Monthly Archives: July 2015

Jackpots in July at Betsson Mobile Casino!

Something strange and wonderful has been going on at online and mobile casinos this month…all across the net, players have been hitting life changing jackpots! Some of the biggest wins of the month have taken place at Betsson Casino, with not just one but two large jackpots being hit by two lucky players, both from Germany!

The first and largest jackpot totalling a whopping €3,023,721 was won by a 23 year old woman whose €0.50 bet made her Betsson’s latest multi-millionaire.

According to the winner who has chosen to remain anonymous, after signing up at the casino she immediately downloaded the mobile app and received a message about the Mega Fortune promotion which peaked her interest. So as soon as her kids were in bed, she and her husband decided to play and the impossible happened…they hit the jackpot and ended up jumping around their living room.

The couple who live in Hessen Germany with their young family plan to share their winnings by donating a portion thereof to a local children’s charity, which means that not only their own young family, but many others will benefit from their good fortune.

The second winner, a 29 year old man from Hannover, Germany hit a €553,064 on Dream Chance jackpot in Oily Business after wagering just €2.50! Talk about returns!

The player, who had just signed up to the casino was still playing with his first deposit on his mobile phone when he won the jackpot.

According to the man, he had been suffering from insomnia and was trying out his newly downloaded Betsson app when his luck changed and he just stared at his phone in disbelief before telling his girlfriend what had happened.

These two wins just go to show that no matter where you are your luck can change at any time and while you’re enjoying your favourite casino games, you may just become one of Betsson casino’s next big winners! So play now!

Microgaming Progressives Pass the 8 Million Mark

July has been a month for massive progressive jackpot wins at Playtech powered online casinos, with over £4 million being paid out in just one week – a feat that is simply unheard of. The first win was a massive £3.7 million which was won on the Beach Life Progressive slot, and the second win of £450,000 paid out just days later on the Chests of Plenty online slot.

Not to be outdone though, Microgaming powered online casino like Betway Casino are celebrating a milestone of their own, with their progressive jackpot prize pool passing the £/€/$8 million mark!

The software giant’s progressive jackpot pool (which at the time of publishing has exceeded the £/€/$8.2 million mark) runs across popular titles like Batman: The Dark Knight, Mega Moolah and Mega Moolah Isis, all of which are available for play at Microgaming powered online casinos like Betway.

Head of Casino at Microgaming, John Quinn commented that the company has been watching the Mega Progressive ticker growing rapidly over the last few months, adding that the anticipation is building and there is much speculation over when it will be triggered.

While most other providers apply maximum payout limits to their progressive jackpot payouts, when the Microgaming Mega jackpot is hit, the sum which will be life-changing for one very lucky player, will be paid out in a lump sum – a feature unique to Microgaming powered online casinos. The payout will also be made in the currency in which the player was playing in.

So if you’re feeling lucky, there has never been a better time to play one of Microgaming’s Mega progressives – you may just be their next multi-millionaire!

Battle over online gambling tax referred to Europe’s Court of Justice

uk gambling tax

Earlier this year the UK introduced a new taxation on gambling known as Point of Consumption (PoC) tax which imposed a 15% duty on all online gaming profits generated within the United Kingdom.

Since the introduction of this new system online gambling firms have been locked in a heated battle with the Government on the subject, addressing the issue in the courts with the Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association (GBCA) representing a number of online gambling companies fighting it out with HM Revenue & Customs department.

Recently the dispute has escalated after the High Court ruled that the matter should be referred to the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for a decision.

The big issue for most online gambling organizations like William Hill Casino Club is that they have established their online casinos and sportsbooks in low or tax free areas – a loophole which until now, has served them well in maintaining profitability.

The GBCA, on behalf of online gaming companies based in the British Overseas Territory has challenged the new PoC tax in the British courts and the referral to the CJEU has those concerned abuzz that the taxation will be found to be unlawful in a final hearing, dealing HMRC a significant blow.

According to Numis analyst Ivor Jones, the CJEU will be required to rule on whether the UK Government’s creation of this tax law are legitimate or not. He added that the government may be vulnerable due to the fact that the law diminishes the competitive advantage of offshore operators while increase the UK’s tax revenue – a concept that may be regarded as unacceptable if the implementation thereof reduces EU competition.

Numis added that in theory the UK Government may be obliged to refund all the tax that it has collected since the implementation of their new regime. Given the political influence of the debates surrounding Europe, the UK Government may seek to resolve the issue before it is brought before the court.

A spokesperson for the HMRC painted an entirely different picture however stating that there has been no judgement against the UK tax on online gambling and that the department remained confident that the Point of Consumption tax regime is lawful. He added that they would consider the final judgement in full before any further comments would be made.

Playtech’s Beach Life Progressive hits at £3.7 million

Playtech’s Beach Life Progressive Online Slot is one that most slots enthusiasts have had their eye on for some time due to the fact that it recently exceeded the £3.5 million mark. Of course, every big jackpot must payout eventually and this week a UK based player known as “Hilton” hit the jackpot and walked away with a massive £3.7 million win.

This jackpot total is the second largest in Playtech’s 16 year history, making Hilton an exceedingly lucky guy. According to BGO Casino where the Jackpot was won, Hilton (not Paris Hilton who is a brand ambassador for the firm) played 50p per line (or £10 per spin) to unlock five sunshine symbols and change his life forever.

Beach Life is one of Playtech’s most popular progressive slots titles and also holds the record for the largest ever Jackpot win amounting to an unbelievable $8.2 million in February of 2012.

The £3.7 million prize is a whopping 379,904 times Hilton’s original bet and to put it all in true perspective, around 142 times the average U.K. salary.

When interviewed about his life-changing win, Hilton who has chosen not to reveal his identity, was still in shock, commenting that things like this always happen to other people. He said that as yet he does not have plans to spend the money but will be treating his parents to a bungalow and ensuring that his nieces and nephews get a good start to life. The player was due to go away on holiday in the UK, but we’re sure he’ll be setting his vacation sites a whole lot further afield in future, if not enjoying the beach life permanently.

COO, Shimon Akad related that the win was a tremendous one on one of Playtech’s most popular slots and at one of their newest licensees (BGO casino went live on the Playtech platform earlier in 2015). He added that the news was an indication that Playtech’s Casino Jackpot Network continues to deliver outstanding results for players.

While it may seem like sunshine and roses, there is a downside to not playing at big UK based operator names like William Hill Casino Club, and that is the fact that not all Playtech powered online casinos payout big jackpot wins like Hilton’s in one lump sum. BGO for example does have a clause which states: Players may withdraw a maximum of £5,000/£25,000/£100,000 per day/week/month. At its sole discretion, the Company may increase these limits at an individual player basis. Whether management will increase the amount for Hilton is unclear, but if not, it will mean that they could take a tedious 3 years to payout the full sum whereas William Hill Casino Club will payout the entire amount in one shot.

And with Playtech’s Progressive Jackpot machines all surpassing the £1 million mark of late, including Monty Python’s Spamalot at £1.8 million, Jackpot Giant at £1.6 million and Funky Fruits at £1.1 million you definitely want to be playing somewhere that will give you your money all at once should you be the next lucky millionaire.

Fancy yourself a Casino Champion?

Betsafe Casino invites you to take up the challenge and become the champion of champions. You won’t need natural talent, good looks, physical gifts or training to stand out from the rest, it’s the ability to rise to the challenge and win!

Each week Betsafe is giving players the opportunity to win a share of €100,000 including Free Spins, Bonuses and Cash!

All you have to do is conquer any of their weekly challenges which involved finding or guessing a certain casino game and/or wagering to emerge as one of 11 Champions in order to enter the semi-finals and then select any of the championship prizes including Cash Prizes, VIP trips, sporting event tickets or some of the coolest gadgets making up the €100,000 prize pool.

Then as one of the finalists you will compete in a series of Blackjack Tournaments where you can put your blackjack skills and strategy to the test and the victor will be crowned Betsafe’s “All Time Champion“, walking away with a massive €20,000 cash prize.

To take part, all you have to do is follow the instructions posted in each weeks Challenge, then complete the challenge and choose the prize that you would like to win. If you make it to the semi-finals you’ll compete in one of the Betsafe Blackjack Tournaments on the 20th or 21st of August 2015.

The top three champions in each semi-final will advance to the Final Round Blackjack tournament where they will be given a set number of chips, and the last player left with chips will be the victor who claims the €20,000 cash prize.

So if you’re a casino fan and avid blackjack player and fancy yourself a champion, then visit Betsafe Casino now to enter! There are only 6 challenges left, so hurry!