vpFREE2 Forums

Change in Ellis Island Mailers

#1

We just got our EI locals mailers for January. The cash vouchers are back, replacing the free play that would automatically be loaded on our cards.

For many years spouses could redeem each others cash vouchers but they cracked down on that a year or so ago. Then they went to the free-play option. I guess too many people were picking up free play for other people??? So it is now back to cash vouchers, and I'm betting the strict no-spouse rule will be back into effect.

Another thing I noticed in this January envelope: No mention of regular bonus point days except that 40x for selected (translate: bad return) machines. No 6x for Sundays and Tuesdays? No 5x for Fridays? They did mention 5x on New Year's Day, which makes me think that was just MAYBE an "overlook-tion" in not mentioning the regular 5x point Fridays. (I think I remember that happening one month some time ago.) But maybe not, in light of all the recent barrings of many players. They may go to the more common special-day bonuses, like South Point and other casinos do mainly on holidays.

I would call and ask but it might be better if this was checked out in person. First person to get this information might want to post it? Scot, have you received any first-hand information from the casino about this??

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________________
Jean $�ott, Frugal Gambler
http://queenofcomps.com/
You can read my blog at
http://jscott.lvablog.com/

#2

Jean Scott wrote:

We just got our EI locals mailers for January. The cash vouchers are

back,

replacing the free play that would automatically be loaded on our

cards.

For many years spouses could redeem each others cash vouchers but they
cracked down on that a year or so ago. Then they went to the

free-play

option. I guess too many people were picking up free play for other
people??? So it is now back to cash vouchers, and I'm betting the

strict

no-spouse rule will be back into effect.

Hopefully, this step will reduce the abuse of multiple cards.
Unchecked,

the abuse would have ultimately led to the elimination or at least sharp

reduction in the nice benefits of playing at Ellis Island. Their food,
while

not gourmet is definitely far above average.

G'luck all,

Gamb00ler

#3

Forgive the slight digression, but your question brings up an interesting point. The other day my wife and I were having a discussion about free play vs. cash vouchers. We were speculating whether or not the near universal change from cash back (including mailed cash vouchers) to free play has hurt, rather than helped the casinos' bottome line.

The casinos originally switched over to free play because (I'm assuming) they were tired of watching some of their cash back simply "walk out the door". They figured - probably correctly so - that the average player would continue to play long past the required number of spins needed to satisfy the free play amount, and would therefore just eventually lose whatever was won from the free play back to the machine. Additionally, the free play will generally cost the casino somewhat less than face value, due to the house advantage. ($100 of free play run through a 98% machine is only worth $98.) Taken over millions of dollars of free play it adds up to a fair amount of savings.

But there are some downsides to free play as well (again from the casinos' point of view). One big consideration is mentioned in Jean's original post (see above). This opportunity generally was not available in the days of cash vouchers. Plus, I'm not convinced that free play is really making much of a difference in the amount of money that simply walks out the door. I'm guessing that many of the people (mostly AP types) who frequently just collected their cash back and left are the same people that will now often play exactly their free play and no more.

Somewhere along the line the casinos had to make some major programming changes to their machines and slot systems in order to get free play to work. Granted, this was a one-time expense, but it still must have cost them something.

Then there are the intangible psychological considerations. I'm thinking that the average player received more personal satisfaction from someone handing him an actual $20 bill than they now receive from a machine ringing up $20 in credits for free play, even though that same player would often just stick the $20 bill right into the nearest machine and play it anyway. Advantage players understand that in the long run $100 in free play is worth very close to the same as $100 in cash, but I'm not sure the average player makes this connection. Perhaps the casinos have lost a bit of good will with the elimination of cash back.

This is all speculation of course. What do the rest of you think?

EE

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--- In vpFREE@yahoogroups.com, "Jean Scott" <queenofcomps@...> wrote:

We just got our EI locals mailers for January. The cash vouchers are back, replacing the free play that would automatically be loaded on our cards.

For many years spouses could redeem each others cash vouchers but they cracked down on that a year or so ago. Then they went to the free-play option. I guess too many people were picking up free play for other people???

#4

Then there are the intangible psychological considerations. I'm thinking that the average player received more personal satisfaction from someone handing him an actual $20 bill than they now receive from a machine ringing up $20 in credits for free play, even though that same player would often just stick the $20 bill right into the nearest machine and play it anyway. Advantage players understand that in the long run $100 in free play is worth very close to the same as $100 in cash, but I'm not sure the average player makes this connection. Perhaps the casinos have lost a bit of good will with the elimination of cash back.

This is all speculation of course. What do the rest of you think?

EE

It seems inconsistent for gamblers to be happy to risk money gambling
and care about getting cash instead of free play. That so many
casinos offer a huge discount for free play, sometimes offering twice
as much in free play than in cash, tells me there must be many of
them. I've won drawings and been given the choice between free play
and a much lower amount of cash. Even some players who I think should
know better show an unusual interest in their result when they're
playing free play. I think I should know better, but I've gotten
particularly, and surprisingly, annoyed at losing several hands in a
row while playing free play. Maybe there's a reason that free play,
perhaps by stipulating an amount that the players regard as theirs,
sets up expectations that get more easily disappointed than in
"normal" gambling. Maybe casinos can find a way to give cash to
players whom it will best motivate and free play to those whom it will
best motivate.

#5

that's part of it, but there's also substantial savings in
administrative overhead. when the slot club computers handle player
rewards, you don't have thousands of people bringing cash coupons to
the cage several times per month, and you don't need as much staff at
the cage.

the same efficiency can contribute to customer satisfaction. i was a
lot happier redeeming my freeplay at the machines at ellis than i was
going to the cashier with a coupon, both because i didn't need to
worry about keeping track of another fiddly piece of paper, and
because i never got stuck waiting in a line at the cashier.

cheers,

five

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On Thu, Dec 31, 2009 at 7:34 AM, eecounter <eecounter@hotmail.com> wrote:

The casinos originally switched over to free play because (I'm assuming) they were tired of watching some of their cash back simply "walk out the door".

#6

this is almost universal among non-advantage gamblers. for a while
stations/fiesta was offering drawing winners the choice between $1000
cash or $1200 freeplay. i don't remember ever seeing someone who was
not known to me as an AP choose the $1200 freeplay.

many of these people had platinum cards or higher, meaning they had
earned 75000 points in a three-month period. in other words, they had
voluntarily exchanged $75000 in cash, or credits that could have been
redeemed for cash, for $75000 in slot play. it's totally unremarkable
for any of them to earn 1000 points in a day, exchanging $1000 cash
for $1000 slot play, $1 or $5 or $10 at a time. yet they would not
exchange $1000 in cash for $1200 in slot play. completely irrational.

they now offer the choice between $1000 cash and $1000 freeplay, and
no one ever takes the freeplay, despite the fact that they're of equal
value to someone who gambles on a regular basis, and the cash award
generates a 1099 and the freeplay award doesn't.

but then, if most gamblers were rational, this town wouldn't exist...

cheers,

five

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Tom Robertson <madameguyon@embarqmail.com> wrote:

It seems inconsistent for gamblers to be happy to risk money gambling
and care about getting cash instead of free play. That so many
casinos offer a huge discount for free play, sometimes offering twice
as much in free play than in cash, tells me there must be many of
them. I've won drawings and been given the choice between free play
and a much lower amount of cash.