Comment AUGUST 2015
I don’t like maths. As soon as I could drop the subject I did - which doesnt help in an industry driven by game maths. So it’s infuriating when presented with fig- ures that at face value look perfectly acceptable - but I know to be suspect.
As we went to press for this issue, Councils in the UK had just been slapped down by the government for attempting to drastically reduce the maximum stakes on FOBTs. Local authorities had wanted to cut the stake from £100 to £2 - an easy to work out - 98 per cent reduction.
In total, 93 councils across England and Wales had campaigned for the change, which was rejected by government as it had already brought in significantly stronger controls on the devices. Newham Council, which championed the cam- paign, had claimed that it is possible to bet up to £18,000 in an hour using an FOBT in the UK - which is an extreme hypothetical possibility.
It’s possible to drink a pint of beer in under three seconds (Youtube), so techni- cally a man could (with two seconds gaps for breath) consume 720 pints in an hour. There’s a big difference between maths possibilities and reality.
IT’S POSSIBLE TO DRINK A PINT OF BEER IN UNDER THREE SECONDS, SO TECHNICALLY A MAN COULD CONSUME 720 PINTS IN AN HOUR
A bigger maths issue is the claim from FOBT-haters that if you bet £100 over the course of an hour, with three spins per minute on a 97 per cent payback - after the first spin the player has only £97. When you re-bet the payback is 97 per cent of 97 per cent, which works out at 94 per cent. Bet again and it’s 97 per cent of 94 per cent, which is 91 per cent - which means that in an hour, the return to player is less than one per cent. I’m sorry, but that’s not just simplistic, it’s stupid.
Players can work out their own RTP for each ses- sion simply. If you wager £287 and win back £234, by dividing the winning by the stake you can arrive at your payout percentage for the ses- sion (in this case 81 per cent). If, therefore, you bet £100 and in an hour have nothing remaining - as claimed by the ‘Stop the FOBTs’ website and oth- ers - the Return To Player (RTP) is 0 per cent - every time. Is it me or does this not make sense?
EDITORIAL Editor Lewis Pek
lewis@gamingpublishing.co.uk +44 (0) 1942 879 291
News Editor Phil Martin
phil@gamingpublishing.co.uk +44 (0)161 236 6669
Associate Editor (MALAGA) Karen Southall
karensouthall@gmail.com
Consultant John Carroll (BILLERBECK)
carroll@carrollconsulting.de
South America Correspondent James Marrison
jamesmarrison@gmail.com
Contributors David Addison Jeremy Thompson Hill Dr. Damir Böhm
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ADVERTISING Commercial Director John Slattery Email:
john@gamingpublishing.co.uk +44 (0)7917 166471
Advertising Executive James Slattery Email:
james@gamingpublishing.co.uk +44 (0)7917 166471
Advertising Executive Alison Dronfield Email:
alison@gamingpublishing.co.uk +44 (0)1204 410771
PRODUCTION Senior Designer Gareth Irwin
Production Manager Paul Jolleys
Subscriptions Manager Jennifer Pek
Commercial Administrator John Pek
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