is still plenty of value to be bagged for now!

By: S Davies

S Davies — Sat, 05 May 2018 08:04:07 +0000

Great post, Mike. I think there will be fewer offers from these merger sites, but hopefully we’ll still see plenty of new sites cropping up and enticing us with offers and refunds.

Perhaps our monthly matched betting profits will decrease over the coming years? We’ll see.