Meister Awards 2016

Best and Worst in Online Gambling for 2016

And as we enter a new year – it’s time to reflect on the past…

So here we go once again! Are you ready? It was an amazing year – just like years past – we have had some really fantastic experiences. Casinos are getting better – marvelously better. Actually, some casinos are doing some incredible amazing things via technology that not only gives players a fantastic playing experience but actually protects the player. Some of these operators have had their fingers on the pulse of this industry and know what players really want. That is the good side of the coin.

The bad side: 2016 has proven to be one of the most corrupt years in this industry’s history. So-called licensing jurisdictions have turned a blind eye to fraud and rogues. We have software pirates, craphole casinos, and casino employees that still threaten and abuse their clients. Woo hoo – an amazing year!

And Sheldon Adelson proved once again that greedy old people with money are assholes.

So – prepare yourself for the “only iGaming awards that matter.” Grab a beer or a hot cup of java, put on some chillin’ tunes, don your flack vests and Kevlars, and secure those chinstraps. You’re about to jump into the trenches of online gambling. Hoo-wah!

Drum roll please…

And the winners are…


Best Casino 2016

“Brilliant – innovative – and 100% focused on the needs of their players.”

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Like last year, Videoslots is this year’s winner. They did a bang-up job this year, and the fora is full of well-deserved praise. They are a top-scoring casino at Casinomeister, and it is really difficult to find any flaws in either their management, operations, product, or player philosophy. It’s clear that the staff of this casino is driven to please its players. For the past year, they have been doing a bang-up job.

What sets them apart from the competition is their innovation. Started a few years ago by people who understood the social aspect of online poker, they applied this to their casino – which is primarily focused on slots. Their website is amazing – it’s geared toward the novice as well as the experienced player. One can find specific games via their search function either by game type, name, or software provider.

Players have a number of functions at their fingertips – selecting deposit limits, loss limits, and time-out features. One can customize their account at a whim.

And then there is the Battle of Slots – a truly original and innovative tourney where people can enjoy competing against one another just like you do in poker.

The response in our forum is amazing – if and when problems arise, they are snuffed out quickly. In 2016, we had only one submitted PAB (formal complaint) that was resolved before we could even process it. Great going, guys and gals.

Another prime focus is the swiftness of their payouts – payouts are within minutes. You can check the payout times by visiting their Videoslots Review. At press time (January 22), their average payout time to web wallets was under 20 minutes. Their customer service is above par. Videoslots is simply the best past year.
They were the recipient of the Best Casino if 2015. Best New Casino 2014 award, and they have been consistent in their dedication to the online community – specifically their players and their marketing partners.
So let’s raise a toast to a job well done to everyone at Videoslots..

How it’s done: For the past sixteen years, Casinomeister has presented the “Best Online Casino” award for casinos that are deemed simply the best. The choice is made by observing casinos and their interactions with players, affiliates, and the gaming community in general. Input from the gaming community is a major contributor to the decision-making process. I put this decision more into the players’ hands by short-listing the top casinos and putting it up for a vote by our moderators and Casinomeister’s Casino Advisory Group – 30 of our most experienced and prolific forum members.

2015 proved to be one of the best yet. When casinos compete for the accolade of Best Casino, everyone is a winner.

This year’s shortlist:
32Red
Betat
Guts Casino
Trada Casino
Videoslots .

Historical Best Casino Awards:

Best Casino 2015 – Videoslots
Best Casino 2014 – Club World/Guts
Best Casino 2013 – 3Dice/32Red
Best Casino 2012 – 3Dice/32Red
Best Casino 2011 – 3Dice/32Red
Best Casino 2010 – 3Dice/32Red
Best Casino 2009- Club USA/32Red
Best Casino 2008 – Club USA/32Red
Best Casino 2007- 32Red
Best Casino 2006 – 32Red
Best Casino 2005 – 32Red
Best Casino 2004 – 32Red
Best Casino 2003 – 32Red
Best Casino 2002 – Intercasino
Best Casino 2001 – Kiwi Casino

Best Casino Group 2016

“A fantastic group of casinos”

bestcasinogroup2016

Gaming Innovation Group: This is one group that seriously has it together. These are the people behind Guts CasinoRizk, and Betspin – three highly regarded, high-scoring, and the epitome of what players deserve as an online casino group.

What makes this casino stand out is its ability to listen to what players want and implement these wishes. All three if their properties are responsive – and they listen. Last spring, they invited one of our players and myself for a tour of the GIG office, which included a Question and Answer session where we were able to pose a number of questions from our members of the forum.

It is apparent that the prime mover of this casino group is player satisfaction via solid management, fast payouts, and a proper sense of business ethics, which is sometimes hard to imagine in this industry. When this casino makes mistakes (which is rare), they take it on the chin – improve, and move on. Their top execs are always there with a listening ear.

Their brands:
Guts
Betspin
Rizk

Historical Best Group Awards:

Best Group 2015 – 32Red Plc
Best Group 2014 – 32Red Plc
Best Group 2013 – 32Red Plc/Club World Group
Best Group 2012 – Rank Interactive/Club World Group
Best Group 2011 – 32Red Plc/Club World Group
Best Group 2010 – 32Red Plc
Best Group 2009 – Club World Group
Best Group 2008 – Jackpot Factory
Best Group 2007 – Jackpot Factory
Best Group 2006 – Trident Entertainment Group
Best Group 2005 – Trident Entertainment Group
Best Group 2004 – Vegas Partner Group
Best Group 2003 – Fortune Lounge Group
Best Group 2002 – Trident Entertainment Group
Best Group 2001 – Sunny Group

Best New Casino 2016

Rizk Casino is the best new casino of 2016. They started with a bang and didn’t let up. Innovative, they tried to do whatever it took to achieve full player trust. In an unprecedented move, they held a contest where one lucky Casinomeister member was invited to their offices to have a tour of Gaming Innovation Group’s offices.

Their casino forum representative, Captain Rizk (not his real name by the way) held a presentation explaining the inner workings of an online casino. I was lucky enough to be invited along, and I subsequently published a write-up on the trip here: Rizk Casino office tour. In fact, just read that page, and you’ll understand what makes this casino awesome – and perhaps a contender for Best Casino of 2017. Ya, just never know.

Further – the operators of Rizk have their fingers on the pulse of the industry. They know exactly what players want, and they deliver. I don’t just mean promotions but the backend functionality of player accounts. Players can lock their winnings in so that they won’t be tempted to play them back while they are being processed. Their forum rep is totally clued up and sets the example on how a casino representative should be doing things.

Great job, guys and gals! Kudos all around.

Best New Casino Historical Awards

Best New Casino 2015 – Slotsmillion Casino
Best New Casino 2014 – VideoSlots Casino
Best New Casino 2013 – Guts Casino
Best New Casino 2012 – Redbet Casino
Best New Casino 2011 – Jackpot Party
Best New Casino 2010 – High Noon Casino
Best New Casino 2009 – All Star Slots
Best New Casino 2008 – Red Flush Casino
Best New Casino 2007 – 3Dice Casino
Best New Casino 2006 – Club USA Casino
Best New Casino 2005 – Vegas Splendido
Best New Casino 2004 – Maple Casino
Best New Casino 2003 – No Candidate – they all sucked
Best New Casino 2002 – Spin Palace

Best Customer Service Award 2016

bestcustomerservice2016

Trada Casino won it this year for its extraordinary awesomeness. They have been accredited for two years, and during these two years, we have had only one formal complaint – and this was a complaint where the player bets over the specified limit during bonus play. When we contacted them, they responded promptly with a clear presentation of the facts. Both Max and I were impressed – this characterizes organizational skills that are scarce in this industry.

What’s more, there are the consistent kudos that our members give these guys in the forum. It’s really encouraging to hear about how awesome this casino has really got it together – thanks to Rachel and her team.

“Thanks for the great support of Trada Casino for fast verification and cashout! Both verification and cashout was made less than a day.” XDRUUUNKX

“The team are super there, Rachel, the ‘Boss’ and the support staff are extremely helpful, down to earth and pleasant… rest assured, it is always good to play at places like Trada as you don’t become just another ‘player’ like some of the bigger places treat players these days.” Nate

“Can I just say how pleased I am with customer support at Trada Casino? I play at 12 different casinos, and my experiences are that a few of them just don’t care for the players.” jacko10

“Signed up today and talked a bit via Live Chat. Wow. They really seem to be on the spot. These are the fastest answers I have ever received via Live Chat. Approved my docs while I was in chat, and they have quite cool cashout terms.” hoff1985

“The live chat is very, very good….I’d probably say one of the better casinos around to be honest. Nice job, guys, on treating customers well.” lockinlove

“Trada are great. They pay very quickly, and live chat is extremely good. Helpful and knowledgeable. So, much better than the drones issuing cookie-cutter responses with no authority that you get elsewhere.” fun4allSo high-fives all around for the customer support team at Trada Casino!

Best Customer Service Historical Awards

Best Customer Service Award 2014 – 32Red
Best Customer Service Award 2013 – 32Red
Best Customer Service Award 2012 – 32Red
Best Customer Service Award 2011 – 3Dice
Best Customer Service Award 2010 – 3Dice
Best Customer Service Award 2009 – 3Dice
Best Customer Service Award 2008 – 3Dice
Best Customer Service Award 2007 – Club World

Best Casino Manager 2016

“The Man with the Plan for VideoSlots”

bestcasinomanager2016

Managing players is one of the toughest jobs in the online casino industry. Players are demanding, have high expectations, and can be ungrateful and extremely annoying (I’m having bad luck – give me some free spins, your games are rigged – give me my money back). It can be a thankless job – so here is where we choose the casino manager of the year. It’s our way of thanking someone who goes beyond the normal call of duty to care for his or her players.

Daniel from VideoSlots was awarded Casino Manager of the Year for his tireless effort to appease and please the players of VideoSlots. He is in our forum, posting 8 – 12 times a day, dealing with questions, and engaging with players (both active and pending) of VideoSlots.

The forum is chuck full of kudos and thanks to this guy. He is truly dedicated not only to our members but to his employers who are lucky to have a guy like this working this hard.

Casinomeister says give this guy a raise.

Great going Daniel!

 

Best Casino Manager Historical Awards:

Best Manager of 2015 – Karolina – Club World Casinos
Best Manager of 2014 – Karolina – Club World Casinos
Best Manager of 2013 – Ben Clems – Guts Casino
Best Manager of 2012 – Redbet Andy – RedBet
Best Manager of 2011 – Pat Harrison – 32Red
Best Manager of 2010 – Pat Harrison – 32Red
Best Manager of 2009 – Enzo – 3Dice
Best Manager of 2008 – Pat Harrison – 32Red
Best Manager of 2007 – Pat Harrison – 32Red
Best Manager of 2006 – Emily Hanson – iNetBet
Best Manager of 2005 – Emily Hanson – iNetBet

Best Player Experience 2016

“Truly magnificent player experiences at Rizk”

bestplayer2016

The difference between the Best Gaming Experience and the Best Player Experience is that the player experience is something that specifically happened. This year, we have two events that were made possible by Rizk Casino.

The first event was in April 2016 when Rizk Casino invited one of our lucky members to join them in Malta, tour their offices, and have a few lovely meals together. They invited Nikantw and his brother – who incidentally had never traveled abroad – to Malta, and put them up in a five-star hotel. I met them there and asked them if they had had the chance to visit the ruins in Gozo (or any other cool historical sites), and they were just satisfied with hanging out at the amazing hotel we were at. And it’s true, the hotel is marvelous – awesome spa and pool.

But this experience was not only these good times – making lifelong memories – but inviting a player to enter the casino offices to witness the day-to-day happenings and get a sense of how real online casinos function. The entire trip is covered here: Rizk Casino Visit…An online casino gem.

Coincidentally, during this time, another one of our members won a trip to Brazil.
Once of the most surprising things happened to amourgirl, a senior member of our forum and a Meister Member to boot. Here is what happened:

“About a year ago, I joined a new casino that was rated highly here. On joining up I automatically received a raffle ticket to a prize draw to win a Holiday to RIO for the 2016 Olympic games. This included flights, accommodation, and tickets to the Olympic games.

To be honest, I take prize draws with a pinch of salt; it wasn’t why I signed up, and I certainly never gave it a second thought after signing up. Imagine my surprise one cold day in January when I received a call from TIM at RIZK to inform me that I had won 1st prize. Yay, I thought…. Free spins. But no…. I was shocked, to say the least, and a little bit speechless to discover that the 1st prize was a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Olympic games in RIO De Janeiro, Brazil.

Together and for the next 7 months, Tim and his colleague Jussi kept me fully updated and informed on all aspects of the trip. As you can imagine, as time went on, the trip just seemed like a distant dream, but Tim & Jussi went out of their way to reassure me.

If I am honest, I don’t think I truly believed it until I sat on that plane on my way to Brazil.

This casino was true to its word. They hadn’t picked me because I had spent the most – or even lost the most, I was a brand new customer. They gave me what I can only call the holiday of a lifetime.

If you ever are reluctant to sign up with a casino because you are unsure of their intentions or how well you will be looked after, let me assure you, your money and your loyalty couldn’t be safer anywhere else than with RIZK casino .

You will receive nothing less than a truly dedicated, friendly, trustworthy, and rewarding service than the service you will receive from Rizk casino and their staff.”

Best Player Experience Historical Awards

Best Gaming Experience 2014 – Pat Royal Flush with $100 bet
Best Player Experience 2013 – Legalized online gambling in the US
Best Player Experience 2012 – 32Red

Best Gaming Experience 2016

“Once again – the gaming experience at Videoslots is amazing”

bestgaming2016

Videoslots won this award last year and continued to impress most everyone with their awesome dedication to the player experience. They are the recipients of the Best Gaming Experience Award 2016 as well!

Just a brief glance at their website shows that they are clued up on what a player wants – especially those players who are focused on video slot games. Navigating the site and finding specific games are a slothead’s dream. It’s simple to find games by software provider, type, or even popularity. They have over 1850 games from 44 providers to choose from.

Besides the intuitive site, they are focused on the well-being of their players. Players control more than most any other casino:

Set deposit limit:
You can set how much you can deposit during any chosen period. When your specified limit has been reached, you will receive a message informing you that your deposit limit has been reached. At this point, you won’t be able to deposit anymore until that specified time has lapsed.

Set loss limit:

You can set how much you can lose during any chosen period. When your limit has been reached, you’ll receive a message stating that your loss limit has been reached, and tough titty, you can’t lose any more.

Set wager limit: You are able to set how much you can wager in any chosen period. When this is reached, you’ll receive a message stating that your wager limit has been reached, and you won’t be able to wager any more bets.

Set max bet protection limit per spin/bet. This is a good one – set a max bet limit to protect yourself from accidentally placing a higher spin or bet wager than you intend to. There have been many cases of players playing certain bonuses exceeding the bet size, and negating their winnings.

Set time-out limit

You can set up nag screens to tell you how many minutes you can play before your play time is interrupted.

Lock account X days

You can lock your account for x amount of days.

Self-exclusion

You can bail out of the casino for a period of 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, or 5 years. During this period, your account cannot be re-opened under any circumstance.

This is just plain awesome – and besides this, there are the VideoSlots tournaments. These are exclusive to Videoslots – they developed the software – and if you haven’t tried it, you really need to.

This acts like your poker tourneys – you can set up your own, join free rolls – or pay to play. There is a chat feature just like in your poker tourneys – and it’s absolutely marvelous. We had Battle of the Slots this last August – exclusive to Casinomeister, where some of our lucky winners won custom-made Casinomeister shields.

All in all – the best gaming experience of 2016. Great going VideoSlots – keep up the good work.

Best Gaming Experience Historical Awards

Best Gaming Experience 2014 – WMS
Best Gaming Experience 2013 – WMS
Best Gaming Experience 2012 – NetEnt
Best Games Award 2011 – Leander Games
Best Software Supplier Award 2011 – NetEnt
Best Games Award 2010 – 3Dice
Best Software Award 2010 – Microgaming
Best Software Award 2009 – Wagerworks
Best Software Award 2008 – Cryptologic
Best Software Award 2007 – Wagerworks
Best Software Award 2006 – Microgaming
Best Software Award 2005 – Microgaming

Best iGaming Software 2016

“This year’s review of the best slots.”

Best and worst Software releases of 2016

bestgames2016

This year was pretty tough in choosing only one software provider for a Best Software award – so we let the members of the forum decide. Since the membership consists of many players who have years of experience playing these games on a daily basis, I saw that it was a fitting move. Here are the results:

From Dunover – Slotmeister:

“Back in December, I had a straw poll of the favourite new slot releases of 2016. It wasn’t perfect, just the main releases from major developers most of which I had provided a video review for and had been played extensively by the CM members.

Play N Go’s Book Of Dead had the most points, and that really leaves the debate open as it’s an exact clone of Novomatic’s Book Of Ra Deluxe game. So, it’s almost a winning format as opposed to a winning slot! Second was Netent’s Drive – Multiplier Mayhem, no doubt popular for the innovative bonus round, which can multiply wins by up to 120x on the top level of the feature, in many ways similar to the way Nextgen’s 300 Shields works.

In third, we had another Netent, Warlords Crystals of Power, with its 3 differing bonus rounds and multiple scatter drops when 2 or more appear in view. Great graphics! Fourth was Paranormal Activity, a genuinely scary game from iSoftbet that impressed players with authentic horror-film graphics and inventive bonuses.

The others of note were joint fifth being Quickspin’s Second Strike with its potential 100x stake diamond win and tied with it was Dragon Born by Big Time Gaming with up to 117649 ways and dynamic reel rows with each spin and naturally huge hit potential in the bonus free spins.

A good spread of major and less-prolific developers filled the top places and notable by their absence were Microgaming, who literally need to up their game as far as new ides are concerned as voters punished them for their repetitive cloned games.

All in all a good year for new releases, and I hope next year the winner for 2017 is an original idea as opposed to, ahem, a ‘tribute’ slot…..”

The full review can be found here: Slot Of 2016 – The Results!

When I asked Dunover about Motorhead – and what its status was as an awesome release (I’m an old-timey metal fan), his response was the following:

“Motorhead looked good but got absolutely panned by the players due to poor frequency on bonus rounds, and the volatility meant once you’d lost a bit there was hardly any potential to redress the balance. It finished joint 17th with merely 6 points (I asked voters to pick their top 5 and allocated 5 points for a 1st choice down to 1 point for a fifth choice) – Motorhead got 6 points and there were tens of voters each picking 5 slots!”

Motorhead – it’s live and loud!

So there you have it. Do you want to partake in the jovial jocularity of our slot reviews? If you haven’t joined our forum membership, now is your opportunity to do so. Register here. Besides, once you become a member, you are invited to our annual Meister Meeting in London for FREE BEER! /shameless plug

Most Awesome Screenshot 2016

Each year, there are literally several thousand screenshots uploaded by our members in our forum. Some great – some not so great – and sometimes mind boggling – like this one.

Here is an example of a mind-boggling hit at Dead or Alive.

brianmon uploaded a screenshot of the ever-so-popular Dead or Alive – an amazing €1844.14 win from a mere 18 cent bet! And it was from a €30 deposit that was nearly depleted at that time. .

Here is a comment from the player concerning his win:

“13 wilds, 3 wildlines and 10,184 x stake from a €30 deposit and with €1.13 left of my balance. 

Sorry, in all the excitement, I neglected to mention that it was at Casino Heroes

Dead or Alive winner screenshot 2016

Great going Brianmon!! I hope you didn’t play your winnings back!

Historical  Most Awesome Screenshot of the year

Awesome Screenshot of 2015 – Dead or Alive
Awesome Screenshot of 2014 – Pat Royal

Best Affiliate Program 2016

bestaffprogram2016

TTRpartners is the best affiliate program of 2016 – and if you’re an affiliate, you’d be a fool not to sign up and support these folks. Here’s why:

They are the marketing arm of one of the best casinos ever to have graced the online community: 32Red and its brethren. You can be assured that players will be treated with professionalism, respect, and fairness. Your players will always be taken care of – and if there is any issue whatsoever, the casino will always do the right thing. They have some of the best-trained casino staff in existence – their casino manager has been with them since their inception 14 years ago. If they are hanging on to their employees this long, you know they are doing something right.

We rarely receive complaints about 32Red or its affiliated casinos – in the nine years, we’ve received nine submitted complaints via our PAB service. That’s, on average, one complaint a year – and we deal with hundreds of complaints per year. Each one of these complaints was handled swiftly and fairly. They do an awesome job keeping their players in a happy place. The only disgruntled comments you’ll see in the forum is that their payments are slow. But even so, they retain their players. I’ve been playing there since 2003, and it’s one of the few downloadable Microgaming casinos that I’ll play at. So I have to wait a couple of days to get paid. So what? At least I know I’ll get paid, and you can be sure that your players will feel the same way.

They are probably one of the best run downloadable Microgaming casinos – this means that they have the best line up of video poker online. Sure many players love their slots – but MGS delivers not only award-winning state-of-the-art slots, their video poker kicks ass.

They are as solid as the rock of Gibraltar. They are publicly traded, and they have a rather high profile. Their casinos have won numerous awards not only here but elsewhere. They are properly licensed in the UK, Italy, and throughout most of the civilized world. Sorry, US – you’re not included. They are the official shirt sponsor of Leeds United.

They use NetRefer for their affiliate backend. Mark Quayle, their affiliate manager, is one of the most active and helpful casino reps in our forum. If and when you need any assistance, he’s there. Payments are a cinch. They are sent during the first week of the month. When payments are made, you receive an email notification, which usually hits your inbox after the payment hits your bank. Since the casino uses its own payment processor, payment wires are easily identifiable.

In essence, this is the perfect group of casinos to promote. And it’s a no-brainer that these guys are the ones you should be dealing with as an affiliate.

The Phoenix Award 2016

“From a brief fall from grace – to an Accredited status”

The Phoenix Award is given to those persons or entities that have arisen from the ashes. In other words, something was broke and they fixed it in a big way.

This year, the award goes to BGO Casino – which was removed from the Accredited section at Casinomeister for being lackadaisical and non-responsive to player complaints. They immediately took action, reorganized a but with new forum casino reps, and they got it together.

Since their reinstatement in May, there have been no casino complaints, and they seem to be running a tight ship. At least for now.

Job well done – thanks BGO casino.

The Phoenix Historical Awards

Phoenix Award Malta Gaming Authority
Phoenix Award – CAP – Casino Affiliate Programs
Phoenix Award – Kahnawake Gaming Commission

Congrats all around for the folks at 32Red.

Their brands:
32Red
Dash Casino
Golden Lounge
Nedplay
Casino Splendido
Roxy Palace

Best Affililiate Program Historical Awards

Best Affiliate Program of 2015 – AffiliateEdge
Best Affiliate Program of 2014 – Affiliate Edge
Best Affiliate Program of 2013 – AffiliateRepublik
Best Affiliate Program of 2012 – Referback
Best Affiliate Program of 2011 – Affiliate Edge
Best Affiliate Program of 2010 – Affiliate Edge
Best Affiliate Program of 2009 – Referback
Best Affiliate Program of 2008 – Brightshare
Best Affiliate Program of 2007 – Brightshare
Best Affiliate Program of 2006 – Partnerlogic
Best Affiliate Program of 2005 – 32Red Affiliates
Best Affiliate Program of 2004 – Wagershare
Best Affiliate Program of 2003 – Wagershare

Worst Casino 2016

“Two Crapholes that Keep on Ticking!”

award_boar

This year had its share of true rogue activity – and I thought in the past eighteen years of reporting on scam operations that I had already seen the worst. Oh, so wrong was I. This year we had a craphole, otherwise known as Euromoon Casino, rear its fugly head with here screenshots and all).

When the casino was called out to explain why it was using pirated versions of NetEnt software, they clammed up. Players (including the secret shopper me) asked their live support about whether or not the games were legit. Live chat replied that there were affiliates out there trying to give them a bad name.

When I asked their affiliate managers at AffPower what was going on, I got the “speak to the hand” action. I was even unfriended by them at Facebook. Oh, poor me. 🙁

They are licensed in the banana republic of Curaçao, which pretty much means no license at all. This “licensing” entity is about as useless as an ejector seat on a helicopter. The casino continued to use this software until NetEnt took action, and then they switched to the real games.

That may be fine and dandy for the software provider – but not for players.

The casino should have immediately issued a statement admitting wrongdoing, and the licensing jurisdiction should have enforced proper compliance by ensuring that all players who played these games were refunded their losses. Anything less is fraud – but what did you expect to happen?

The mere existance of Euromoon casino illustrates what is wrong with the online gaming industry – and allowing its owners to get away with this is astounding.

But then, what would you have expected to happen? This is an unregulated casino doing whatever it pleases to do.


Worst Casino of 2016 Runner up

Pamper Casino is another crap hole that basically did the same thing as Euromoon Casino. This is documented in the following: Pamper Casino Review.

One of the main differences between these two clipshot joints is the awesome name of this one: Pamper (Euromoon is just plain stupid). This casino distinguished itself as the Worst Named Casino of 2008 – and since then, they have been doing a bang-up job of being a badly run casino. Using ripped-off software and getting caught doing so just nails this casino to the wall.

The most astonishing thing is that players keep playing there. So, I guess congratulations are in order for their resilience. Good going, Pamper!!

Historical Worst Casino Awards

Worst Casino 2015 – Casino4live
Worst Casino 2014 – SlotoBank
Worst Casino 2013 – rey8.com/Planet Kings
Worst Casino 2012 – Casino770
Worst Casino 2011 – Grand Duke Casino/Class1Casino
Worst Casino 2010 – BeTheDealer
Worst Casino 2009 – Golden Lounge (pre-32Red)/Strykke Casino
Worst Casino 2008 – Gold Betting/Golden Casino
Worst Casino 2007 – Cirrus Casino
Worst Casino 2006 – African Palace/Indio Casino
Worst Casino 2005 – Joyland Casino
Worst Casino 2004 – 1x2casino
Worst Casino 2003 – Black Widow

Worst Casino Group 2016

“Lying liars who lie to us…”

award_beer

The Affpower Casino rips this award right out of its dodgy competitors’ hands. They can pride themselves in running probably the most corrupt casinos in the business – perhaps of all time. Their order of silence during the AffPower Casinos | Faked Software | Rogue Review.

AffPower Properties:
Listed on their affiliate marketing site:
atlanticcasinoclub.com
CompanyCasino.com
Casino1Club.com
Cashpotcasino.com
Euromooncasino.com
parklaneecasino.com
Osiriscasino.com

Affiliate Program
AffPower.com

Historical Worst Casino group Awards:

Worst Group 2015 – Curgam Group
Worst Group 2014 – Revenue Jet
Worst Group 2013 – Affactive Group
Worst Group 2012 – Rushmore Group
Worst Group 2011– Affactive Group
Worst Group 2010– Affactive Group
Worst Group 2009 – Mighty Slots Group
Worst Group 2008– The Virtual Casino Group
Worst Group 2007 – The Virtual Casino Group
Worst Group 2006 – Sunny Group
Worst Group 2005 – Windows Casino Group
Worst Group 2004 – Popular Casino Group
Worst Group 2003 – Wager21 Group
Worst Group 2002 – Virtual Casino Group
Worst Group 2001 – Vegas Strip Group

Worst Customer Service Award 2016

“Lying liars who lie and make threats.”

And the winner is…CasinoCashPalace.com.

A thread popped up in our forum – a mixture of “Have you ever heard of these guys?” to “I’m waiting to be paid.” What was discovered was that this casino’s license was revoked by its licensor – Curaçao AntillePhone. And if they would go to the lengths of canceling this casino’s license, well, you know they’ve got to be bad.

Anyway, one of our members was trying to find out about his pending payment and was getting a bit frustrated – understandably so. So he posted in our forum, and at Askgamblers and CasinoListings. Well, that seemed to have lit the fire in someone’s crack pipe. Here is a copy of the email this poor player received:

“I write you by this method because I work in the shadows, you have been threatening a Casino, they are fixing some issues in order to pay you. 

I want to be very clear with you fucking berk, you have two choices, one it´s to wait peaceful to get paid without doing your stupid things or the second and the most stupid (as you are) is threatening them and write everywhere your bullshit, if you choose this way, we are in WAR, we have your address, and everything about you fucking piece of shit. 

The choice it´s yours, thing twice, after the next stupid action from your side, no way back from our side. We are not afraid to anything fucking red neck & motherfucker. 

I´ll be watching you very close!”

The email used was megafast@protonmail.com, which shows up here in a Google search:

VENDO
10% DE CASINO ONLINE
$1 MILLÓN PESOS, CON LICENCIA
INTERNACIONAL.
megafast@protonmail.com

The dude is trying to sell 10% of his share of an online casino – internationally licensed – NOT:

Source PDF

So after this player posts this, he gets more emails telling him he’ll get paid after he removes his postings in the fora.

Well, no need for that. This craphole of a casino (which, by the way, is still unlicensed and probably has pirated software) has won the coveted “Casino Customer Service on Crack Award.”

Good going!

Worst Customer Service Historical Awards

Worst Customer Service Award 2015 – Paradisewin
Worst Customer Service Award 2014 – SlotoBank Casino
Worst Customer Service Award 2013 – Dendera Casino
Worst Customer Service Award 2012 – Casino770
Worst Customer Service Award 2011 – SlotMadness
Worst Customer Service Award 2010 – Supreme Play/21Grand Casino
Worst Customer Service Award 2009 – TopGaming customer service
Worst Customer Service Award 2008 – Plumgaming.com
Worst Customer Service Award 2007 – Bingoisus.com

Worst Manager 2016

“Put down the bong and get to work.”

From the desk of Max Drayman:

BetSocial/TotalESoft – unresponsive, players unpaid

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A PAB case came to us late last year where a player had pending withdrawals from the casino that had gone unpaid for some time. I tried to contact the casino, but the “player’s issue is with the provider,” I bumped it on to TotalESoft, who said they’d look into it…This looks like something from 2014. I will need to check into archives in order to find out what the issue is here.

But there was no further reply. After several further attempts to get a response, nothing happens, and the months roll by. I decided to poke around a little and learned that BetSocial seems to be making a habit of this pending but never-paid withdrawal thing, often with reference to it being a TotalESoft issue.

So the casino management is basically not paying players, not giving justification, and when a complaint is raised, they say, “Talk to the provider.” That’s a complete failure of casino management since every player knows that the chances of the provider ever properly discussing their issue with them is roughly equal to a snowball’s chance in hell.

Whatever the case and whoever is to blame, the bottom line is that player issues are being ignored, and monies are effectively being confiscated. That said:

WARNING: BetSocial and/or TotalESoft are withholding player payments and thereby confiscating monies that were owed to players. Players are advised to look elsewhere for their gambling services.

Worst Manager Historical Awards

Worst Manager of 2015 – Casino4live
Worst Manager of 2014 – Slotobank
Worst Manager of 2013 – Group Award
Worst Manager of 2012 – Crazy Luck Casino
Worst Manager of 2011 – Offsitebet
Worst Manager of 2010 – Blacklights Casino
Worst Manager of 2009 – Heroes Casino
Worst Manager of 2008 – Jonwood Poker
Worst Manager of 2007 – Virtual Danny
Worst Manager of 2006 – Virtual Casino Group Award
Worst Manager of 2005 – Crown Vegas
Worst Manager of 2004 – Largo Casino
Worst Manager of 2003 – (runner up) Crystal Palace

Worst Player Experience 2016

“Smartlive Casino – not so smart!”

From the desk of Max Drayman:

“SmartLive has got to go down as one of the slowest train wrecks in casino history. For us the story began back in 2011-2012 when the casino started squashing sizable wins with totally bogus excuses.

In one case, they confiscated €6000 and emailed the player saying, “Take half, or you get nothing.” When the player balked and came to us it suddenly turned into a “fraud” case — no evidence was ever produced — and the player was tossed to the curb.

In a second case, the casino confiscated €11000 for “abusive bonus hunting and similar activity. “ When the player complained they said, “We’re willing to offer you €1000”. When the player declined — and by this time had come to us — and we tried to escalate the issue, the casino people told me, “IBAS is handling complaints for us”. I contacted IBAS and they told me that there was no case because SmartLive had was not signed on at IBAS when the player’s problems had occurred. We went back to SmartLive and they fobbed us off with “we need to check with management” and ignored any further attempts to discuss the case.

As a result of the above, we posted a Casinomeister Warning in March of 2012. Within a few weeks the SmartLive people came back to us, agreed to settle all previous issues, and assigned a dedicated contact person to work with us on future cases. Great news, we thought, and put the Warning under review. The next 6 months were pretty quiet, so the Warning was pulled.

Early in 2013, we received a complaint that sounded awfully familiar: a player’s €5000 balance had been confiscated, and no reason was given. We sent in the PAB, and they replied, “We’re investigating,” and then later, it was, “Information is being gathered,” and sometime after that, “The player must be patient.” Rinse and repeat a few times, and four months of this had passed without a shred of explanation or evidence ever having been produced. We confronted them with the obvious: clear the case or the old Warning will be reinstated. The representative at the time said, “I’ll do what I can,” which turned out to be nothing: the Warning was reinstated in full.

Same as before: a month or two passed, and suddenly, they were back with a new rep and a new commitment to do all good things. This time I put it to them that all outstanding issues needed to be cleared and then we might consider a probation period. If all went well then maybe, MAYBE the Warning would be withdrawn.

Well, a number of old issues were cleared — even after I put out a general call to the Casinomeister membership for anyone with old SmartLive complaints to come forward — and another extended probation period passed without problems, so again, the Warning was withdrawn. It’s now May 2016.

Within a few weeks, we were getting complaints again — same old story: moderate and large balances being confiscated — and the rep was suddenly unavailable again. We immediately re-instated the Warning again and gave them 30 days to clear all issues. It never happened.

By August SmartLive was in trouble with the UKGC: “UK Gambling Commission suspends SmartLive licence“. As part of the UKGC’s requirements that players be paid, the casino swore up and down that they’d take care of everybody and called out for claimants to step forward. Within weeks, we were hearing rumors that they were going into receivership.

By the end of September it was clear that unpaid players were well and truly screwed. Finally, SmartLive’s site became an empty shell with nothing but some bumff about responsible gaming and an email form for “Withdrawal Request”.

All told it took almost 5 years for SmartLive to go from “dubious confiscations” to the fetid corpses, and they wasted a lot of good people’s time, effort, and money doing so: Rest In Pieces, assholes!”

Honorable Mention – Everymatrix.

You can just read last year’s award for Worst Player Experience because nothing has changed. Players are still dealing with nightmare situations with winnings being confiscated at Everymatrix powered casinos. Nobody has properly addressed this – nobody has made a public statement or come up with a decent resolution. And this has been going on for about two years now. Does anyone care? Apparently not.

Worst Player Experience Historical Awards

Worst Player Experience 2015 – Everymatrix
Worst Player Experience 2014 – “irregular playing” accusations
Worst Player Experience 2013 – iovation – support blackhole
Worst Player Experience 2012 – Losing your faith in the gaming industry – Purple Lounge debacle
Worst Player Experience 2011 – US Players (again)
Worst Player Experience 2010 – US Players
Worst Player Experience 2009 – Joyland Casino
Worst Player Experience 2008 – Absolute Poker/Ultimatebet
Worst Player Experience 2007 – HippoJo – Absolute Poker
Worst Player Experience 2006 – Crystal Palace Casino – Club Player Casino
Worst Player Experience 2005 – Royal Dutch Casino
Worst Player Experience 2004 – Hamptons Casino vs the Pirate
Worst Player Experience 2003 – Black Widow Casino
Worst Player Experience 2002 – Fortyplus Casino
Worst Player Experience 2001 – Arcada Casino

Worst Affiliate Experience 2016

“Implemented predatory terms retroactively…”

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One of the worst things that can happen to an affiliate, especially one who is just getting started and has just begun his or her amazing journey, is to get a blustery threatening letter promising to bring the wrath of fines and Johnny Law down upon you if you do not immediately comply with their demands.

This happened in November 2016 when the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) sent a mass snail-mailing to just about every affiliate located in the UK. The preamble was this:

“It has come to the attention of the ICO that a large number of potentially unsolicited text messages (SMS) promoting online gaming sites have been sent by affiliate organizations, including yours. These SMS messages were, it is believed, sent in breach of regulations 22 and 23 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). 

The ICO’s opinion is that where an affiliate sends an SMS on behalf of or promoting the website of, a gaming company, then that affiliate is the sender of that communication and must comply with regulations 22 and 23 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003. 

 

Failure to comply with these regulations can lead to enforcement action being taken by the ICO which could…lead to the imposition of a civil monetary penalty, up to a maximum of £500,000 for a serious breach of any of this regulation…” 

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The thing is, the majority of the affiliates that received this letter had nothing to do with any wrongdoing whatsoever. The email list of affiliates had originally come from Income Access, which had given the Canadian anti-spam regulator (CRTC, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission) its list of UK-based affiliates upon its demand.

Those affiliates that received this blow-hard email were understandably rattled – and scared. It was a mountain of unneeded stress – and it just underscored the ineptness on the ICO. Instead of following up on actual bona fide complaints, they chose to send out a accusatory and threatening letter. It didn’t matter that most of these affiliates ran honest businesses that complied with the law; what mattered was that the ICO positioned itself as a defender of people’s sacred SMSs and email accounts. The irony is that many affiliates are subjected to the same sort of spam.

Runner up:

One of the worst affiliate experiences this year has to be attributed to BettingPartners. They made the command decision to deal only with Bitcoin, and applied this across the board – not only to their players but to their affiliates as well. For some affiliates, especially those flying under the radar, this may be ok. But for companies that are above board and that have regular audits done by the tax authorities, this did not bode well. Bitcoin has always been associated with money laundering, fraud, and dealing with the black arts. Forcing affiliates to “take it or leave it” is about as un-partnerlike as you’re going to get.

Obviously, they had their reasons, but they alienated a number of affiliates who felt that they were no longer part of the marketing equation – no longer a valued “partner”.

Second Runner up:

Quick Think Affiliates draconian terms and conditions were enforced on one of our Webmeister members which stated, “…neither the Affiliate nor its employees, or their family members, friends or associates may make purchases, directly or indirectly, through the Links for its or their own personal use or to fraudulently increase the Affiliate’s Commission.” His account was shut down for referring another member of our forum.

This is not only shortsighted but it’s not based on the reality of the web. Many affiliates run their own sites, which include discussion forums like Casinomeister. People will sign up at these forums, and in time, you’ll get to know some of these folks – your webmaster buddies. What this affiliate program is saying is that your account will be closed if you send someone you know to the casino. Applying this to Casinomeister would definitely suck since I know quite a few of my members personally, but to a smaller affiliate this would be disastrous – even catastrophic since they will be inviting their friends and fellow webmasters to check out their sites.

In fact, as webmaster buddies, many of us sign up at each other’s websites to ensure that the stats track correctly and to try to pound our buddies’ affiliate accounts into the paleolithic period of negative revenue. Ha ha.

Affiliates should avoid these affiliate programs that enforce these unrealistic terms. By signing up at a program like Quick Think Affiliates you may have the worst experience of your affiliate career. Further reading: AFFILIATE AND PLAYER WARNING: Quick Think Affiliates

Worst Affiliate Experience Historical Awards

Worst Affiliate Experience of 2015 – Affiliatehub
Worst Affiliate Experience of 2014 – enabling intellectual property theft/copyright infringement
Worst Affiliate Experience of 2013 – Retroactive changes in T&Cs
Worst Affiliate Experience of 2012 – Ladbrokes

Most Annoying Affiliate Program 2016

“Activewins’ black hole of oblivion”

A continuing problem in this industry is poorly trained affiliate managers. Those who do not follow up on emails, or can not grasp the concept of websites like Casinomeister. Activewins takes this awesome award this year for being not just the most annoying affiliate program but for being total downright jerks.

Activewins is the affiliate program for Betfred. Betfred Casino and Casinomeister had a relationship starting in 2004 – and it was a fairly solid one. The casino managers and I agreed upon how players ought to be treated, how casinos ought to be run, and just about everything in the Casinomeister philosophy.

They became an accredited casino in 2007, and their in-house affiliate program was a good one – they had it together – had some great people working there (Martyn Beacon, Anthony Hodgetts, et al.), maintained a presence in the forum, and were responsive as well. This went on for a few years – but even though these people came and went, Betfred always dealt with whatever player issues came their way. They were enjoyable to work with.

Then, in 2013, Activewins came into play and took over Betfred’s affiliate program. Everything seemed fine, but as time went by, things began to change.

In 2015, they stopped monitoring their forum account. I hadn’t noticed until some of the members started complaining that no one was answering their private messages. Our forum members expect iGaming representatives of accredited casinos to answer questions and to deal with issues either in the public forum or via private messaging.

The folks at Activewins decided that this was something they did not want to do.

I explained our expectations and that this was something they agreed to do when they first came on board, but it was a “speak to the hand” moment for us – dealing with players in a forum was something they were not willing to do. So Betfred was placed in the Reservation: Betfred’s Casino review. This was in May 2015 – and no one from their side of things ever showed a sign of giving a care.

Beyfred tossed Casinomeister’s Accreditation to the curb, which was an absolute shame since this was the doing of Betfred’s affiliate program and not Betfred itself.

In February 2016, I started getting emails from my new affiliate manager, who wanted to explore potential affiliate opportunities. I explained why they were removed, that I had put my reputation on the line (refer to Faceplant of 2012and defended their casino numerous times in public over the years – yet Activewins did not see the value in this and chose to bail from the site.

Apparently what is important to Activewins is not what is important to me: to be player-facing – active in the community. Not concerned about profits but with relationships with players.

I received the same email about two months later. I guess they went on auto-pilot and they forgot about what I told them earlier.

And then in June 2016, I received an “Important Update from Betfred” notifying me that since I have not been sending them players that they would stop paying me. A cyber slap in the face. It’s predatory bullshit – and I should have rogued them. But I didn’t…yet.

And then in November 2016:

Hi Bryan,

Betfred hasn’t had one new depositor come through casinomeister since April 2015 – have you stopped working with us? If you have, let me know, and I’ll make sure you aren’t contacted in the future. If you are happy to work with us still, I’d love to be bringing in 10+ players a month like you were in 2011 and 2012. Also, we have Kerching casino, Prospect Hall casino, Bucky bingo and BOGOF bingo who would smash it on casinomeister.

Oh really? Smash it? How annoying is this? How can people like this be in the business and be so aloof and oblivious about Casinomeister and its mission? We weren’t launched just yesterday. We have made a mark in this industry – and we aren’t going away.

Most Annoying Affiliate Program Historical Awards

Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2015 – Affutd et al
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2014 – Affutd
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2013 – Europartners
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2012 – Affiliate Marketing spam
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2011 – Mansion Affiliates
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2010 – Bewinners
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2009 – Group Award – Sloppy stupid spammy affy managers
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2008 – Mighty Slots
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2007 – Group Award – Spammy aff managers
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2006 – CPays
Most Annoying Affiliate Program of 2005 – CPays

Faceplant of the Year 2016

“Oops – splat!”

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Big Time Gaming slipped on a self-laid banana peel in Casinomeister’s forum and landed smack dab on its face.

Big Time Gaming is a relatively new software provider that was trying to get a buzz going about its games. In fact, they tried a little too hard, in my opinion.

In January 2016, there was a thread discussing a newly launched game “Dragon Born”: Dragon born 117649 ways at Unibet!. The CEO of the company chimed in with the following:

DRAGON BORN uses our patented MEGAWAYSTM engine that allows up to 117,649 ways to win on any given spin. DRAGON BORN has up to x7 full reel wilds that can occur on any of the last five reels. The Diamond Scatter, free spin round; locks in 117649 ways to win for the bonus duration. Extra spins can be awarded for each Diamond in the reels during the bonus and yes, the bonus has stacked wilds”

This was cool by me. I always want to encourage iGaming reps to talk about their products without trying to sell something. He even posted a live URL which I didn’t mind – players could check out the software provider’s site to see what’s up.

Things were going fine – players were commenting on the game. And then this post shows up:

Can’t find this game on Unibet – looks pretty interesting though and Gold by the same developer is one of my go to games. Where can I play it ?”

This was posted by a member magicjohnson. Hmmm. It seemed innocuous at that moment, but Magicjohnson and Big Time Gaming (the CEO) were using the same computer.

I didn’t notice it at first, in fact – I think I was writing up last years awards at the time. I tend to get hunkered down and ignore things like this when focused on the awards. 🙂

Anyway the banter continued, but then this Magicjohnson guy gets bold and starts posting screenshots. Like here, and here, and here.

This continued for a couple of more weeks until I realized what was happening. It was on the 26th of February that the ban hammer down upon his head. You can read about this here.

But after the CEO of the company apologized – and promised that it wouldn’t happen again, I restored his account and gave him proper iGaming representative permissions – but magicjohnson’s account remains in a state of “banned”.

So, lesson learned. Faceplants can be painful, but in most cases, you can fully recover from them. And I can be cool about it as well.

Faceplant Historical Awards

Faceplant of 2015 Revenue Jet and Winpalace
Faceplant of 2014 – Tropica Casino
Faceplant of 2013 – Topgame/BetonSoft
Worst Blundering Screw up 2012 – Betfred
Worst Blundering Screw up 2011 – Betfair (again)
Worst Blundering Screw up 2010 – Betfair
Worst Blundering Screw up 2009 – Topgame
Worst Blundering Screw up 2008 – Casino Action Group
Worst Blundering Screw up 2007 – Virtual Casino’s 9/11 Promotion
Worst Blundering Screw up 2006 – English Harbour software glitch

“Just please go away…”

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The Head in the Sand award goes to Betsoft. It was discovered in June this year that their progressives were skewered. Here is the original thread that refers to a lengthy report at Casinolistings.com, and a subsequent posting at Vegasclick.com where MichaelBlueJay detailed the timline of what transpired at the casinos in question. MichaelBlueJay posted his and Casinolistings findings here: Please consider Roguing Betsoft software and Warning about Betcoin.ag. And Max posted his warning here: Betsoft/Betcoin.ag: jackpot results “statistically improbable”/payments withheld.

Well, what happened? Nothing – absolutely nothing. Betsoft never admitted anything publicly. No press release, no confession to guilt, no owning up to a mistake, or a glitch. Nada.

And what a shame. I remember years ago when things like this would happen; software providers would get actively involved – putting out fires in the fora, publishing explanations via press releases, meeting with forum owners like myself (RE Mathematical Proof that English Harbour is cheating).

Back in the day, company owners would go to great lengths to ensure that players had trust in their product. This included eating crow every so often. But now we are in an era where if you ignore something long enough, hopefully, it’ll go away. It’s the era of “I don’t give a shit what you think – let’s make a lot of money.”

So take a deep breath Betsoft, and stick your head in the sand.

And going further with this – does anybody care? There are more than enough casino operators who are hosting these games right now, and no one has made a peep (besides me, the above-mentioned, and a few player forums). It’s as if more than just the software provider owners have their heads in the sand; perhaps a few other names should be on this list as well.

Head in the Sand Historical Awards

Head in the Sand Award 2015 – the “Bonus Beaters”, the “Bonus Whores”
Head in the Sand Award 2014 – Oblivious Players
Head in the Sand Award 2013 – Naive Affiliates
Head in the Sand Award 2012 – Lazy Affiliates
Head in the Sand Award 2011 – Casino Operator Bonus Pimps
Head in the Sand Award 2010 – Lotteries and Gaming Authority
Head in the Sand Award 2009 – Affiliates and Affiliate Managers
Head in the Sand Award 2008 – Hypocritical US Politicians
Head in the Sand Award 2007 – Players who Patronize the Rogues
Head in the Sand Award 2006 – The Entire Online Casino Industry
Head in the Sand Award 2005 – iGlobalMedia
Head in the Sand Award 2005 Runner Up – Chartwell Technologies

Fall From Grace 2016

“Spiraling downward from the graces of Casinomeister’s Accredited Casinos”

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Fall from Grace Awards. These awards are bestowed unto casinos that were once an integral part of Casinomeister but, for one reason or another, fell from grace and lost their accredited status.

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We have a few “fall from grace” awards to hand out this year – all for differing reasons.

Bet365, which was accredited in 2006, made the command decision to bail on Casinomeister’s accredited section. The reason for this is that they didn’t consider themselves to be “player-facing”; in other words, they didn’t want to bother answering questions in the forum. They just wanted to acquire players via promotions and such. This displayed a real disparity between themselves and the importance of Casinomeister to players. To remain active – or at least receptive in Casinomeister’s forum is an expectation that we have for casinos being listed on the site. It was good enough for Bet365 back when they first came on, but too much to deal with in 2016.

What a shame because they did have some decent reviews from players and affiliates alike. But maintaining a forum presence was just too much to ask from a company that seems to have completely lost touch with the player community.


10Bet – lost interest as well. They had a real issue responding to any queries in the forum – or from me, for that matter. If and when players had issues with this casino, we had to chase down the casino peeps to get involved, and unfortunately, it was usually some poor affiliate manager being placed in the middle of things. In December, we determined that 10Bet and Casinomeister are not a good match.


Award winning 3Dice fell from grace in February 2016. There were a number of player issues that were going unanswered, and their primary point of contact seemingly vanished. At the same time there were a number of payment issues acerbated by the absence of their manager – they ended up being removed from the accredited section.


Betway, an accredited casino first listed here in 2010, gave us a “speak to the hand” gesture when it came to a submitted player complaint. They made the decision not to deal with us concerning this problem, citing that they were unable to do so because of their licensing agreement.

This just proved a point that they never read their licensing agreement – the UKGC allows players of any of their licensed casinos to chose any third party they like, which Max discusses in depth here: UKGC: Player Arbitration. So their stubbornness, added to their lack of cooperation, caused their accreditation to be revoked. And once it was revoked, they showed indifference – they could not care less whether they were listed at Casinomeister, which was a downright shame since I had a pretty good relationship with them in the early days of online gambling.


Betting Partners enforced retroactive terms on all of their affiliates. This included Slots.lvBovada, and Bodog casinos. Accredited casinos agree not to enforce retroactive terms on their affiliates. This group decided in May 2016 to pay their affiliates only via Bitcoin. They were hard-nosed in this, not making any exceptions – which was unacceptable to me and quite a number of others in the affiliate realm. It’s ok to make these changes for new clients/partners, but enforcing this retroactively violates our standards, and thus, they were removed and fell from grace.

Fall From Grace Historical Awards

Fall From Grace Award 2015 – kybet and AffiliateHub – quitters
Fall From Grace Award 2014 – Wagershare casinos/Ladbrokes
Fall From Grace Award 2011 – GoWild Casino (reinstated)
Fall From Grace Award 2010 – Rushmore, Bwin, Betfair
Fall From Grace Award 2006 – Minivegas, Mansion, City Club Casino
Fall From Grace Award 2005 – Fortune Lounge (reinstated)
Fall From Grace Award 2005 Runner Up – Captain Cooks Casino

Stupidest Named Casino 2016

“I’m with stupid…”

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More ingenuity from dope smoke-filled marketing boardrooms. Take a few bong hits and name that casino!

Bumbet casino: I kid you not! Need I say more? Yes I do! Bet with your bum! Bumbet – it’s a bummer. I lost my bum at bumbet. Up your bum at bumbet!


Ares Casino: Anagram of “arse” (not to be confused with bumper), they screwed up and hosted ripped-off games from NetEnt. You can read about this here: Ares Casino – Watch out! Fake games!!.


Play7777: Got enough 7777s? I think not! Play 7777s for everyone! It makes you wonder what the drug of choice for this no-pay rogue casino: Play7777 confiscating large balances and ignoring complaints.


MrRingo: Really? How about MrPaul, MrJohn, and MrGeorge? I thought that Mr Green was a bit odd – but they actually have a persona Mr.Green which is pretty cool – and they’ve been running with it. MrRingo makes no sense – it’s just another casino white label. No reason for the name.

Maybe they thought it had a nice ring…o.


Pornhub casino: Yes it’s a thing. It arose here – many members of the forum became excited – there was a huge response, I mean huge! I should quit while I’m ahead: Pornhub Casino – Nudge nudge – wink wink

Stupidest Name Casino Historical Awards

Stupidest Named Casinos of 2015 A bunch of ’em
Stupidest Named Casinos of 2014 – ToBwin/Buck and Butler/Llama casino
Stupidest Named Casinos of 2013 – WinTrillionsCasino/TrendCasino/LuckyPantsBingo
Stupidest Named Casino of 2012 – Loco Panda/Loco Jungle
Stupidest Named Casino of 2011 – iButlerCasino
Stupidest Named Casino of 2010 – Majestic Comet Casino/Yes We Can Casino
Stupidest Named Casino of 2009 – Mayflower Casino
Stupidest Named Casino of 2008 – Ministering Angel Casino
Stupidest Named Casino of 2007 – Simon Says Casino
Stupidest Named Casino of 2006 – XXL Club Casino

Tangled Web Award 2016

“Affpower Casino Group – cheaters caught in a bullshit lie”

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“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive…” The “Tangled Web Award” is bestowed upon those persons or entities that have gone to great lengths to either deceive, trick, or fool the public into believing something that is not true – and then they get caught out in a major way.

Affpower group of casinos really tried hard to cover up the scam they were pulling by setting up casinos with stolen gaming software. But unfortunately for them, the Internet doesn’t lie.

They have a group of casinos – most of which are licensed in Malta, and a couple of strays were licensed primarily in Curaçao. It is those casinos – virtually unregulated and unchecked – that were using software that they were not supposed to have. When casino software companies license their software to an operator, they will, in most cases, host the software on servers located in the associated licensing jurisdiction. What Affpower did was copy the games and host them on servers not associated with Malta in the least sense.

They were caught out and never once either owned up to it or even tried to explain it. Neither did their pathetic “licensing” jurisdiction – no press release, no refund of player losses, not a peep. And there were more than enough opportunities to rectify the situation. It is all documented here: Euromoon Casino Review.

Historical Tangled Web Awards

Tangled Web Award 2015 – Playros Shills
Tangled Web Award 2014 – Tobwin/77Jackpots/1Bet2Bet/

Sitting on One’s Hand Award 2016

“Astonishing ineptness”

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The good ol’ U.S. of A. does it again! Last year, the US won the “sitting on one’s hands award” hands down – and it continues to sit. Nothing positive is happening for the millions of gamblers in the States.

Casinomeister.US was launched in 2015 – it’s a truly US-facing Casinomeister website – but it is just hanging in there. The casinos listed on that awesome website can only take bets from New Jersey and Nevada. Have you ever been to Nevada (not including Las Vegas)? No one lives there.

So we drum our fingers and wait, and wait…and wait. November gave us a cyber face-palm when US voters elected a plethora of Bible-thumping white guys. Believe me, you can count on anti-gambling bills to be introduced wily-nilly in 2017. I guess those folks aren’t sitting on their hands.

Hypocrisy ingrained in the system combined with political puppets – we won’t be seeing any massive changes soon. Perhaps by 2020 another state or two will join the ranks of New Jersey, et al, but really? Do you think so? I don’t.

Sitting on One’s Hands Historical Awards

Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2015 – USA
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2014 – Playtech
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2013 – Playtech
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2012 – RTG
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2011 – Malta Lottery and Gaming Authority
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2010 – Malta Lottery and Gaming Authority
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2009 – Malta Lottery and Gaming Authority
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2008 – Malta Lottery and Gaming Authority
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2007 – Kahnawake Gaming Commission – RTG
Sitting on One’s Hands Award 2006 – Real Time Gaming

Fourth Point of Contact 2016

“Head is where the sun don’t shine…”

award_beer

The “fourth point of contact” is US paratrooper lingo for the fourth point of your body as it hits the ground during a parachute landing fall. RE: Balls of the feet, calf, thigh, buttocks, push-up muscle. In other words, it’s yer ass.

So, who had their head up their ass this year? Well, Sheldon Adelson received this award in 2014 – and he got it again in 2016. This guy truly has his head up his ass.

If you had $25 million to give away, what would you do with it? Start a college fund for deserving kids living in squalor? Donate it to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital? Save the whales, timber wolves, or mountain gorillas? My head just spins thinking of how many ways one could better so many lives in truly awesome ways.

Well, what did Sheldon Adelson do with a spare $25 million he found stashed in his pocket? He gave it to a pro-Trump super PAC: Future45. How astonishing – and disappointing. Trump was bragging on how he was financing his own campaign – he didn’t need Adelson to buy a bunch of anti-Hillary TV ads. What a jerk off – just think about how many mouths that could have fed, or how many kids could have been sent to college with that, or what that could have done with trying to discover why cancer develops in children. $25 million really? For TV ads? I just can’t get my head around this. What a self serving prick.

Mr. Adleson, you are contemptible – you set a horrible example of what money does to people. I hope I never, ever become like you.

Fourth Point of Contact Historical Awards

Fourth Point of Contact Award 2015 – Playtech
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2014 – Sheldon Gary Adelson
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2013 – Playtech
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2012 – Forum Trolls
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2011 – US Department of Justice
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2010 – Hyperactive Affiliates
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2009 – Congressman Spencer Bachus
Fourth Point of Contact Award 2008 – Kentucky State Governor Steve Beshear

Biggest Disappointment 2016

“Banana Republic Licenses – White Label Doldrums”

award_boar

Well besides the US election and the so called Brexit, Curaçao eGaming is the proud recipient of this hallowed accolade. The lack of due diligence and proper responsiveness of a licensor is not only a massive disappointment, but an absolute failure of this industry’s player protection.

Without players, there would be no online casino industry – that’s always been my mantra. And there are scores of individuals in this industry who are lackadaisical – and treat players with contempt. There always has been. It was on “Curaçao eGaming’s” watch that no less than two Affpower casinos hosted fake NetEnt games; this licensing entity did absolutely nothing about it.

In any normal situation, the casino would have been subjected to a proper audit by the licensor, and those players that had unknowingly played these pirated games would have had their deposits refunded. There are precedents for this (Kahnawake and the Absolute and UltimateBet Poker scandals for instance), and it would have been a massively positive and “trust enriching” moment for players if the persons behind this licensing entity would have only put down the bong for a few minutes and took charge of this situation. But they did nothing. Not a peep, not a word, nothing.

It just underscored another reason why there should be no licensing allowed in banana republics. What good are these licenses if players are tossed to the wind when a casino goes rogue? You’d think by now, in 2016, that this industry had evolved a bit and learned from its mistakes. But again, it really just illustrates the ineptitude and corruption that still makes this industry stink like hell.

More about this here: Curaçao eGaming/Cyberluck/License 1668/JAZ


Biggest Disappointment of 2016 II

Last year’s Biggest Disappointment II was the White Label Runners – this year it’s just the flood of White Labels (before they’re running LOL). This wave of European-facing white labels that are not offering players too much but the same ol’ damn thing.

Attack of the clones!

In 2016, we saw a rise in new casinos, most of them having a plethora of games, the same layout, and some cool graphics, but not much imagination. The most disappointing thing is that these operations seem to be on a shoestring budget. Some of these casinos will only pay out €4-5K per month, which is an absolute joke. If these casinos are willing to take on players who make large deposits and bet more than €1 spin, then pay them appropriately.

Respect the fact that most players do not read the withdrawal limits section of the terms and conditions.

Players deserve innovation and awesomeness – creating player mills is a lackluster, disappointing development of this industry. Put your thinking caps on and get busy, or perhaps stick to being an affiliate.

If you want to be treated like a casino, you need to act like one.

Biggest Disappointment Historical Awards

Biggest Disappointment Award of 2015 – Bad Attitudes and White Labels
Biggest Disappointment of 2014 – US Market
Biggest Disappointment of 2013 – US Corporate Arrogance and Naivety
Biggest Disappointment of 2012 – Betfair/888.com
Biggest Disappointment of 2011 – Betfair/GRA
Biggest Disappointment of 2010 – HR 2267, US Market, Rival Gaming, Top Gaming
Biggest Disappointment of 2009 – Microgaming, CAP Spring Break, Rushmore Group
Biggest Disappointment of 2008 – Malta’s LGA, White Label Casino Operators, Microgaming
Biggest Disappointment of 2007 – Watching US players being thrown to the wolves
Biggest Disappointment of 2006 – Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act
Biggest Disappointment of 2005 – “Abused” Casino Operators (again)
Biggest Disappointment of 2004 – “Abused” Casino Operators
Biggest Disappointment of 2003 – Truegambler’s Cheating Software report/Oddson Software

Evil Player Award 2016

“Butthead from down unda’”

We had a complaint from a member – Chipmunk_936, in March 2016, which seemed rather innocuous at the time. It was a complaint about some roulette play he had at the Club World Casino group.

“I joined World Club Group of Casinos over a year ago and deposited thousands of USD in all seven of them since. On March 4, 2016, at 14:48 Melbourne Oz AEDT, I made a deposit at Buzzluck Casino and played for 10 days under normal give-and-take circumstances, the Silk Caravan Slot and European Roulette alternating between the two. I managed to build up my Account Balance to $2,035 in that time when all of a sudden, I was attacked on European Roulette by 15X consecutive same color drops of the ball! It kept doing so while I was waiting for it to change with the odd opposite color result, then again the same color for 15X until the whole lot in my Account Balance was gone…”

Simply put, he was not convinced that the RTG software was playing a fair game. When we contacted Club World, their casino manager Karolina forwarded us the players’ gameplay. What the player had complained about was not true. His gameplay was in the expected range, and there was no evidence of faulty gameplay – there was no evidence of the 15 consecutive losses that he had claimed.

Our notes:

“Referring to the last “10-15 minutes of play,” he says, “same color for 15X until the whole lot in my Account Balance was gone”. Rubbish: in the last 10-15 minutes of play in that file, there were 28 Losses and 21 Wins; the longest Loss streak is 6. On his last day of play — 14 March — the longest Loss streak was 10, where he dropped from $1720 to $820 in less than 2 minutes, betting $100 per spin! He went on to play for hours after that until his account ran dry.

And the casino forwarded this chat transcript:

buzzluck-chat-evil-player

Apparently, that was just one of them. Well, that was it for us. He was a sore loser. We told him that the evidence did not support his claim and that we felt that he was being abusive and offensive to the casino support (which in itself is a reason to be banned from Casinomeister). Max explained to him that his behavior and his abuse of the PAB system were reason enough to close his account.

Max also told him to grow up and quick acting like a dick (to which I fully support this advice). And then it began:
To Max:

YOU ARE A DESPICABLE ROTTEN FISH-SMELLING CUNT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FUCK YOUR ARSE? I DON’T THINK SO, AS IT WILL INFECT ME WITH AIDS. I ALSO HEARD YOU ARE A GAY COCK-SUCKING POOFTER!!!!

NOW IT IS “GOODBYE”
You dirty, slimy pussy

And:

FUCK YOUR ARSE? I DO NOT THINK SO SINCE THERE IS A POSSIBILITY I CAN BE INFECTED WITH AIDS.
THERE ARE RUMOURS CIRCULATING AROUND THE WEBMASTERS’ COMMUNITY THAT YOU SUCK COCKS!
ALSO, THAT YOU ARE A GLORIFIED PANSY GOING AROUND THE WORLD PROFESSING TO BE A PEACOCK?
YES, I THINK THAT WAS WHAT IT WAS YOU WANTED TO BE KNOWN AS: A COLOURFUL FLIGHTLESS BIRD!!
NOW IT IS GOODBYE, CUNTFACE!!!!!

And then I started getting them:

Good morning, Bryan
Max fucked you last night or you fucked Max?

Max has failed to see the devastation European Roulette Software caused in
this session.
I have attached herewith an excel file emailed to me by Buzzluck Casino,
listing the history
of bets during this 11-day session between 3/3/2016 and 3/14/2016. The
frenzied attack
of its E.R. software occurred between 4:49.33 PM on 3/14/2016, when my
Account Balance
was at its highest of $2,036.07, and 5:00:49 PM on 3/14/2016, when my
Account Balance
was at $0.07, i.e. kaput, kamarad!!!!

During this continuous descent that lasted 11 minutes & 16 seconds, 47 bets
were placed
of which 37 were LOSSES and only 10 were wins. Why is it that Max has called me a liar if
this .xml file attached to my email is indisputable evidence of this
scam?
Please discuss it with Max and let me know M8.”

And:

Hey Bryan

Just tell your lover that after my account balance was depleted to its last $0.07
at 5:00:49 PM on 3/14/2016, I redeemed the comp points I’d accumulated
during my 11-day session, which I played with and lost. Then I requested the
customary $40 cash-back bonus after I took a break for some sleep, but that
did not last long. I realize you are two uneducated, stupid dumb CUNTS, but
even a child could not get this wrong, yet the two of you both got it wrong!
Two clownish poofters you are, you cross bumb-fuckers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you still think I have lied, then you are both dumb as door nails!!!!!!!!!!!!

And it went on for a few days:

Hey fuckheads, are you at it still? Sucking each other’s cocks until dawn? What a pair of pansies you are! So cute together!

And he started sending messages to the fourm:

Is it true Bryan Bailey and Max Drayman are lovers? I mean, they fuck each other’s arses on a regular basis? Please enlighten me on this most important subject.
Respectfully always….
Anton Bright
Born Again…

The funny thing is – is that he claims to be a 70-year-old man, but he writes like a 13-year-old girl scout who can’t find her lost bag of potato chips.

And he tried to “Friend” me on Facebook.

The thing is, at the end of the day, those who berate people with homophobic insults usually have suppressed homosexual impulses that they are personally fighting with. How sad that people feel the need to behave this way – evil player of the year 2016.

Evil Player’s Historical Awards:

Evil Player 2015 – HIGHIQ
Evil Player 2014 – HIGHIQ
Evil Player 2013 – Group award to scammers
Evil Player 2012 – Rrao
Evil Player 2011 – Gid88
Evil Player 2010 – Diamondale
Evil Player 2009 – Kildare
Evil Player 2008 – BigRounder72
Evil Player 2007 – Actoreddie
Evil Player 2006 – Group award to all fraudsters
Evil Player 2005 – NY05
Evil Player 2004 – Evil Stephan
Evil Player 2003 – Rainfall
Evil Player 2002 – Evil RhondaX

Evil Marketing Award 2016

Well, it seemed that we almost had a lot of really rich members in our forum this year. Primeslots, who have done a number of dodgy things in the past, wanted to give their players £1 million pounds each. At least, that is what it seemed like.

Some spammy affiliates sent out badly worded spam mail which included the following lines: We are happy to inform you that you are entitled to 1000000£…open an account at primeslots.com using your email address, and you’ll be immediately eligible to 1000000£

primeslots spam

Besides being grammatically challenged, this casino promo just gave away a lot of money – theoretically. The casino representative explained it away as bad affiliates sending bad promos – which was also defined as spam by the membership. No one had “signed up” or asked for this email.

The casino rep said that he would speak with the misguided affiliates and tell them to stop. Unfortunately, this is bad marketing oversight – warnings are clearly not enough.

Affiliates that send bogus promotions via unsolicited emails should be shut down – period. Giving warnings is an anemic way of dealing with morons who know exactly what they are doing. It’s like telling a bank robber, “Don’t do it again; it’s against the law.”

For anyone with an email address – the torture never stops.

More here at Primeslots want to give me £1 million pounds.

Evil Marketing Historical Awards

Evil Marketing Award of 2014 – Incredibly manipulative spam
Evil Marketing Award of 2013 – Telephonic bonus offers
Evil Marketing Award of 2012 – Mona Casino
Evil Marketing Award of 2011 – Cashtherake
Evil Marketing Award of 2010 – 7Red Casino
Evil Marketing Award of 2009 – Gold VIP Club Casino
Evil Marketing Award of 2008 – Gold VIP Club Casino

Stupidest Casino Trick 2016

This year the tricks that some casino operators were implementing were faking certifications from certain governing or certifying entities. Take the case of Charles from CertifiedFairGambling.com. Turns out that some ex-clients of his were still flouting his certification of game fairness.

As he posted here in our forum:

“A former client, whom CFG no longer certifies, continues to make unlicensed and fraudulent use of the CFG logo, as if to imply that they still have their games and products certified by the CFG operation. They do not.

A quick rundown on the history
* Repeated late payment of invoices
* Data last submitted for analysis was for play to end of August, 2015
* Last payment made for analysis to end of June, 2015
* Repeated requests to bring data and payments up to date ignored.
* Ultimatum date of 2015 December 21 for restoring normal operations ignored.
* A 14 day period from that date was allowed for removal of certification; that period has elapsed and the certificates remain up

As such, services were severed on 2015 December 21, with a last certification date effective of end of August, 2015, for the following casinos:

BetLion365.com
BetOWI.com
BitBet.com
PlayBlackjack.com
SportsBettingOnline.com

Furthermore, a 6th URL (horseracebetting.com) was certified, but that URL now redirects to a different casino chain

Based on payment history, complete radio silence, and willingness to fraudulently claim CFG accreditation, I would be extremely circumspect with any dealings with these casinos.

My web designer is furiously working on a new section of CFG that will list casinos that are “actively rogue” with
claiming CFG accreditation. For now, if you see the CFG seal and wonder if it’s legit? Go check out:
http://certifiedfairgambling.com/clients/

More Tricks

There is also a thread in our forum that identifies casinos that are ripping off software from NetEnt, Novomatic (Greentube), and Playtech. It’s unbelievable what some people will do for money.

Stupid Casino Tricks Historical Awards

Stupid Casino Trick of 2013 – Casino770
Stupid Casino Trick of 2012 – Crazy Luck and Casino Royal Club Casino
Stupid Casino Trick of 2011 – iButler
Stupid Casino Trick of 2010 – Jackpots Heaven
Stupid Casino Trick of 2009 – Heroes Casino
Stupid Casino Trick of 2008 – Ministering Angel Casino
Stupid Casino Trick of 2007 – Roccoscasino
Stupid Casino Trick of 2006 – Jackpot Factory
Stupid Casino Trick of 2005 – Gambling Federation/Golden Palace
Stupid Casino Trick of 2004 – Brandy Casino
Stupid Casino Trick of 2003 – 1cnp.com
Stupid Casino Trick of 2002 – Internet Gaming Council/BMLSports/1-online-internet-casino-gambling.com
Stupid Casino Trick of 2001 – Casinoxclub/Bringmeluck.com

Forum Highlights 2016

“The Best Forum on the Face of the Earth”

I am one lucky son of a gun. Casinomeister’s Forum is one of the most perceptive, inspiring, innovative, helpful and compelling forums in the online gaming industry – and probably beyond that as well.

Why? It is because of the diversity and dedication of its members – that is true. And I am wholeheartedly grateful to all my members – even the ones I don’t like much. 🙂 You guys and gals really are great not only to me – but to each other. I feel proud to know that many of my members have made actual non-cyber friendships via Casinomeister. I know I have.

So here’s a cyber “cheers” to our community. Regular members and the moderators – this bud’s for you!

Forum Highlights of 2016

award_beer

In Casinomeister’s 18-year history, 2016 did not disappoint. We had our share of spam attacks, bootifications, wondrous intelligent allocutions, dramatic meltdowns, bitches and moans, legitimate complaints, jovial jocularities, intriguing insights, and a mélange of other topics.

Here are just a sprinkling of some of 2016’s highlights:


Meister Minions are becoming an extremely important part of Casinomeister. These are the volunteers who collect information about the Casinos listed at Casinomeister – not only the Accredited ones – but all. So far, over 1500 withdrawal processing times have been posted in the Meister Minions forum.

As this year begins (2017), the Meister Minions will be finding themselves with a lot more stuff to do. If you haven’t considered joining, now is the time to do so. We’ve been giving away awesome prizes – this last year one minion won a TRIP TO THE OKTOBERFEST in Munich. So how ’bout dem apples.

Renaming the PAB section contest! Win $$$!! Yep – Casinomeister had to clean up its language since we are now certified arbitrators internationally. It’s no longer Pitch a Bitch – it’s now Player ArBitration, thanks to MAW3Y and the rep from Refilliates Casinos, who won the contest.

Players’ Rights and the use of unfair T&Cs by gambling operators This is a must-read for all players – some awesome facts here about players’ rights and how many casinos overlook these facts. As time creeps by, the playing field for casinos and their players is becoming more even.

Casinomeister Wish List – What Do You Want From CM? – this is a thread that I have taken to heart. I check it out often and many of the things that you want will be included in the pending relaunch of the site.

Video Slots – Newly Accredited Started in 2014 but still going strong — 360 pages and counting! — and has become one of the most popular threads of all time in the Online Casinos section. The VS guys are champs when it comes to engaging with the players to get problems resolved.

Updating the rating system – need your input – This is another thread that I have been paying close attention to. Many of these aspects we will be incorporating into the site.

Affpower Casinos – ripped off NetEnt Games Here is where it’s documented on how these guys pirated games from Netent and elsewhere – and they are still in business?


Slots!!
last night on dead or alive This may have been started in July 2015 – but it is still ticking away with many updates and screenshots!

Bonanza by Big Time Gaming Launch of Bonanza slot has seen forum posters compare results, discuss strategy, and suggest the various merits of the new Big Time Gaming slot. That is pretty awesome.

What type of variance do you prefer? You know that the people who count are watching that thread (actually, just about every thread in the Slots forum has the attention of software developers).

Slot Of The Year 2016 Your Vote! – awesome job Dunover – thanks!


Complaints!
Craploads of complaints – but most of which were either resolved or ended up being processed and placed in our Casino Warning section.


Swedes! We launched the Swedish Corner that hardly anyone uses. We need more Swedes! 🙂


Webmaster Corner
We saw a spike in affiliates signing up in the forum (and a number of players becoming affiliates). Some good threads in the Affiliate Issues section. To include a number of affiliates programs enforcing retroactive terms and conditions on their “partners”.


The Attic

The Casinomeister Bar and Grill – is a place to chill out, kick off your shoes, grab a beer, and chat. Thanks guys for setting this up, drinks are on the house!


This was only the tip of the iceberg called Casinomeister. There are loads of threads I wasn’t able to review before getting these awards out.

And if you are not a member, why not? You are missing out on a lot of interaction with some very cool people – and a few lunatics as well. You can register here.

I am grateful for such a fantastic community. Thank you everyone. Peace brothers and sisters.

Forum Highlights Historical Awards

Forum Highlights of 2015 – Both a crazyman’s and a gambler’s dream
Forum Highlights of 2014 – Both a crazyman’s and a gambler’s dream
Forum Highlights of 2013 – It was a wild year
Forum Highlights of 2012 – A whole bunch of stuff
Forum Highlight of 2011 – De-roguing Grand Privé, Questions on RTP, Casinos and Responsive Gambling
Forum Highlight of 2010 – A Poll that Made a Difference
Forum Highlight of 2009 – Software Provider Intervenes with Rogue Casino
Forum Highlight of 2008 – Cynthial and Swede gettin’ hitched

Casino Representative of 2016

“Problem solvers and amicable ladies and gents”

best casino representative 2016

Casino reps are one of the main focal points of the forum. They are there to assist, to inform, and occasionally for us to beat up on. There are quite a few very active casino reps, but one who really stands out this year is Mark from 32Red.

Not only is he posting regular special promotions for our members, but he also regularly participates in threads, answering questions about industry matters and software issues and taking care of any player complaint that comes his way. He is not only well-informed, but he is a regular part of our community. This is the second award for Mark – so he is doing something right.

Good going Mark – tell your bosses you deserve a raise.

Casino Representative Historical Awards

Casino Representative of 2015 Mark 32Red Plc
Casino Representative of 2014 – BETAT

Member Achievement Award 2016

“Jetset”

Our forum is, hands down, fist over fist, the best online gaming community in existence. Why? Well, it ain’t because of me (unless you absolutely think so). It’s because of our awesome members. Many of whom have been actively participating for over a decade. I take this moment to give honors to Member Achievement: Jetset.

Jetset first joined us on 22nd February 2001, and with his first post he came across well informed with great advice. It concerned the dodgy operation Californiablackjack and 07-LadyLuck Casino:

Californiablackjack & 07-ladyluck

I’ve seen worried players posting about 07-Ladyluck on a number of occasions before and they were not happy about it or the responses from Jungle Management.

It’s a Chartwell Tech (or whatever their offshore name is these days) powered Java casino with a Belize license and I think it has a relationship with Truimph Casino (or Casino Truimph!)

As Bryan advises – if you can get your deposit back, get out and save yourself a great deal of stress.”

That set a precedence for just about every post he has made since then: balanced, informative, and genuinely well-meaning.

Fast forward to 16 years later, Jetset has been thanked 6935 times, has 38,117 reputation posts, and has over 13,000 posts in total.

Jetset has contributed a hell of a lot to this forum. His infopowa news briefs, his conference round-ups, his assistance in helping players get answers from providers, and his giving expert advice to the young and old. This forum would not be the same without him. He has made his mark on Casinomeister.

meister_meeting4

So here is a toast to the venerable Jetset.

R-L KasinoKing, Jetset, and Ted Loh – Meister Meeting 2008 – Meister Meeting 2008

Most Annoying Forum Member 2016

“Like a gift that keeps on giving – annoying members”

Each year, we deal with several thousand members, most of whom are rational, balanced people who are courteous and well-adjusted to their social environment. That said, there are those who are flat-out annoying and, at times, just plain offensive. Sometimes, they are able to be coherent – but it’s when they become belligerent and annoying that the moderators step in.

The Most Annoying Forum Member award is reserved for these members – those who are just plain annoying.

Roulettedonkey was one of these. Most of his posts were grating and troll-like – railing about “rigged” casinos. If you believe they are rigged, then stop playing.

He had an issue with getting along with others. Getting along with others is how one survives in a community. If you can’t get along – in other words – have the skill to be convincing in one’s arguments or learn how to properly give and take – you might find yourself ostracized or banished into the woods. This is what happens in communities offline and online.

And this is what happened to Roulettedonkey.

I was in the midst of welcoming Casino Rewards into the Accredited Section – which was a feat in itself, and this guy hijacked the thread because he was upset about spam.
He accused the casino of sending him spam emails to his account after he had these returned, saying he was dead. Well, for one, it was an affiliate webmaster who was sending him these emails – not the casino and another thing is that this guy really wasn’t dead.

But the thing is, Roulettedonkey behaved like this casino sent him an anthrax-powered envelope bomb in the mail. He called the casino employees f*&^ers and posted a grotesque caricature of a Third Reich jew. What. The. F*&^?

So his account was swiftly bootified, and he will never be allowed to reopen another account in our forum.

It just boggles my mind when I think about these sorts of people and wonder how they get along with life. What makes them think stuff like this is funny – and what sort of mental illness do some of my members have? It’s sad, really – and extremely annoying.

You can read the full posting here: Casino Rewards Spams Dead People

Most Annoying Forum Member Historical Awards

Most Annoying Forum Member of 2015 – kevinhopf
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2014 – Johnnygotthebon, fishby5, bpb, Chillbill, hakapuku
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2013 – WWW420XE
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2012 – Lady Soitaire
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2011 – Year of the Trolls
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2010 – Group Award – Sore Losers
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2009 – JHV
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2008 – Group Award – Ass Clowns
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2007 – ThodorisK
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2006 – Thesmacker
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2005 – Bethug
Most Annoying Forum Member of 2004 – hahacasino

Fan Mail 2016

“Don’t feed the trolls!”

award_beer

Every year I get crap loads of emails from people from all walks of life – most of it is just fine, some of is spammy, but sometimes it’s not so good. I can’t complain too much since this year really wasn’t all that bad. I few idiots – but really not too bad. Peruse the Fan Mail awards archives and prepare your eyeballs to be melted.

Anyway, this is just an example of some of the morons I deal with:

When you sign up to the forum, you are supposed to read the instructions and follow them. One is to check your emails and find the one that can activate your account, click the link, and voila – you can post messages etc., because you have an active account.

I was checking the forum emails in October and discovered this:

I can’t believe I can’t complain about slots inferno because I live in US …no madder where you live if they are acting like crooks then something needs to be done about it …they won’t pay that, my complaint ..they should be held accountable for there actions …they and super nove give online gamble  a bad name … I getting to the point where i dont trust none of you ..including this site …the only reason you dont want USA comments is because the FBI AND OTHERS WILL SHUT YOUR ASS DOWN AND THE CASINOS so in a sence you in it with the casinos

and

just delete you sending me email ..buy law there is supposed to be a link on the email ..so stop this fucking shit a delete it

I saw this and responded:

Hi Matthew,

There is a link. It’s referring you to your profile, where you chose to receive email notifications for private messages.

But no worries, since you are too busy to deal with your forum account, I’ll happily deal with it for you.

Sincerely,

Bryan

and also

Dear Matthew,

No one said you couldn’t complain about Slotsinferno. If you had actually checked the site, you would have seen that they are listed in our rogue casino section.

We welcome folks from the US – in fact we have the US site http://casinomeister.us which is geared towards our US-based members.

Too bad you forfeited your account membership with your obnoxious, poorly written emails. Take a hike.

Cheers!

Bryan

Oops – I made him mad.

poor this  go fuck yourself and your site blowsÂ

And I couldn’t resist. I rarely ever respond to emails like this, but I was in a mood to do so.

Hi Matthew,

It takes a big man to hide behind an email address. I bet you wouldn’t say that to me in person. And if you did, I’d mop the street with your face.

Have a great day.

Bryan

And what did expect?

I DONT THINK YOU COULD ……SAY WHAT YOU SAY BEHIND A EMAIL ..SEE I NO FOR A FACT I WOULD KILL YOU ..AND IF YOU KEEP RUNNNING YOUR MOUTH I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN TELL YOU WHO I AM THEN KILL YOU THEN MAYBE JUST MAYBE ON HOW ANGRY I AM ILL GO AFTER YOUR FAMILY …SO WATCH WHO YOUR FUCKING WITH ..IF YOU WANT TO SEE FOR YOUR LAST DAYS GIVE ME YOUR ADDRESS OR I CAN DO IT THE EASY WAY FROM THE NETÂ

LOL – don’t feed the trolls. And what would I expect from a guy using an email address like: shocker666pain@gmail.com

More fan mail from 2016 here:Evil Player Award of 2016

Fan Mail Historical Awards

Fan Mail of 2015 cretins, morons, and twats
Fan Mail of 2014 – frank.j.faber
Fan Mail of 2013 – Shamrock7s
Fan Mail of 2012 – boby’s reply
Meltdown of 2011 – All TopGames Casinos are Down! DDos Attacks!!