With over $5 billion in annual revenue online casinos are big business. Offering everything from poker and sportsbook to blackjack and slot machines, people have the online gaming bug and are placing bets online.



Like any business, some online casinos are legitimate and stake their reputations on fair play, while others are shady and face accusations that their games are rigged. Before handing over your hard-earned cash (or credit card) to online casinos, learn about the features and drawbacks of each. Here are some highlights:



Free Bonuses: Many online gaming establishments offer free sign-up bonuses, some totaling up to 300 percent of your initial deposit. Before you make your initial deposit, though, check out the site's policies on deposits, bonuses, and payouts. Some online casinos have stringent rules about withdrawals. For example, they may require you to play eight times the amount of your original deposit before you make a withdrawal, or they may have a rule that states you forfeit any bonuses when you make a withdrawal.



Download vs. Flash: Some online casinos offer poker, slot machines, and sportsbook online through a Flash version of their gaming system, while others require you to download software to your PC. There are very few online casinos that support the Mac platform.



Community: Online casinos place a premium on player loyalty. They may offer free premiums, run weekly or monthly specials, or offer other player incentives. Online gaming establishments generally publish a weekly or monthly newsletter that publicizes giveaways, prize drawings, and other promotions. In addition, many casinos offer simultaneous chat rooms, so players can talk to one another while playing poker, or host bulletin boards to foster a sense of community among online casino players.



Honesty: Read the fine print and make sure that, when applicable, online casinos use random number generators to ensure impartiality. Prior to signing up for a site, read bulletin boards on the Internet to see what other players are saying about the site. Some sites utilize third party testing to attest to impartiality, and some online casinos have promised to play by the code of conduct of the Interactive Gaming Council. Those sites typically display the IGC logo on their home pages.



Deposits: Online casinos, whether they offer poker, sportsbook, or other forms of online gambling, generally accept deposits in a variety of forms. Although most bank-issued credit cards refuse charges to online casinos, there are a number of other ways to make deposits to online gaming establishments. These include NETeller, 900-PAY, Citadel, FirePay, iGM-Pay, ELV, Switch/Solo, ePassporte, Euro Standard Bank Transfer, and bank wire.



Whether you're playing poker, sportsbook, blackjack, or slot machines, be sure to play safely online.



About the author:

Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the worlds MOST popular internet marketing companies on the web. Visit this Gaming and Gambling Website and Majon's Gaming and Gambling directory.