Online gambling and online betting is one of the most
popular activities that people go online for. All over the world, a growing
number of people - mostly recreational or professional gamblers or bettors -
are looking to the internet to get their gambling fix. These people are
realizing that using online gambling sites or online betting sites is not only
a great alternative to going to brick and mortar casinos or betting stations.
It also offers a slew of benefits that make it a very attractive option for
many people. Online betting sites offer convenience because you do not need to
go and prepare for a long drive just to place your bets. Secondly, you can make
real time research on your bets (the sports teams you bet on or the horses that
you want to put your money in) online and after you have made your decision you
can immediately place your bets all without leaving your computer chair.
Because of the growing popularity of online betting sites,
more and more companies are setting up and operating online betting sites.
These sites offer different features and entice bettors and gamblers with a
tremendous array of offers, bonuses and incentives so that they will their
betting sites.
We all know though that a site that offers a million and
one incentives and bonuses does not necessarily mean that it is the most
effective and safest choice out there. What is still more important is
usability, safety and usability. Customers must learn to distinguish the hype
from the actual meat of a website.
One online betting site that has been gaining a lot of
attention online is betfair.com, a London-based online betting site that has
been successfully catering to the online betting needs of bettors and gamblers
all over the world.
betfair.com is owned by and registered to The Sporting
Exchange, Ltd., a limited liability company in England and Wales.
The Company was founded in August 1999 by Edward Wray and
Andrew Black as way of commercializing their proprietary betting technology
that they have been developing for over a year.
The said betting technology being used by betfair.com is
considered as proprietary and, as such, is protected by copyright. The
technology is the subject of a patent application that was recently filed with
the United Kingdom Patent Office.
This is a marked advantage over other betting sites
because proprietary technology is considered as more secure compared to
commercial software because it is not used by other websites and other people
who may be able to find exploits to the software. With proprietary software,
only the developer gets to use the technology and if they decide that they are
not going to share this technology then they can do so. Another advantage with
proprietary technology is that any problems with the software is immediately
fixed because the user is also the developer. This is quite critical for a site
that actually deals with large amounts of money where security is always a
major concern.
Bettingfair.com has all the requisite documents that would
allow it to operate legally - another major concern especially for first time
gamblers or bettors. In fact, the website has a bookmaker's permit in England
and Wales.
Look and Accessibility
betfair.com is a well structured and aesthetically
pleasing website. The people who thought of the layout, the theme and the color
scheme have obviously thought through the whole process of designing the
website because, although there are many elements in the home page, it does not
look overwhelming. There is just enough white space in between each entry to
make it relaxing to the eyes and not look as if it has been crammed full of
numbers and other data.
The navigation bar on the left is very intuitive and quite
easy to use. Each section of the website is represented on the left and
depending on what you click would reveal the subsections until you get to the
specific information or subsection that you need to visit. Clicking on the
previous section would then bring you back to the "mother" subsection until you
get back to the general category. And since this bar was done in frames, the
main part of the page on the right remains static - a very helpful feature for
a website where information is in constant demand and accessed frequently.
This is in stark contrast to the website of one of its
main rivals Betdaq.co.uk , which uses a garish purple color and where all of the data
and information on the front page is crammed full of data and numbers. You get
the feeling that everything is crammed full to brimming with that kind of
design that casual bettors will likely be turned off, thinking that it is too
complicated. Veteran bettors may not be deterred to use that system but it will
surely make their task a lot more harder to do.
Content and mechanics
Betfair.com follows the usual dialogues and mechanics that
bettors are familiar with. All of the information for betting is presented in a
straightforward fashion so that clients are not confused and would not make any
mistakes in using betfair.com's services. For example, the match odds for a
particular sporting event is easily accessible and the matched amounts are also
prominently displayed. A great advantage of using betfair.comis that almost
all of the sporting events and even casino games can be accessed from the
website, offering a "one stop shop" level of variety that avid bettors would
truly appreciate.
betfair.com also offers some wonderful aids to bettors
like an odds converter and even a Betfair Play For Fun feature where bettors of
all experience levels can hone their skills by playing the bettings game using
"betfair dollars". This adds a level of sophistication to the website that is
hard to match.
Of course not everything is a bed of roses for
betfair.com. First of all, all of these great features come at a premium. The
betting site has one of the highest commission rates at 3 to 5 per cent.
Contrast that with the commission rate of rival Betdaq.co.uk , that only amounts to 2
to 3 per cent.
Secondly, betfair.com services is closed to American
bettors (maybe because of the country's stricter laws against online gambling).
But despite a couple of weak points, betfair.com is still
the cream of the crop when it comes to online betting sites. Bettors will not
regret using their superb services.
Malcolm writes "The Horse racings system daily Tip"
newsletter that contains information and advice about horse racing systems and
tipsters. Subscribe free at. http://www.horseracingsystemsuk.com
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