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Glossary of terms

Bonus

Any funds or equivalent provided by the operator and added to a consumer’s account from which the consumer can place wagers, including deposit matching funds for wagering at the consumer’s discretion and free spins on specific games.

Bonus balance

The total of funds in an account belonging to the consumer comprising of:

  • any Bonus which is not immediately withdrawable by the consumer of redeemable as case
  • all winnings made with the Bonus, which are subject to uncompleted Wagering Requirements
  • in the case of a Mixed Wager, such share of any winnings from the Mixed Wager as is proportionate to the share of the stake which came from the Deposit Balance
  • winnings from any Bonus which are either not subject to Wagering Requirements or for which Wagering Requirements have been satisfied.

Deposit balance

The total funds in an account belonging to the player (other than the bonus balance/ restricted funds) and always includes:

  • unspent funds paid in by a player
  • where a player’s deposit is converted into a larger total balance containing a bonus (‘buy-in’), the portion equal to the value of the player’s buy in
  • all winnings from wagers made with the deposit
  • for mixed wagers, the share of any winnings from them proportionate to the share of the stake from the deposit balance
  • winnings from any bonus no longer subject to wagering requirements.

Dormant account

A player's account which has not been accessed for at least 12 months.

Equivalent

The technological equivalent location and/or functionality (as the case may be) in relation to the provision of Online Gaming otherwise than through a website, for example, on non-browser based platforms and technologies such as mobile phone applications.

A clear and voluntary indication of preference or choice.

General Regulatory Obligations

These are any wider legal and regulatory obligations with which an operator is required to comply, including but not limited to anti-money laundering and fraud prevention obligations.

Headline

This is the line appearing at the top of an advert which summarises the product. It is the information in an advert which players generally read first.

Mixed Wager

A wager drawn from both the deposit balance and the bonus balance.

Play Restrictions

Actions that are not permitted when playing a game on its own or in association with a promotion.

Promotion

A special offer made available for consumers in relation to online gaming consisting of a bonus, which, if accepted by a consumer, is added to the consumer’s account, subject to terms and conditions set out in the promotion.

Restricted funds/ Bonus balance:

The total of funds in an account belonging to the consumer comprising of:

  • any bonus which is not immediately withdrawable by the consumer or redeemable as cash
  • all winnings made with the bonus, which are subject to uncompleted wagering requirements
  • in the case of a mixed wager, such share of any winnings from the mixed wager is proportionate to the share of the stake which came from the bonus balance, and which is subject to uncompleted wagering requirements.

Significant terms and conditions

For the purposes of this topic, this definition relates to the key restrictions which apply to a promotion. For example, who is excluded from a promotional offer; time limitations; how to qualify; maximum stake size; wagering requirements etc. We would not expect operators to list all restricted games but would expect them to explain, for example, that some games do not qualify for a bonus or that contributions to wagering requirements varies between games, and clearly link to the details. What amounts to a significant condition may evolve over time, dependent on new games and business models.

Sole discretion

The only person or organisation who has the freedom to decide what should be done in a particular situation.

Stake Factoring

The percentage amount of the maximum bet size offered by the bookmaker that each customer is allowed to get on. For example, if the stake limit on a race at a particular point in time is £500, those with a stake factor of 0.01 would be allowed to get on 1% of the maximum bet allowed in that market - £5 in this case. Conversely a stake factor of 5.00 indicates a customer allowed up to 500% - £2500 in this case

Wagering requirements

Any requirement that a consumer must make wagers totalling a particular value for funds to become withdrawable, whether the total requirement is expressed as a fixed amount or as a multiple of another amount, such as the size of a deposit made by, or bonus received by, the consumer. For the avoidance of doubt, this excludes a requirement that bonus funds must be wagered once, but only if the bonus terms allow the consumer immediately to withdraw any winnings from wagering that bonus.

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