Do you know the secret of the growing success of online bingo? It’s not just about convenience. It is also because of their ability to provide different types of bingo bonuses and incentives, especially to their most loyal players.

When you’re playing online bingo, you can look forward to the following treats:

Free Money. This refers to the cash that would be added into your account once you sign up. You won’t have to make any initial deposit. The money is given to you, so you can try out the bingo games in the website and decide for yourself if it’s a good place to be in or not. Some would compensate you with prizes; others don’t. The fact still remains, though, that you get to play and have fun without spending anything.

Initial Deposit Bonus. This is the bonus given to first-time players on their first deposit. This means that you have paid a fee to the website, so you can gain access to other games and features. The minimum deposit is usually never big. It can just be between $20 and $50. However, the initial deposit can be pretty huge. Most websites offer 100 percent match bonus, which means you can increase your account balance to twofold. Others can provide you with as much as 300 to 600 percent match bonus.

Nevertheless, there are limits to such bonuses. For instance, a 100 percent match bonus may have a limit of up to $200. This means that even if you deposit $150, your initial deposit bonus will just be $200.

Reloading Bonus. This type of bonus is applicable to your succeeding deposits. Some websites don’t offer this one; others do. The rules on reloading bonuses can vary from website to website. Others may give you fixed amounts regardless of how much you deposited, while there are some websites that give you a match bonus depending on your deposit. Still, there are bingo sites that have fixed percentage for reloading bonus.

Loyalty Bonus. This may come in the form of points. The more games you play, the more points you will accumulate. You can convert the points later to cash bonuses or use them to buy cards or merchandise. A loyalty bonus may also be a VIP program, where those who are already on higher levels can enjoy higher and better bonuses. If a website has such program, all new members automatically belong to the lowest level. You just then need to work your way up.

Refer-a-Friend Bonus. You can also be rewarded every time you introduce the bingo website to others. How much you’ll receive can either be fixed or be a match bonus. The bonus is not going to be huge, but referrals are easy to do. You just have to ensure that your friend successfully signs up into the website.

There are a lot of other bonuses and incentives that are given away by bingo websites. They can provide free trip tickets, gadgets, gift certificates, and high progressive bingo jackpots. That is why signing up in a bingo website is usually worth it.

Interested in trying your luck at online bingo? If you are already familiar with the mechanics of bingo, then you only a need a few more things to note before you can jump on a PC and play. Though not all of them are important, getting to know what these facts are will make it easier for you to reduce the learning curve and enjoy the game more.

You still need to be of legal age.

If the only thing that prevented you from playing in bingo halls before was your age, then it would still be a problem in online bingo. Bingo sites are still being regulated, and they are very strict in implementing the age limit to all their patrons. Of course, there are many ways to circumvent this, but getting a false identity will not get you any winnings at all. Either decide now to play for fun or wait until you are legally okay to play.

You have to provide personal information.

This is still related to what was mentioned above. Unlike bingo halls where all you need is to pay for cards and go, online bingo needs you to be honest about details. You have to provide your name, address, and even credit card information. This is to ensure that you have the capacity to finance your gaming habits. Most bingo sites, however, have a privacy and security page, which will explain how they will protect your data. If you are a little uneasy about giving your information online, better check their website first before taking the plunge.

You don’t need glasses anymore.

If you had trouble catching up with all your cards and numbers, be prepared to just sit back and relax. Online bingo sites give you the choice of automatically tagging the numbers as they are being called on all your cards. You can even tweak some settings so that all you have to do is just log in, and the system will do the rest. This will allow you to do your household chores or watch your favorite show, and the game will simply alert you if you won.

You can even get paid to play.

There are lots of bingo sites that provide monetary bonuses for new players who simply sign up and play. These bonuses can range from $50 to $200. You can also earn bonuses by referring your friends to join and every time that you make a deposit. You may think that there is a big catch behind it, but it is just the way for bingo websites to attract more players. You do have a wagering requirement to follow, though, for most of the times. This means that the total of your bonuses and winnings must be wagered a certain number of times before you can withdraw them.

Be prepared to win big.

Just like in online slot machines, bingo games can also be progressive. This means that games in different lobbies can be interconnected to create a network that will increase the possible jackpot. On normal games, this will already mean thousands of dollars, but there are special networked games that can win you even a million.

TV Bingo is a new trend that is developing in the gaming and broadcasting world. Like its name suggests, it is simply bingo that is done through TV. This is different from game shows where people play bingo onscreen; it is a game in which the audience in front of the TV participates in the game.

The game works just like ordinary bingo. Armed with one or more bingo cards, the player sits in front of the TV and watches the game, marking off numbers in the cards as the digits are flashed on the screen. In some cases, these cards are bought online and are usually printed out to be used during the draw.

Will It Last Long?

Since it is a relatively new entry to the entertainment scene, there have been questions whether or not TV Bingo will last long or will be ultimately popular with the bingo gaming society. Will it also be as famous as its distant cousin, the online bingo?

To answer that, let us first look at the features that TV Bingo has and that are expected to appeal well to today’s society. These features are the following:

Big Jackpot Prizes

The jackpot prizes in TV Bingo are amazingly big. The prizes vary from station to station, but all of them are big enough to inspire people to buy tickets and participate in the game.

Convenience

Just like online bingo, TV Bingo does not require you to be physically present at the club to be able to play. All you have to do is to just sit and relax on your sofa while you watch the game progress in the television. You can also do things that you couldn’t do while at the club like drinking beer and smoking while watching the game. You can also bring friends and invite them to play along with you to add up to the fun factor TV bingo brings.

Technologically Advanced

Because it is to be played at home, TV bingo uses technology to make sure winners do win the prizes they deserve. The computer keeps track of the numbers being called while sifting through the many tickets it keeps in its database, so it can find a bingo right away when someone wins. This beats playing at a club, where you have to shout “Bingo!” when you win and forfeit your win if you realize too late that you have a bingo.

The Verdict

Now back to the question: will the public be receptive of this new feature in gaming?

With all its features, TV bingo stands a very good chance of remaining in the mainstream for quite a while. It represents a very convenient way of enjoying the game of bingo since everyone will be using their TV screens and just be at the comforts of their own homes. Moreover, its way of keeping up and tracking bingo winners is superior to its classic counterpart, and everyone who plays has equal chances of being declared the winner should one gets lucky.

Interestingly, a recent survey found that bingo is the online game choice of women.  Not only do more women than men play online bingo (13 females to one male) they are also more concerned with security and safety on the sites they select.  Apparently gaming operators are aware of this and cater for women with their choice of colour schemes on their sites.

Am I the only one who is totally confused when reading about government policies regulating online gambling in the USA?  There are rules for this, systems for that, committees for the other.  Now a new bill is being introduced by Barney Frank, a leading US Democrat (here come those politics again) to get the necessary authorities to agree on what can and cannot be played online.  The UK is covered by the Gambling Act 2005 where online gambling sites are regulated and taxed and abide by the legislation.  This gives the Treasury an income and players the security of not being conned by bogus sites.  Sounds easy.