Introduction to Live Dealer Bonuses

But first, a brief history

As the technology advancements saw growth in the early nineties, mainly the development of the internet, many industries saw an opportunity to push their products online and bring them closer to the people all around the globe.

This was also true for the iGaming industry which decided to dip their toes in the still shallow waters of what was to become the internet as we know it today. Some of the first iterations of the live dealer rooms, popular in today’s online gaming, were conceived offering some of the more popular games like poker and blackjack where a dealer would dish out cards as he would in the regular land – based casino albeit from behind a camera.

This was a revolutionary concept back in the day, because it meant that everyone could take part in the activities from the comfort of their homes and without any hassle of going to the casino.

But not much can be said about the success of this venture. As we all know the web in those days left much to be desired for and the usual problems with lags and connection failures were too much for games to run smoothly breaking the overall immersion and diluting the gaming experience.

Over the years as advancements in the internet industry became more prominent, the live casino model took a more distinct shape. The early versions of live dealer rooms launched in the mid – 2000s saw a great success overshadowing the failure of its previous iterations and it was a straight ride to the top from this point on.

People often cited that they prefer these kinds of services due to the possibility of wagering on a wide range of games, socializing with the dealers, other punters and seemed to cherish the overall brighter atmosphere than the one they received playing on a digital machine.

Naturally, as time passed, the array of games began to grow, so where previously we had just Roulette and Blackjack for example nowadays you can see many Poker rooms, Live Bingo rooms, Lottery rooms, Baccarat Rooms, Live Game Shows, etc.

As the market grew steadily, iGaming companies producing the live repertoire started to become power houses as we see them today. It would be difficult to find an online casino nowadays that doesn’t have several of these big names in their roster. Developers such as Evolution Games, Ezugi, Pragmatic Play have become somewhat of an industry’s staple.

So this brings us to present times, where the popularity of live casino titles seems to have reached its peak which started somewhere in the 2020 and it’s not showing any signs of slowing down or backing out.

To summarize, the rise in demand of live casino titles prompted modern casinos to tailor their services accordingly, so the birth of various engaging bonuses tailored towards these kinds of games took place, which brings us to the most important part.

Live Casino - Bonus Types

More often than not you will see that a particular casino offers some kind of daily, weekly or monthly Promotional plan which revolves around different kinds of bonus material.

We will focus of the live dealer ones:

• No deposit bonus

Of course everyone loves a freebie, but the truth is that these ones are often reserved for the one – armed bandit connoisseurs and table game players, which doesn’t mean that certain casinos do not offer this kind of bonuses for the live games but it’s not often that we see them. Don’t worry if things change you’ll be the first one to know.

• Welcoming bonus

This is the one you probably see the most. Hubs will often dish out packages for the newly arrived punters as a sort of gratitude once a first deposit has been made. It is also a great way to ease those initial steps in the casino and prepare you for the upcoming events.

Note that you will mainly have to choose between the regular Welcoming offer (made mainly for slots) and the Live casino one.

The offer comes in a form of Matching bonus, for example 100% of what you deposited, and is often coupled with extra spins which can be used on the already determined game.

e.g. 100% Live casino Bonus up to $400. The casino will dish out additional 100$ bonus funds so you can either wager your real money placed or combined funds and once the wagering requirements have been met the bonus will get cleared.

Note that in order to claim these kinds of bonuses, meeting wagering requirements is always required and these requirements can strongly vary from hub to hub, this is something you should be mindful of.

• Reload Bonus

This type of bonus is something that a casino offers on a specific day of the week and can range from a Matching bonus to Cash prize in order to incentivize you to stay within the hub.

• Cashback Bonus

As far as Cashback type bonus goes things are pretty much straight forward. You will not need to meet any wagering requirements, it mainly revolves around a percentage of getting your money back.

Of course the percentage can also vary a lot depending on the casino and can also depend on the account loyalty status if the casino comes with a dedicated loyalty feature. (e.g.5% - 25%).

• Loyalty club ­

Many online establishments nowadays come with dedicated loyalty clubs which are structured in a way to reward the most dedicated players by offering them certain perks. As we mentioned above, it can come in a form of increased Cashback as well as exclusive bonuses hand tailored for specific players.

• Tourneys

Tournaments are a great way to show off your skills and compete against other players. Certain casinos will host a tourney which can get you some great prizes while competing on specific live dealer games.

We should also emphasize the importance of understanding T&C of the casino because every hub comes with a different set of rules when it comes to the Wagering requirements, Game contribution, Game availability etc.

Wagers and Contribution

As we mentioned above, some bonuses come with wagering requirements which need to be met in order to clear the bonus.

As a general rule of thumb the lower requirement for wagering is better (anything lower than 50x is considered good).

 -e.g. WR is 40x, so you need to wager your deposit 40 times in order to clear a bonus. If you deposited 100$ you’ll need to win $4000 to cashout your win.

Some bonuses might not even have a wagering requirement which is a great thing, but you should also be mindful of Game contribution…

…what does that mean?

To make things simple, certain games contribute differently towards fulfilling wagering requirements. If full contribution is 100% more often than not you will see that certain casinos have that number much lower, so this percentage also needs to come into the equation.

-e.g.Blackjack game contributes only 8%, meaning that if you place a 10$ bet only 0.8$ will count towards meeting the wagering equipment thus effectively increasing its numbermaking it more difficult to clear.

Maximum Bet Allowed

You should know that every casino caps the maximum stake player can make while playing with an active bonus. In our experience it is usually at $5 but hubs will often increase this number for the high – rollers or high level members of the Loyalty club.

Maximum Cashout Amount

Similar to the max bets allowed, hubs will often cap the maximum amount a player can win. Majority of casinos nowadays do not put such constrictions, yet there are some that do cap them. Understanding hubs Bonus T&C is something we strongly advise when it comes to things like this, so you should always check them out prior to making your play.

Minimal Risk Wagering

This is one of the more important terms you need to understand because if you do not adhere to the rules, it may lead to your winnings being voided…

…what to look out for!

Be mindful of your stakes not covering more than 70% of all possible combinations in one game.

e.g. - placing stakes on more than 26 numbers in Roulette

But this is just an example, again, reading through the casinos rules when it comes to bonuses and what you shouldn’t do to abuse them is crucial if you wish to have safe gameplay and don’t risk losing your money or your account being banned.

It is always a good practice to visit the casinos FAQ page and see if there are some tips regarding this topic or you can simply contact the support and express your doubts when it comes to irregular gameplay and how to avoid it.

Being prepared is always the right way to go!

To Conclude

We hope we brought the world of Live Dealer Bonuses a little bit closer to you, also on our site you can always check for different kinds of relevant topics as well as educate yourself more on the current news from the vast world of iGaming.

Now with all this in mind, fasten your seat belt and have a safe journey!