eCOGRA affiliate program seal

[mojo]

I subscribe to the eCOGRA newsletter and this article was in it today:

THIS AFFILIATE SEAL HAS REAL VALUE


eCOGRA's substantive approach to professional certification

Shocking revelations in the affiliate sector of the industry earlier this year had one positive result - it turned the spotlight on the question of genuine program certification and the real benefits that can flow from a professional and independent third party approach to this important business and marketing element.

Coincidentally, the renewed interest it generated among affiliate programs came at a propitious time for eCOGRA, which had already embarked on a meaningful affiliate certification initiative following a year of expert international consultation with both business and academia. That program has seen the establishment of best practice standards and the in-depth assessment and audit of four major affiliate programs prior to the award of the new Affiliate Trust Seal.

At the heart of certification lies the principle that any system set up to award certificates must have substance.

When large sums of money or advertising fees are handed over on a regular basis in return for an endorsement that is not achieved through professional inspection to defined standards, it is definitely not real certification and is of little practical value.

In eCOGRA's independent Affiliate Trust Seal service, the inspections and reviews are in-depth and carried out on-site by appropriately qualified business professionals armed with a set of requirements and standards that necessitate a full assessment of the program and its systems.

Several program operators have been complimentary regarding the improvements to business which can flow from the advice given by the compliance teams, who must submit a full report to eCOGRA's independent directors before they will approve the award of a certificate that has real value and credibility.

Like eCOGRA’s accreditation process for gambling site operators, the Affiliate Trust service introduces detailed best business practice standards for affiliate program companies, backed by a strict inspection and monitoring system and the display of the new eCOGRA Affiliate Trust Seal.

To display the new Seal, affiliate programs must demonstrate that their program establishes, enforces and monitors best practice standards. Specifically, they must show that they calculate affiliate revenue accurately and make payments promptly, and that they have controls in place to accurately link players to affiliates.

Although there are other entities claiming to monitor affiliate programs, eCOGRA provides the most public, structured and formal approach and ensures adherence to consistent standards through regular monitoring and full annual reviews carried out by highly qualified inspection and auditing compliance teams.

"The eCOGRA Affiliate Trust initiative is more about actually going and visiting the management and operations of affiliate programs, gaining direct access to check relevant player and affiliate data to ensure that affiliate members are being treated fairly," says eCOGRA CEO Andrew Beveridge.

"Recent events in the affiliate sector have highlighted the need for genuine certification as the industry continues to mature and becomes ever more professional, and the growing number of affiliate programs interested in this business enhancement underlines its value."

http://www.ecogra.org/newsletter/page01.html

I know a couple of programs already have this seal. What do affiliates feel about this?

[mojo]

I think it could be a very good thing.

What i'm struggling with is, to use Grand Prive for an example, if GP treated affiliates poorly why do they have a player seal?

I am having difficulty with that and seals should be dependant on all aspects, players - affs - stats etc.

Hope that made sense.

[wagerprofits]

I am pretty sure that they have had the seal taken away, it like anything I could have every seal and then when I screw up they get taken away....

I think would be a good start, i have concerns but lets see what happens.

Shaun

I think it could be a very good thing.

What i'm struggling with is, to use Grand Prive for an example, if GP treated affiliates poorly why do they have a player seal?

I am having difficulty with that and seals should be dependant on all aspects, players - affs - stats etc.

Hope that made sense.

[mojo]

I am pretty sure that they have had the seal taken away, it like anything I could have every seal and then when I screw up they get taken away....

I think would be a good start, i have concerns but lets see what happens.

Shaun

I did a quick look at Casino Grand Bay and see an ecogra player seal. Not sure about the other ones.

[wagerprofits]

The as it stand the ecogra seal has serious flaws...


Shaun

I did a quick look at Casino Grand Bay and see an ecogra player seal. Not sure about the other ones.

[Renee]

I did a quick look at Casino Grand Bay and see an ecogra player seal. Not sure about the other ones.

I'm not on a side here, but I have a feeling the reason if the GP casinos still have the seal is because the casino is ecogra approved, not the affiliate program, and they have a separate seal for the casinos and the affiliate programs.

A lot of players have no idea what an affiliate program even is.

[GamTrak]

The eCOGRA system is not setup to cover all the elements in the industry and therefore is why this certification thing is something that needs to be worked through in order to implement and be taken seriously.

Also what is to prevent a site from using the seal after they are de-certified? There needs to be a [verify] method on any future program.

Shaun, what are your specific concerns if I may ask.

[wagerprofits]

Hi Robin

The concerns that I have will need to be dealt with ecogra if we go this route.

Shaun

The eCOGRA system is not setup to cover all the elements in the industry and therefore is why this certification thing is something that needs to be worked through in order to implement and be taken seriously.

Also what is to prevent a site from using the seal after they are de-certified? There needs to be a [verify] method on any future program.

Shaun, what are your specific concerns if I may ask.

[mojo]

I'm not on a side here, but I have a feeling the reason if the GP casinos still have the seal is because the casino is ecogra approved, not the affiliate program, and they have a separate seal for the casinos and the affiliate programs.

A lot of players have no idea what an affiliate program even is.

Yes, I do understand that. But how can that be? If players are being mistreated then we wouldn't want that program to have an affiliates seal. Same goes with affiliates being mistreated, we shouldn't see a casino seal. Regardless if players are aware. There seems to be a separation of the two when it should go hand in hand for true certification. This set up is contradictory.

Affiliates are often middle men with players and if affiliates got screwed as in this case, it's very possible players will as well. For example, Casinomeister rouged them for players because of the affiliate issue which IMO is the correct way to go.

[pgaming]

Well you know Mojo I certainly agree with your concerns, there are no grey areas for me! Ecogra has approved many affiliate sites for what? Well I am not sure. But by the fact of doing so would suggest their involvement in our community. To what extent, again I don’t know?

All considered Ecogra leaves me with uncertainty leading to high level of risk. On a personal note, I never considered Ecogra anything less than a phony regulatory body.

IMO this is why no action was ever taken against 888.con, Grandprive, or Wagershare. But hey they sure slammed Brightshare a while back.

As reference to Wagershare http://www.gpwa.org/forum/spin-palac...te-173596.html

So the question, “What do affiliates feel about this?” IMO Ecogra is BOGUS contradictory to everything their supposed represent. Again, I really don't know what they do?

greek39

[joeyl]

I've read the similar before from Andrew Beverige. Sealed "responsible operators" have still managed to shaft the player of $5.3 million and I shan't link up Grand Prive, because webmasters know the score there.

All in all: Use Ecogra where you can, but don't believe you are protected from losing money where you see the seal, because history is against you.

Max Drayman: In your words how will eCOGRA benefit the online gaming industry?

Andrew Beveridge: Essentially by guiding players to online casinos where they can expect to encounter fair gaming, honest and efficient treatment in all respects and operators that have been thoroughly checked out for financial and personal probity. We do this through our Seal system, and casinos awarded with this mark of quality and safety have had to submit themselves to precise, tough standards of honesty, efficiency and capability set by independent experts. We call these the eGAP or eCOGRA's Generally Accepted Practices. ...

MD: And how will it benefit the online player?

AB: Players have reached the stage where they demand better treatment. No unreasonably delayed payouts; no questionably disqualified bonuses; no badly applied wager through rules; no ignored emails. They want fair games, financially sound casinos with efficient and responsive Support and an avenue through which legitimate complaints can be independently investigated. All of those legitimate concerns have been front-of-mind in devising the eGAP or standards of eCOGRA and we intend to enforce them with our approved casinos. This is no cosmetic exercise - it is a hard-nosed business approach to providing the consumer (player) with the safe, fair and business-efficient services to which they are entitled in our view.

MD: A number of verification and certification organizations have preceded eCOGRA. Unfortunately most of those have either failed to win widespread player acceptance or collapsed due to internal pressures and mismanagement. How does eCOGRA propose to both win player confidence and survive the considerable pressures of the online gambling scene?

AB: I honestly believe that eCOGRA is on another and significantly higher level than any of our so-called predecessors, and we have strong funding, realistic goals and practical methods of achieving these to the benefit of the player and the Industry. We recognize that misconceptions exist, and we are determined to prove by our conduct and that of our member casinos that we can and will make a positive contribution.

MD: Microgaming Software Systems Ltd. is listed as one of the founding members of eCOGRA and Microgaming casinos were among the first casinos to receive eCOGRA certification. This could be seen as simply a case of a principal online gaming software provider awarding certificates to it's own licensees through a third entity that it created. What is it about eCOGRA that makes this an incorrect interpretation of those circumstances?

AB: Microgaming and CON (Casino On Net) ... had the vision to see that continued malpractice and uncontrolled activity in the Industry hurts everyone. They are sufficiently successful to do something constructive about improving player protection and the regulation of serious minded operators. The initial funding provided by them does not, as some seem to believe, give them control of the organization.

Full Interview: 10 Minutes With Andrew Beveridge

[Renee]

Yes, I do understand that. But how can that be? If players are being mistreated then we wouldn't want that program to have an affiliates seal. Same goes with affiliates being mistreated, we shouldn't see a casino seal. Regardless if players are aware. There seems to be a separation of the two when it should go hand in hand for true certification. This set up is contradictory.

Affiliates are often middle men with players and if affiliates got screwed as in this case, it's very possible players will as well. For example, Casinomeister rouged them for players because of the affiliate issue which IMO is the correct way to go.

I'm sure there is a list somewhere on the eCogra site telling what they actually do to certify a group for the casino seals, and what they do to certify an affiliate program..

So I'm not actually involved in the eCogra stuff but to my understanding they go through EVERYTHING to ensure all player data is kept safe, that nothing can be leaked into public view etc.. i believe they also ensure that you are abiding by the casino T&Cs. That is only one part, but that's my understanding of it.. and even if one part fails, they will decline it and will not come back to reassess until that has been fixed. They will do this over and over again if they have to, but will not certify unless all criteria has been met.

For the affiliate seal I can't remember everything on the list, but I remember it saying something like that they check to ensure affiliate data is correct.. tracking etc.. make sure the aff stats and procedures are all correct as per the T&Cs of the program etc.. so basically says that the company abides by the T&Cs and is tracking properly and all that.

So that is my understanding of why they are two totally different things. One is to ensure the players are being treated fairly, and the other ensures the affiliates are being treated fairly..

IMO, I think another reason why these are two separate seals is because in a lot of cases the casino group outsources their affiliate program. So the affiliate program is actually not part of the casino group but a third party company (for example an affiliate network like commission junction or something). In this case I can understand why one could be credited and one not..

[joeyl]

From a business point of view it's understandable Renee (we don' t work there though).

It is also understandable from a practical point of view, imo, that casino x or y should not be sealed as a responsible operator, if their affiliate arm is behaving irresponsibly.

The main problem with Ecogra, is they have not as yet, been able to finish what they started. Instead, they branched out into other things, and are attempting to do so again.