GLOSSARY

Account: a record kept by the operator, which shall at all times be accessible to the customer, which shows the customer’s credit against the operator, taking into account all wagers placed and all prizes won by the customer and any other debits or credits as may be permitted by the applicable terms and conditions.

ACH (Automated Clearing House): is an electronic network for financial transactions in the United States. ACH processes large volumes of credit and debit transactions in batches. ACH credit transfers include direct deposit payroll and vendor payments. Debit transfers also include new applications such as the point of purchase (POP) check conversion pilot program sponsored by NACHA The Electronic Payments Association. Both the government and the commercial sectors use ACH payments. Businesses increasingly use ACH online to have customers pay, rather than via credit or debit cards.

Add on: in poker, the facility to buy additional chips in tournaments.

ADW (Advance Deposit Wagering): a form of wagering in which an individual deposits money into an account with an entity authorized to conduct wagering, then uses the account funds to pay for wagers made in person, by telephone, or through communication by other electronic means.

Affiliate Customer: a person who having arrived at the Site directly via a Link then registers with the Site on such visit and then places at least one real money bet via the Site, either on that visit or a subsequent visit.

Affiliate Marketer: a person who develops marketing sites to attract gamblers and then takes a percentage of the play from any customer they sent to an operator. This is one of the key forms of marketing in the online gaming industry.

Aggregate Limit: total payout liability of a casino during any one game.

All in (Also known as “Going All In”): in card room poker, to call with (to bet) all your chips. If another player bets more chips than you have in a No Limit game, you can go All in and stake your total stack against an equivalent amount of your opponent’s stack.

AML (Anti Money Laundering): is a term mainly used in the financial and legal industries to describe the legal controls that require financial institutions and other regulated entities to prevent, detect and report money laundering activities. Anti money laundering guidelines came into prominence globally as a result of the formation of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the promulgation of an international framework of anti money laundering standards. These standards began to have more relevance in 2000 and 2001 after FATF began a process to publicly identify countries that were deficient in their anti money laundering laws and international cooperation, a process colloquially known as “name and shame.”

Ante: in card games, a bet required to begin a hand. The initial compulsory bet before you receive your cards in Casino Stud Poker.

API (Application Protocol Interface): is a source code based specification intended to be used as an interface by software components to communicate with each other. An API may include specifications for routines, data structures, object classes, and variables. An API specification can take many forms, including an International Standard such as Posix or vendor documentation such as the Microsoft Windows API, or the libraries of a programming language, e.g. Standard Template Library in C++ or Java API.

AVS (Adult Verification System): is a computing system used by a website to confirm that the user attempting to access their website is of the age required (usually by law) to view the website’s content, which typically includes sex, nudity, gambling, violence or profanity, or Entertainment Software Rating Board rated content.

Baccarat: also called Punto Banco and Chemin De Fer (similar to Baccarat but requires skill). A table game using 6 or 8 decks of cards which does not require skill.

Banked game: in a player banked game, the money wagered by the players is either put against the funds of one other single player who acts as “the bank” (much as in a house  banked game), or it is put into a common pool of funds that is then distributed to the winner (or winners) when the game (hand) is over. Player banked games include many variations of live poker games, special variations of blackjack such as California Aces, and pari mutuel games in which wagers are placed on results of horse or dog races and jai alai games in the United States and Canada.

Banker: in card games, the dealer. In some card games, each player becomes a banker/dealer in turn.

Bankroll: the total money that either the player or the casino has on hand to back their wagering activities. A player’s bankroll can be classified as existing on several different levels. At the highest level, it pertains to all money specifically set aside to support all gambling activities. These bankrolls often figure into the overall money management strategy  the player uses to keep control over their gambling cash activity.

Barred or banned: a person not allowed to enter the casino premises permanently. Black Book: the list of undesirable people who are forbidden to enter any casino in Nevada.

Betting Exchange: this is a peer to peer betting system which provides “trading” facilities for retail or bookmaker customers to buy and sell contracts. Contracts are structured as binary options. Betting exchanges trade heavily of sports and racing markets, but some also include elections and current events markets. Exchanges typically charge a commission, often a percentage of net winnings/customer.

Betting Limits: in a table game, the minimum and maximum amounts of money that a player can wager on one bet. You cannot wager less than the minimum or more than the maximum amount posted. Some casinos, in special cases, may extend the maximum limit at a table on request by the player.

Bonus Abuse: see Irregular Playing Patterns

Bonus Game: Bonus Video Slots differ from standard video slots because they feature a bonus game which does not follow the reel slots format. When playing the standard reel game, a certain symbol or combination of symbols will activate the bonus game. These symbols are called bonus symbols, and often come in the form of scatter symbols. Scatter symbols are particular bonus symbols that must appear in any number on the screen   no matter how scattered they are on the screen. If a player gets a certain number of scatters at one time (3, for example), the bonus video slots game is activated. The bonus game follows the theme of the bonus video slots machine.

Bots: gambling bots are software which use a gambling website’s Application programming interface (API) to speed up the process of placing bets based upon a gambling system or betting strategy to decide which bets to place. Gambling bots are disliked by many professional gamblers, as a human player obviously cannot compete, as a bot is directly linked to the site and processes odds faster than any human player. In addition, bots never get nervous or suffer from misgivings about their bets and thus achieve results efficiently and in short periods of time. On the down side, these applications could very well lose very quickly if set up incorrectly or minor mistakes are made in coding.

Break Even Point: the break even point is the point at which if you played forever, the bets you made would approximately equal the payoffs you would receive.

Buy in: converting cash into chips. The amount of cash used to purchase casino chips before entering a table game: blackjack, poker, craps, roulette, etc.

Capping: referred to capping of bets. Placing extra chips on top of initial bet after the deal has begun. It is a serious form of cheating by a player.

Card Counting: used in blackjack game. Recording (in memory) played cards (usually high cards) so as to establish a conditional probability advantage on the remaining cards against the dealer.

Caribbean Stud Poker: Also called ‘Casino Stud Poker’, a casino table game based on the standard 5 card stud poker game played on a Blackjack type table. Some casinos also offer a progressive jackpot paid to high ranking hands. This table game is played with one deck of cards.

Cash equivalents: short term, highly liquid investments (including payment processor retention reserves) that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and which are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.

Cash: cash on hand and demand deposits.

Cash check: a feature used by some online casinos software that allows you to review your financial transaction history.

Casino Advantage: the edge that the House (casino) has over the players.

Chargeback: A chargeback is the return of funds to a consumer, forcibly initiated by the consumer’s issuing bank.

Chips: round plastic discs. Casinos require that you use chips for betting. They are purchased at the gaming tables and exchanged at the cashier’s booth or cage.

Clearing inactive accounts: the process whereby an operator transfers funds from an inactive account, to be accounted for separately in the operator’s financial records, and made available to the customer according to the published terms and conditions.

COBIT (Control OBjectives for IT): is a framework created by ISACA for information technology (IT) management and IT Governance. It is a supporting toolset that allows managers to bridge the gap between control requirements, technical issues and business risks.

Coded Transaction: All credit card transactions are coded according to Merchant Category Codes (MCC). The internet gaming code is 7995. Depending on the jurisdiction, the credit card companies may block this code.

Company: either an operator or software provider, as applicable.

Complaint: a  matter of  dissatisfaction  expressed by  a customer  which  is required  to  be resolved by the operator.

Compliance officer: a person who has been authorised to act on behalf of a company, in a capacity of ensuring compliance with applicable Control Measures, laws and regulations.

Cooling off: the process by which a customer voluntarily requests their own account be temporarily locked in order to prevent them from participating in further gambling. The cooling off period may be anywhere from 24 hours to less than 6 months. It is not the period of time a customer is required to wait after terminating a self exclusion period.

CPA (Cost per Acquisition): is a method of advertising whereby the advertiser only pays when an advert delivers an acquisition. Moreover, CPA is very effective for an advertiser to pay because they only pay when the advertising has met its purpose. The publisher relies on the conversion rate of the advertiser’s web site, something which the publisher cannot control. CPA model is not usually used for banner advertising and is usually linked with affiliate marketing.

Credit: in online casinos, wagers are expressed in credits. 1 credit equals to 1 unit.

Cryptographic controls: controls to hide or obscure the contents of information transfer or stored data. Includes encryption and hash functions.

Customers: any person who is over the legal age of majority as defined by the Regulatory Authority, and participates in remote gambling.

Data mining: searching through a mountain of stats to find winning trends, angles, situations that could be used as the basis for a bet.

Deposit: funding paid by the customer via a payment service provider into the customer’s gambling account.

Dispute: a complaint submitted by a customer which has not been resolved by the operator and is consequently escalated to a third party mediator or arbitrator.

Diversion Pool: a secondary progressive jackpot pool to which player contributions are diverted once the primary progressive jackpot has grown to a prescribed quantity of funds. Once the primary progressive jackpot has been won, the secondary progressive jackpot amount is used to seed the primary progressive jackpot in preparation for the next cycle.

DOF (Degree of Freedom): equal to one less than the total number of possible outcomes. For example, with a 52 card deck, the DOFs are equal to 51.

Doubling up: the basis of some widely used systems. After a loss, the player doubles the size of his previous bet hoping to win back the money lost and make a profit. Also known as the Martingale System.

ECOGRA (e Commerce Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance): provides player assurance and online casino regulation by ensuring that eCOGRA approved online casinos deliver an honest and professional service. eCOGRA’s Seal, displayed on the homepage of approved sites, shows that the casino and poker room operator is committed to player protection, fair gaming and responsible conduct.

EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer): is the electronic exchange or transfer of money from one account to another, either within a single financial institution or across multiple institutions, through computer based systems.

EGD (Electronic Gaming Device): is a microprocessor controlled electronic device that allows a player to play games of chance, some of which are affected by skill. The device is activated by the insertion of a coin, token, or currency, or by the use of credit, and awards game credits, cash, tokens, replays, or a written statement of the player’s accumulated credits, which is redeemable for cash.

Electronic Wallet: allows users to make electronic commerce transactions quickly and securely. A digital wallet functions much like a physical wallet. The digital wallet was first conceived as a method of storing various forms of electronic money (e cash), but with little popularity of such e cash services, the digital wallet has evolved into a service that provides internet users with a convenient way to store and use online shopping information.

Employees: all persons actively employed or engaged with a remote gambling operation.

Emulation: all submitted games must exhibit ‘Emulation Capability’ for testing purposes. This means that all games must have a mode of operation that is alternate to the standard / live version of the game (i.e.: to be activated and operated in the test environment only) whereby the game outcomes can be artificially introduced into the system by the user (i.e.: the tester), processed by the same game logic as the standard / live version of the game, and then displayed to the user for testing purposes.

Expected Win Rate: in slot machines, the percentage on the total amount of money wagered that you can expect to win back over time.

FATF (Financial Action Task Force): this is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7. The purpose of the FATF is to develop policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. The FATF Secretariat is housed at the headquarters of the OECD in Paris.

Fees: the costs levied to a customer as a result of a funding transaction (deposit or withdrawal) from their gaming account, or other consumer initiated actions that are subject to fees as covered by the published terms and conditions in force.

Financial reconciliation: the matching of transactions with an economic value and noting those transactions where a corresponding match does not exist, for future investigation.

Financial transaction: is an agreement, communication, or movement carried out between separate entities or objects, often involving the exchange of items of value, such as information, goods, services, and money. It is still a transaction if you exchange the goods at one time, and the money at another. This is known as a two part transaction, part one is giving the money, part two is receiving the goods.

Fish: A player who loses money. (It is said that “If you can’t spot the fish at the table, YOU are the fish.)

Flash: a type of no download casino software where you can play instantly.

Flat Betting: a way of betting where the same amount is bet on each wager. For example, if a player always bets  £10 on each hand or spin and never raised or lowered their bet, they would be said to be flat betting.

Flat Top: a slot machine whose jackpot is always a fixed amount, as opposed to a progressive.

Free play: the participation in games where no deposit was required from the customer and no actual monetary value is attributable to the customer.

Full exclusion: the process by which a customer’s own account is permanently locked in order to prevent them from further gambling.

Gambling site: the website of the operator from which customers can access and/or download gambling software.

Gambling software: the application from which the customer accesses the games, customer account information and payment facilities.

Gambling: all types of games involving wagering or betting a stake with monetary value in games in which participants may win, in full or in part, a monetary prize based, totally or partially, on chance or uncertainty of an outcome.

Game pay tables: the illustration, in tabular format, of the game outcome and associated payout.

Gaming vs. gambling: while some people assume the word gaming was created as a way to “re invent” the casino industry, history tells a different story. The word “gaming”—defined as the action or habit of playing at games of chance for stakes—actually dates back to 1510, predating use of the word “gambling” by 265 years. The words “gambler,” “gambling” and “gamble” all were considered slang when they came into use in the 18th century, implying that the activity involved unduly high stakes. The word “gamble” was essentially considered a term of reproach, according to The Oxford English Dictionary, and would only be used by those  who  “condemn  playing  for  money altogether.”  In  1891,  even  The  Anti Gambling Association referred to the activity as “gaming” in a publication: “Before the third crusade, there was no check upon the gaming vice, and no limit to the stakes. … During subsequent reigns gaming, although generally condemned, was vigorously pursued.” Casinos in Nevada have been referred to as part of the “gaming” industry ever since they were legalized there in 1931. As the industry expanded outside of Nevada, it continued to carry that name. As opposed to the business term “gaming,” the word “gamble” is now commonly used to refer to the actual activity. A 1987 reference dictionary uses the two terms interchangeably, defining gaming as “the playing of games of chance for stakes; gambling.” (Sources: The Oxford English Dictionary, 1989; Fools of Fortune by James Philip Quinn, Chicago, 1891; Dictionary of Gambling and Gaming, by Thomas L. Clark, 1987)

Geolocation: technical services available to i gaming operators so that the actual location of the gamblers on their sites are discernible.

Gross Win: The total payout (including your stake).

Hand: refers to the cards that you hold, or to everything that  happens in a card game between shuffles of the deck.

Handle: refers to the total amount of money wagered.

High roller: A player that wagers big bets.

Hit frequency: is the term casinos use to describe how often a machine will stop on a winning combination. For example, if a machine has a hit frequency of 8%, it means that the machine will stop on a winning combination about 8% of the time. It’s worth noting that many slots and VLTs allow players to bet on multiple lines on each spin. The result is that, on a single spin, a player could get one or more winning combinations, along with numerous losing combinations. To the player, it may feel as though he is winning more often, but as always, over time the losing combinations will far outnumber the winning ones. Among slots and VLTs there can be great variation in the hit frequency. Some slots have a hit frequency as low as 3%, while other games, such as video poker, have a hit frequency of almost 45%. The video poker hit frequency might sound very appealing, but remember that in almost half of those “hits,” the player just wins back his original bet. A machine with a 3% hit frequency may sound very unappealing, but it likely offers players a chance to win a very large jackpot. (Machines with large, progressive jackpots tend to have a lower hit frequency, but offer larger jackpots.) Games with a low hit frequency are often perceived by players as “tight” because the wins can be so far apart, while games with a high hit frequency are sometimes perceived as being “loose” because there are so many small wins.

ICS/MICS (Internal Control System): Before a licensee can go fully “live” or operational, there are several areas of operations which will need to be confirmed and approved. Essentially, the regulator will need to approve: an internal control system, gambling equipment and the licensee’s capitalization status. An internal control system is the document which outlines all relevant internal procedures.

IDS (Intrusion Detection System): is a device or software application that monitors network and/or system activities for malicious activities or policy violations and produces reports to a Management Station. Some systems may attempt to stop an intrusion attempt but this is neither required nor expected of a monitoring system. Intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDPS) are primarily focused on identifying possible incidents, logging information about them, and reporting attempts.

IGS (Internet Gaming System): software that is specific to each individual game that is hosted or offered on the base website. Each game is to be treated as a separate and distinct entity.

Inactive Account: an account is considered to be inactive if the player has not logged into the account for a time period typically specified in the documented and published Terms & Conditions for the IGS.

Inactive customer account: an account is considered inactive when there is no customer initiated activity or contact for a period of time defined by the operator in their terms and conditions.

Intra state–interstate: used to describe the transmission of wagers completely within one state (intra state) and the transmission of wagers between and among various states (inter  state). The Department of Justice has traditionally taken the position that an intra state wager will necessarily employ facilities beyond that state’s borders and that such a wager is, therefore, an interstate wager and in violation of the Wire Act.

IP (Internet Protocol): is the method or protocol by which data is sent from one computer to another on the Internet. Each computer (known as a host) on the Internet has at least one IP address that uniquely identifies it from all other computers on the Internet.

Irregular Playing Patterns: generally refers to what is known as “bonus abuse”. Online casinos that offer bonuses may require the player to play a certain number of spins/hands, or wager a certain amount of cash to qualify for the bonus. Irregular betting patterns are signs of players who aren’t playing regularly (i.e. to win money) but are trying to meet those requirements with minimal risk of losing money in order to claim the bonuses.

ISO (International Standards Organization): family of standards relates to quality management systems and is designed to help organizations ensure they meet the needs of customers and other stakeholders. The standards are published by ISO, the International Organization for Standardization, and available through National standards bodies.

ISS (Information Systems Security): refers to the Administrative Controls, Technical Controls and Physical & Environment Controls necessary for the secure, safe and auditable operation of the IGS.

Jackpot: a combination on a slot machine that wins a top prize or all the coins available for paying out.

Junket: Casino Junkets or Casino Complimentary Travel are trips offered to gambling customers, called VIP players, for travel to and play at a particular casino. Depending on the player, the hosting casino will pay some or all of the VIP player’s travel and accommodation costs in exchange for undertaking to play at the casino during the players stay. VIP players are usually obliged to agree to minimum deposit in advance, normally in the region of  £5,000, and commit to a number of hours playing at the paying casino.

Jurisdiction: the practical authority granted to a formally constituted legal body to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility.

KYC (Know Your Customer): is the due diligence and bank regulation that financial institutions and other regulated companies must perform to identify their clients and ascertain relevant information pertinent to doing financial business with them. In the USA, KYC is typically a policy implemented to conform to a customer identification program mandated under the Bank Secrecy Act and USA PATRIOT Act. Know your customer policies are becoming increasingly important globally to prevent identity theft fraud, money laundering and terrorist financing.

LAN (Local Area Network): is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building.

Licence holder: a company that has received explicit permission to operate one or various games in a specific territory or jurisdiction by a regulator or by the government.

Liquidity: Liquidity refers to the availability of players to participate in games. As liquidity rises, so does the variety of opponents that a player encounters as well as the overall chances of being able to play a game against others on demand. Players value high liquidity and the higher the liquidity of a gambling website, the more likely players are to revisit it and so the more successful the site is likely to become. Liquidity pooling refers to the process of combining players from different sources and placing them in an environment where they can gamble against each other.

Live Dealer: video feeds of dealers who are dealing to a set on online players. This form of gambling is popular among Asian players who like live play over machines.

Live Environment: any website offering/hosting actual gambling games for live use by the general public (i.e.: through registered accounts, ‘play for real’) is considered to be operating in the live environment.

Lobby: the lobby is a portal within your casino software that lets you choose which game you want to play and gives you access to all the latest news and promotions.

Location verification: location verification services enable the client to verify his Internet visitor’s location.

Long Run: the number of rounds of play, hands or spins, needed for the ratio of wins to losses to reach a point where they are changed very little by the cumulative effect of outcomes.

Mapping: is the process by which the scaled number is given a symbol or value that is usable and applicable to the current game. For example, the scaled number 51 might be mapped to an ACE OF SPADES.

Maximum Bet: the highest bet you are allowed to make.

MCS (Monitoring and Control Systems).

MID (Merchant ID): merchant accounts are unique accounts which are set up specifically for each merchant, and no matter where you go to open up a merchant account, you will be assigned a merchant ID. A merchant ID allows your business to be identified by the banks and credit card institutions, in order to accept credit card payments on behalf of your business, regardless of which type of services or products you are offering.

Money laundering: the process by which criminals conceal or attempt to conceal the origin of the proceeds of their or others’ criminal activities.

Monopoly: exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity. Monopolies are thus characterized by a lack of economic competition to produce the good or service and a lack of viable substitute goods. The verb “monopolize” refers to the process by which a company gains much greater market share than what is expected with perfect competition.

Multi Player Casino: a feature offered by online casinos that lets you play against other players.

Multi Stage Game: a game having one or more intermediate steps that require player input in order to proceed. Poker and Blackjack are two examples of multi stage games.

Negative Expectation: the long run disadvantage or loss of a given situation without reference to any particular outcome; that is, what you figure to lose on average after a considerable time of play, or after a large number of repetitions of the same situation.

Net Winnings: total payout less your stake.

Odds: ratio of probabilities. The casino’s view of the chance of a player winning. The figure or fraction by which the casino offers to multiply a bettor’s stake, which the bettor is entitled to receive (plus his or her own stake) if they win. Odds (fixed …): fixed odds betting is a form of wagering against odds offered by a bookmaker, an individual, or on a bet exchange. Odds (Payoff…): the form of odds that are conventionally posted in the casinos. Payoff odds specify how much a winning wager will be paid for each wager or chip that was bet. The casinos post the ‘payoff odds’ in terms of the number of chips won relative to the number of chips bet. Odds (Taking the…): there are two fundamental forms of wagering, ‘taking the odds’ and ‘laying the odds’. In most casino games the player is ‘taking the odds’ by wagering an amount that is less than they will receive if they win, that is; if you wager  £1 you would win more than £1. In most forms of sports betting, some odds are so high in favor of the likely winner that winning wagers get paid an amount less than the amount wagered by some percentage, and this is what is meant by ‘laying the odds’. Odds (True …): the real odds of something happening. Actual odds taking into account the casino edge. The ratio of the number of times one event will occur to the number of times that it will not. The odds posted in a casino are usually not the true odds.

Operator: a company conducting remote gambling activities. A firm or individual who manages a gambling house or web site.

Opt in–opt out: terminology used in reference to federal i gaming legislation. Under various Internet gaming legislative schemes, various states and Tribes would alternatively have the rights to “opt in” to a federal scheme (i.e., to put themselves under a federal licensing regime) or to “opt out” of it.

OS (Operating System): is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system. A user cannot run an application program on the computer without an operating system, unless the application program is self booting.

OSSTMM (Open Source Security Testing Methodology Manual): a graphical and / or textual display that clearly communicates all potential win types within a game, including the associated win amount for each win type.

Parimutuel betting: is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the “house take” or “vig” is removed, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all winning bets. In some countries it is known as the Tote after the totalisator which calculates and displays bets already made. The parimutuel system is used in gambling on horse racing, greyhound racing, jai alai, and all sporting events of relatively short duration in which participants finish in a ranked order. A modified parimutuel system is also used in some lottery games.

Payline: the line on a slot machine window on which the symbols from each reel must line up. Slot machines can have as many as 20 paylines, although most have only one.

Payment Processor: is a company (often a third party) appointed by a merchant to handle credit card transactions for merchant banks. They are usually broken down into two types: front end and back end.

Payment requests: a request submitted by a customer to have funds paid out to him from his account.

Payout percentage: the expected percentage of wagers a specific game will return to the customer in the long run. The payout percentage can also be calculated via either a theoretical or simulated approach. The method used for calculation depends on the game type. The economic value gained by the customer occurring from a favourable outcome of a game.

PCI (Payment Card Industry): denotes the debit, credit, prepaid, e purse, ATM, and POS cards and associated businesses. The term is sometimes more specifically used to refer to the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council, a council originally formed by American Express, Discover Financial Services, JCB, MasterCard Worldwide and Visa International on Sept. 7, 2006, with the goal of managing the ongoing evolution of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard. The council itself claims to be independent of the various card vendors that make up the council. The PCI Council formed a body of security standards known as the PCI Data Security Standards, (PCI DSS), and these standards consist of 12 significant requirements including multiple sub requirements which contain numerous directives against which businesses may measure their own payment card security policies, procedures and guidelines. By complying with qualified assessments of these standards, businesses can become accepted by the PCI Standards Council as compliant with the 12 requirements, and thus receive a compliance certification and a listing on the PCI Standards Council website. Compliance efforts and acceptance must be completed on a periodic basis.

Period: is how long before the ‘random’ sequence repeats. It is the output from the RNG sufficient to provide all possible outcomes. In a 52 card deck, requiring an ordered straight flush on the first hand, and assuming that one draws all ten numbers (replacements included) at the beginning of the game, the required number of ORDERED outcomes so that each 5216 outcome may be achieved is P10 = 5.74 X 10. 20 balls drawn from a pot 8018 of 80 balls requires C20 = 3.54 X 10 possible outcomes.

Pigeon: an uneducated, naive, or unsophisticated gambler.

Platform: includes some sort of hardware architecture and a software framework (including application frameworks), where the combination allows software to run. Typical platforms include a computer’s architecture, operating system, programming languages and related user interface (run time system libraries or graphical user interface).

Play for gain: play for “real money”.

Playing the Rush: a poker term referring to a player who has just enjoyed a short run of good luck marked by winning a very large pot of money in one hand or winning several hands in close succession. If the player subsequently begins to play more loosely or more aggressively. they are said to be ‘playing the rush’.

Poker robots: computer software utilised in a poker game to simulate customer activity.

Pot: in a poker game, the amount of money that accumulates in the middle of the table as each player antes, bets, and raises. The pot goes to the winner of the hand.

PPC (Pay per Click): is an Internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, where advertisers pay the publisher (typically a website owner) when the ad is clicked. With search engines, advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market. Content sites commonly charge a fixed price per click rather than use a bidding system. PPC “display” advertisements are shown on web sites with related content that have agreed to show ads. This approach differs from the “pay per impression” methods used in television and newspaper advertising.

Prize: credits with an economic value presented to a customer in recognition of the occurrence of a pre defined event, in favour of the customer.

Probability: a  mathematical  calculation  that establishes the likelihood that an event  will occur. Probabilities are expressed as numbers between 0 and 1. The probability of an impossible event is 0, while an event that is certain to occur has a probability of 1.

Products: the various types of remote gambling offerings, including, but not limited to, casino, poker, bingo and sports book.

Progressive jackpot: is a jackpot (highest payoff) for a gaming machine (usually a slot machine or video poker machine) where the value of the jackpot increases a small amount for every game played. Normally multiple machines are “linked” together to form one large progressive jackpot that grows more quickly because multiple players are contributing to the jackpot at the same time.

Promotion: the provision of additional economic benefits to a customer as encouragement for further customer activity.

Promotional material: the distribution of information to customers relating to offers and incentives for the customers to gamble at the operator.

PSP (Payment Service Provider): offers merchants online services for accepting electronic payments by a variety of payment methods including credit card, bank based payments such as direct debit, bank transfer, and real time bank transfer based on online banking. Some PSPs provide unique services to process other next generation methods (Payment systems) including cash payments, wallets such as PayPal, prepaid cards or vouchers, and even paper or e check processing.

Rake: the money that the casino charges for each hand of poker. It is usually a percentage (5  10%) or flat fee that is taken from the pot after each round of betting. A scaled commission fee taken by an operator operating a poker game.

Rakeback: a player rewards method that began in 2004, whereby some poker sites or their affiliate partners return part of the rake or tournament entries a player pays as an incentive for them to continue playing on that site.

Range: is the actual size of the output from the RNG. A 32 bit RNG 32 9 provides 2 possible outcomes (4.29 X 10). If one considers a 64 bit 19 output, one can achieve 1.8 X 10 different RNG outcomes.

Rated: determination by the casino that a player’s skill level is above average or on a professional level. A player’s rating may be stored on computer and referred to the pit.

Raw Values: the unscaled output of an RNG.

Real money: the participation in gambling utilizing funds and promotions attributable to the customer.

Redeems: any and all funds withdrawn or cashed out by Affiliate Customers from their accounts at the Sites plus amount pending on their accounts plus any Deposits reversed (or credits given) by the casino, in the casino’s sole discretion, to negate fraud, error, Affiliate Customer non satisfaction or through charge backs.

Registration: the process of a customer providing the required information and taking the appropriate steps in order to open a customer account.

Regulation: is administrative legislation that constitutes or constrains rights and allocates responsibilities. It can be distinguished from primary legislation (by Parliament or elected legislative body) on the one hand and judge made law on the other. Regulation can take many forms: legal restrictions promulgated by a government authority, self regulation by an industry such as through a trade association, social regulation (e.g. norms), co regulation, or market regulation. One can consider regulation as actions of conduct imposing sanctions, such as a fine, to the extent permitted by the law of the land. This action of administrative law, or implementing regulatory law, may be contrasted with statutory or case law.

Regulatory Authority: a local, regional or national authority giving explicit permission to operate one or various forms of gambling on a specific territory or jurisdiction.

Reseeding: is when the RNG algorithm is restarted (given new initial seed values).

RG (Responsible gambling): gaming and gambling operators, software suppliers and associated service providers ensure their offerings uphold the highest standards for a fair and safe gaming experience that protects players from the adverse consequences of gaming and gambling. The majority of gambling and gaming codes now require operators to ensure land  based and online gambling services are offered in a responsible manner. Responsible gaming covers the areas of protecting vulnerable customers, the prevention of underage gambling, protection against fraudulent and criminal behavior, ensuring information privacy, ensuring prompt and accurate customer payments, delivering a fair gaming experience, upholding ethical and responsible marketing, commitment to customer satisfaction and ensuring a secure, safe and reliable operating environment.

RNG (Random Number Generator): a computer generated randomness that randomly assigns the outcome of a result such as a roulette spin, a keno game or a cards shuffle. It determines random outcomes for use by all of the games hosted / offered on the base website.

RTP (Return to Player): is the expected percentage of wagers that a specific game will return to the player in the long run. The %RTP can be calculated via either a theoretical or simulated approach. The method used for calculation depends on the game type.

Rules: any terms and conditions applicable to a participant of a game. Rules detail the expected action and consequential result of a game.

Scaling: raw output from an RNG will normally have a range far in excess of that required for its intended use. For example, 32 bit RNGs have over two billion possible outcomes, but (for example) we have only to determine which of 52 cards to draw. Scaling is required to divide the raw output into smaller and usable numbers. These ‘scaled’ numbers can then be mapped to particular card numbers, record numbers, symbols, etc. Consequently, raw output from an RNG will sometimes have a range far smaller than that required for its intended use (for example, 0 < raw output < 1). In these cases, scaling is required to expand the RAW output into larger usable numbers.

Scared Money: money that you cannot afford to lose.

Self exclusion: the process by which a customer voluntarily requests their own account be locked for a minimum period of 6 months in order to prevent them from further gambling.

SEPA (Single European Payment Area): initiative for the European financial infrastructure involves the creation of a zone for the euro or any currency whose member state wishes to notify participation, in which all electronic payments are considered domestic, and where a difference between national and intra European cross border payments does not exist. The project aims to improve the efficiency of cross border payments and turn the fragmented national markets for euro payments into a single domestic one: SEPA will enable customers to make cashless euro payments to anyone located anywhere in the area using only a single bank account and a single set of payment instruments. The project includes the development of common financial instruments, standards, procedures, and infrastructure to enable economies of scale. This should in turn reduce the overall cost to the European economy of moving capital around the region (estimated today as 2%–3% of total GDP).

Settlement: is a resolution between disputing parties about a legal case, reached either before or after court action begins.

Shark: a good/crafty player often posing as a fish early in the game.

Shill: a person who actively plays in the game for the house, club, or casino. Usually seen at a Baccarat table to fill empty seats, until more real players join in.

Skill game: is a game where the outcome is determined mainly by mental and/or physical skill, rather than by pure chance.

Software providers: a company which develops and manages the remote gambling software.

SPAM: the use of electronic messaging systems to send unsolicited bulk messages indiscriminately.

Stake: the economic value which the customer, or any third party on his behalf, has to commit in order for the customer to participate in a game and which he can lose, wholly or in part, following the result of the game.

Steaming: a blackjack term where a player has become frustrated with how badly the events of a session of play have turned out. ‘Steaming’ in blackjack has practically the same meaning as ‘going on tilt’ in poker. In either case the player has lost emotional control and is betting more aggressively and often recklessly in an attempt to turn things around.

Streak Betting: also known as ‘Progressive Betting’. A system of raising or lowering the size of one’s wager based on what happened on the previous round or rounds. There are basically two kinds of streak betting systems; negative and positive. In a positive streak betting or positive progression betting system, the size of the player’s wager is raised on the next round after a winning round. In a negative streak betting or negative progression betting system, you do exactly the opposite by increasing the wager size on each subsequent loss. There is an almost endless number of variations of both negative and positive streak betting progressions, each one distinguished by when the progression is invoked, how much the wagers are raised or lowered, and when the progression is terminated.

System: a method of betting, usually mathematically based, used by a punter or bettor to try to get an advantage. A prominent factor in most systems is the criteria used to determine when the player’s wagers should be raised or lowered.

System wide regression test: any type of software testing that seeks to uncover software errors by partially retesting a modified program. The intent of regression testing is to provide a general assurance that no additional errors were introduced in the process of fixing other problems.

Theoretical statistical return percentage: the expected payout percentage from a game to a customer using optimal strategy.

Timeout receipts: deposits made by a customer where the payment processor experienced a communication error while the transaction was pending. The customer’s deposit has been deducted from their funding account but does not reflect on the recipient account until manual rectification has taken place.

Turnover tax: is similar to a sales tax or a Value Added Tax, with the difference that it taxes intermediate and possibly capital goods. It is an indirect tax, typically on an ad valorem basis, applicable to a production process or stage. For example, when manufacturing activity is completed, a tax may be charged on some companies. Sales tax occurs when merchandise has been sold.

Uncontested funds: funding with an economic value in a customer’s account for which the operator has no claim in favour of these funds.

Underage individuals: any person who is not over the legal of age majority as defined by the Regulatory Authority.

Unit (Betting Units): technical term used to express the smallest amount of money used in wagering without specifying the actual Dollar or other currency amount. The player’s actual ‘chip’ bet may be  £1,  £5,  £25,  £100 or other value. However, for purposes of simplifying gambling related calculations, the wager is specified as simply one betting unit or one chip.

Users: operators, software providers and relevant service providers supporting and subscribing to these Control Measures.

Verification: the process of obtaining evidence, often identification documentation, substantiating an individual’s claims of identity.

Vig (vigorish): the casino edge, fee or commission taken by the house.

Virus: a software program capable of reproducing itself and usually capable of causing great harm to files or other programs on the same computer.

VLAN (Virtual Local Area Network): is a group of hosts with a common set of requirements that communicate as if they were attached to the same broadcast domain, regardless of their physical location. A VLAN has the same attributes as a physical local area network (LAN), but it allows for end stations to be grouped together even if they are not located on the same network switch. VLAN membership can be configured through software instead of physically relocating devices or connections.

Wager: any bet. In much of the world, outside of the US, it’s specific to betting on sports or races.

Whale: a player who makes extremely large wagers. Unlike high rollers who consistently wager  £100 or more per round, whales are typically those who make wagers amounting to thousands if not tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars per round.

Winnings: monetary and non monetary rewards in favour of the customer, arising from remote gambling activity.

Withdrawal: the funding withdrawn by a customer from their gambling account.