A Kuwaiti Sports Betting Service for Zain Subscribers !!
I noticed this Ad in today’s sports section in al-watan newspaper ..
I called Zain’s Call Center to ask about the service, but they didn’t know any more details about it or even the cost of the SMS .. even when I asked for the number of the third-party company that provides the service they didn’t know that either ! all what I got is that the cost of 1 SMS might be up to 0.5 KD !!
I wasn’t interested in subscribing anyway, all I wanted is to know how exactly does the service work, because all what you can tell from the Ad is that it’s nothing but a Sports Betting Service!! and I have no Idea when did this become legal and official in Kuwait !
MrMMM on October 31st 2007 in Mobile
bashar responded on 31 Oct 2007 at 5:53 pm #
This is how it is ask me about it. Service is launched and sometimes nobody knows who implemented it, approved it, launched it, or marketed it.
MrMMM responded on 31 Oct 2007 at 6:39 pm #
@bashar: when I called and asked, the lady who answered asked for the service number, i gave her the number and she made me wait while she checks, after that she told me that she doesn’t know anything about it and no details about this service is in the system, that’s when she asked what is the name of the company and I told her, then she asked me to wait again only to tell me that she doesn’t even have the phone number of the company !
I wanted to know more about this service because I really hate to see betting and gambling activities taking place publicly like that !
the Ad doesn’t tell you anything, and doesn’t make sense ..
even if it was a sports betting service, it must be bet-and-win , but in the Ad it says win 300$ and bet who wins the match, as if you have to win the money in order to bet which doesn’t make sense at all !!
forzaq8 responded on 31 Oct 2007 at 7:13 pm #
gambling became legal ages ago
too much gambling schemes going around in Kuwait
i believe this is to be you send sms ( costing anywere between 200-500 fils ) if what you expected is right then you enter a draw , tada ! even if 500 people get it right , one will get 500 dollars ( around 160 kd ) the operator got 250 KD out of the other 499 suckers
there is also another problem with that ad , the ministry of commerce and trade has banned having any ad for Kuwaiti with prizes valued as something other than Kuwaiti dinnars to stop fraud
MrMMM responded on 31 Oct 2007 at 7:54 pm #
@Forzaq8: you are right, there are a lot of other OLD services that are considered gambling, but this one is straight forward sports betting = Gambling ..
the other services were debatable but this one is very obvious !
I believe that it works as you described, and the can’t put more details in the Ad because the more details the more clear it is that it’s gambling ..
And about using the Dollars in stead of KDs for the prize money, it is very misleading .. and if there’s a Law against it how Come Al-Watan doesn’t check the Ads that are violating any ministry of commerce Laws ;/
3baid responded on 01 Nov 2007 at 12:25 am #
“It’s not betting, it’s voting!”
(or so they say)
MrMMM responded on 01 Nov 2007 at 10:59 am #
@3baid: I think it’s ( or so they say ) because how cast votes on something that the don’t control ..
?
could it be that Zain subscribers will vote on who wins the game and then Zain will fix the match result for that team