Archive for the Bingo Bonuses category.
July 16, 2010
If you decide that playing online bingo is for you, then great – but where do you start? There are a multitude of sites that are desperate for you to play, so desperate that they are offering you incentives of extra money in your account to start playing, extra bonuses, or even free bingo. Yes, free bingo. I know that it is incredible to imagine, but sites are competing against each other so hard that they are giving it away for nothing, or selling the tickets for as little as 1p.
There are sites, however, that can help you through the complicated maze of online bingo. These sites review various bingo sites, giving them stars, as well as highlighting the cost and the various prizes. This then makes it easier for you to decide which bingo site is best for you.
As well as giving stars to various bingo sites, these free review sites also have chat rooms and forums where you can gossip to other bingo lovers and check out their favourite sites too. There are all sorts of forums and news sites where you can keep up-to-date with what is happening in the bingo world.
You can start off with sites such as www.onlinebingolounge.com and www.gossipbingo.co.uk, where you will see that there is a large quantity of information to help guide you through the world of online bingo. The sites are easy to work through the menus and they are interesting, fun and gossipy too. You will become a confident online bingo player before you know it.
February 24, 2010
The attraction of Bingo has much to do with its simplicity, but playing it in the company of other players has also been a strong factor. Bingo Night is an institution in many towns, cities and villages, and no church hall schedule is complete without one.
This is also true of the gleaming Mecca Bingo halls; machines dedicated to the game where you can chat with friends and sip a cafe latte or cappuccino whilst filling in your card. The halls often have special nights when they link up with other halls over a satellite connection and play for bigger prizes than on normal nights.
The communal spirit is still there, but in a different form for the virtual generation. You may be sitting in your bedroom, alone at the PC, but the many online Bingo sites take great pains to let you know that you’re not by any means isolated. They all have a community area in which to chat and swap notes with other players, make new friends and generally foster a sense of community.
The online Bingo sites are attractive to use, decked out in primary colours, with simple-to-use menus and plastered with special offers and promotions including free bingo games. It’s a simple and quick process to get started when playing for real money; sign up and make a small deposit. Or, if you are more cautious, or just curious, take a peek behind the scenes by playing a few games on the house to get a feel for the place as you would anywhere else.
November 11, 2009
In June 2009 Paddy Power launched its second European Bingo Championship. Players got an opportunity to win a place in the final every week in June 2009 by playing bingo on the Paddy Power Bingo website.
Winners of bingo games during this time were allocated points per bingo game. By the end of each week all points were totalled up and the top ten scoring players were entered into the grand final which took place at 8pm on 4th July 2009.
The final took place in a Ruby Room on the website where ten games of 90 ball bingo were played. Points were awarded for games won and by the end of the games the players with the twenty best scores were given prizes.
The players in 11th – 20th place were given free bingo for a year and players in 6th – 10th place were given UK and Ireland weekend breaks courtesy of Marriott. Players in 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place were given European trips of their choice with various levels of luxury. The winner was given a 5 star European trip of their choice worth £2,500.
To encourage new members to participate in the tournament, Paddy Power offered a £30 no deposit bonus on registration to use for bingo cards during the event.
Paddy Power online bingo, launched by the Irish bookmaker, was first launched in 2008. The company re-launched its website on the Virtue Fusion network with more rooms, jackpots, cash and prizes.
October 22, 2009
Bingo fans can now play real-time bingo games for cash prizes using their mobile phones. Some of the main bingo companies have recently launched mobile bingo services. They include Foxy Mobile Bingo, Mecca Mobile Bingo and Bingo Rooms UK.
Most mobile bingo sites offer a registration bonus on joining, so it is worth double checking this before registering. Also, while most games are free to download you might be charged a fee by your mobile service provider for sending data. It is therefore worth contacting your service provider and enquiring about this before you register so you are aware of costs incurred on your phone bill.
Registration for online bingo will vary depending on the company. Generally you will need to access their website either by computer or mobile phone and send a link to the software to your mobile phone. You will then need to open the link on your mobile phone and download the software.
During downloading you will be asked to register. This will involve filling out a form with your name and address and your account details if you are not using mobile billing. You will also need to create a username and password.
If you already have an online bingo account with the same company you will probably need to create a brand new username and password. Check with the online bingo site and ask if necessary.
Once downloaded you need to find out where your game is located. It is normally in the ‘applications’ or ‘games’ section of your phone.
October 05, 2009
As well as the main online bingo games there are other games that can be played on a typical online bingo site. In most cases, the prizes are cash and are normally credited to your account if you win.
Most online bingo sites offer scratch cards which operate in the same way as normal scratch cards. You usually play these by clicking on a play button and a scratch card will load. You use the mouse and cursor to select the panel you want to scratch.
Slot machines are also available on most online bingo sites. The rules vary but work on the principle of matching figures in a line. You will need to decide how much money you want to bet, or your stake. Once you have selected your stake, you can then click to see how much money you could potentially win.
Companies in the gambling industry such as Littlewoods and William Hill also run casinos on their sites which include games such as poker, black jack, roulette and even horse racing. As with the slot machines, you will need to decide the size of your stake and place a bet.
Before participating in these games it’s advisable to read the instructions thoroughly before playing. Pay attention to how you select a stake since mistakes may not be easily rectified later. Make sure you know the rules of the games you are playing and make sure your broadband connection is reliable, since many of these games rely on real-time choices that must be made by the player.
September 30, 2009
In June 2007, UK bingo chain Gala Bingo announced the launch of its ‘KerChingo’ game creating one of the first ever bingo millionaires. According to the rules of the game, there was only one winner, who walked away with a guaranteed £1,000,000 prize.
KerChingo was a tournament of bingo games run from 4th to 29th July 2007. These games were played in the same way as regular UK bingo games, but the full house winners won an entry ticket to the final game as well as the house prize.
These entry tickets could only be won once, so if the full house winner already had an entry ticket to the final game then it was re-allocated to the second line winner and if necessary to the 1 line winner. If all three players already had a ticket then no ticket would be awarded for that game.
Gala Bingo offered three ways to participate in KerChingo. They were online via its website, at a local high street Gala bingo hall or via TV on the Gala Channel accessed using Sky or Freesat. Gala also offered existing members a £5 bonus if they invited friends to play KerChingo.
The final game was held on 29th July 2007 at 10pm and was broadcast on Gala TV and streamed live online. The winner was 62 year old bingo regular Pauline Clarke from Bristol. She had only graduated to online games two months prior to winning and used her £5 bonus to play the KerChingo qualifying game.
September 24, 2009
One of the main advantages of online bingo is that you can play it within the comfort of your own home. All you need is a computer with broadband access.
First of all, do your homework. There are a many different online Bingo sites and it’s worth shopping around. Stick to websites launched by reputable companies such as Littlewoods, Foxy Bingo or Wink, and look out for joining incentives such as free bingo no deposit games for new players.
Many of these websites offer free bingo games with no prizes to allow you to have a try before signing up for the real thing. There are also websites that offer bingo online free and these are also worth looking into. However, only a few allow you to play unlimited free bingo games.
Before you can play you need to register a playing account. You will be asked for your details such as your name and address, as well as your card details. You will need to make a deposit which is used to purchase your bingo cards. Note that funds will not be taken from your card unless you deposit funds in your bingo account. Alternatively, any winnings will be credited to this card or put on account.
Some operators may require you to download free software before you can play. This can be easily done if you follow instructions. Others may use JavaScript or Adobe Flash based games that allow you to play bingo online immediately.
September 16, 2009
If you are thinking about signing up for an online bingo account make sure you know about the different incentives available to new members and what they mean. This will ensure you get the best deal when joining.
One of the most attractive is the free bingo no deposit bonus. The site will credit your account with a specified amount which you can use to pay for your bingo cards.
The most widespread is the matching bonus. They will offer to credit your account with a certain amount provided you deposit a certain amount. These amounts will vary from site to site, from a 1 to 1 match to some sites doubling or tripling the deposit amount up to a certain limit.
Percentage bonuses are the same are matching bonuses by another name. Some websites offer the matching bonus in percentage terms to make it that much more attractive. For example, a website may offer a 300% matching bonus whereby you deposit £10 and the website offers £30.
Less common are cash back bonuses. These work on the basis that you are paid back the amount that you have lost during a specific time of play. As you can imagine, these are highly sought after.
One of the most effective incentives for an online bingo site from a marketing point of view is the recommendation to a friend. They will offer bonuses very often to both parties if one recommends another to their site. This is usually in the form of a deposit to your account.