Impact of the Controversial Bonus Buy Feature on Online Slots

Author: Matthew Haynes

Online slots make up for a significant percentage of the gambling industry, with players able to choose from thousands of titles, all based on many different themes, from a substantial number of software providers. Over the last couple of decades, with online gambling really taking off, slots have become big business for gambling companies and, as a result, generate a lot of revenue every year for operators.

It has also led to the launch of numerous software companies over the years to cater for the ever-increasing demand, while it is not uncommon to see hundreds of new titles launched on a yearly basis. Furthermore, the math of slots has significantly changed with the development of new purchasable features. So much has changed that the older slots are now being classed as ‘retro’.

New features have caused controversy among gambling commissions which debate whether they still should be included in the gameplay experience. One of the features that came under scrutiny, is the buy bonus option in slots and whether developers should be allowed to offer this to players, particularly in some jurisdictions.

What Is a Buy Bonus Option?

In a slot game, the ultimate aim for many players is usually to get to the bonus rounds where they then have an opportunity to substantially increase their winnings. However, first, players are required to make their way through the base game and, as a result, the way that they unlock the bonus round is to match three or more scatter symbols, which then gives players ‘x’ number of free spins.

The free spins round is a great way for players to boost their balance, or ultimately earn a big win. Sometimes, multipliers are involved in a free spins round that can gradually increase, while if wilds appear, these can also give players a boost in winnings that would sometimes be more than in the base game.

Some slot games also have multiple bonuses, almost in layers, so if they perform well in the free spins round, they may then unlock a ‘wheel of fortune’ round, where they can then unlock bigger prizes, boosted multipliers or even a jackpot/maximum payout which can be as much as 30,000x your stake, or even more for progressive jackpot slots.

The slot buy bonus, also known as the ‘feature buy’ option, which is only available in some gambling jurisdictions, allows you to purchase the opportunity to skip the base game and proceed straight to the bonus round to give you the chance to go for the maximum payout straight away. This can be advantageous to some players, because they might save a significant amount of money, gambling on spins in the base game.

The bonus buy feature usually appears as an icon at the bottom of the slot screen and is indicated clearly. Furthermore, the price of this is listed and if you activate this, the cost is deducted from your gambling account balance. It is worth checking that you have enough credit for this, because you may need to top up your funds.

In addition, the purchase price varies considerably, depending on a number of factors, such as the maximum payout of the slot, minimum stake per spin, the software provider and how extensive that the slot is in terms of content.

Usually, you can expect to pay anywhere between 50x and 200x your stake. Typically, this is set at 100x, however, the price for some games can even be as high as 750x your stake. The first software provider to introduce the bonus buy feature was Big Time Gaming in 2017 with the White Rabbit slot title, which certainly revolutionised the way slots were played and thought of in the industry.

Also, on occasion, for a limited period of time, the price of the ‘bonus buy’ feature may even be reduced to zero, which is definitely worth taking advantage of.

The Appeal of Bonus Buy in Online Slots

Despite facing much criticism in the industry within some gambling commissions, for the software providers and casino operators, this can offer many different advantages.

The benefits to the players are obvious - for a lump sum (which may work out more cost effective than going through the base game), they can proceed straight to the slot’s bonus round, where they could be in with a chance of making a significant return on their initial investment.

This could especially be the case for those slots with a high maximum payout, like jackpot slots. Even if the highest prize is worth over 30,000x your stake, but you don’t hit it, even being paid out 5,000x your stake could still be considered to be a good achievement.

For software providers, in some cases, if their slot titles have the ‘buy option’ included, there is sometimes the possibility that they can negotiate a higher rate with the gambling operators, due to the increase in expected interest from players, many of whom may prefer the chance to immediately try to win the maximum payout.

From the perspective of gambling operators, they know that they are essentially managing risk. The way in which online slots work, is that they are completely random and have a random number generator (RNG) in them to substantiate this. In addition, the way that slots are developed means that they are heavily stacked in the favour of operators, rather than the player.

As a result, they know that gamblers in general, are greedy and impatient and, more often than not, see playing through the base game, as a waste of time and are prepared to risk the initial investment in order to try and win a lot more. Something that the operators know the odds are heavily against the players.

Understanding the Criticism behind the Bonus Buy Feature

As mentioned, the bonus buy feature has come up against a certain amount of opposition across numerous gambling jurisdictions. Following a recent review of the gambling industry by the United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC), it was decided that all online gambling companies that were operating in the UK, were prohibited from offering the bonus buy feature in slots to players.

This came after an extensive investigation into the dangers of gambling and the increase in gambling addiction in the UK - especially among young players. The ban was imposed in the UK in 2019 as an immediate action from the review that was undertaken by the government in the spring of that year.

It is understood that the bonus buy feature in online slots was one of the major contributory factors that led to gambling addiction, due to players believing that they could win the maximum payout easily within a few spins, compensating for the initial high payout for this.

In addition, the Netherlands is another gambling jurisdiction that has banned the bonus buy feature for online slots. The Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), which is the gambling regulator for the Netherlands is one of the strictest commissions in the industry and after it became fully regulated a few years ago, it was quick to create a firm benchmark for standards.

It is understandable as to why bans of the buy feature have been implemented by certain countries, especially when you factor in that there is a lot of pressure from numerous governments to clamp down on gambling addiction.

Regulatory Trends and the Future of Online Slots

The next few years will be really interesting when it comes to online slots, especially as the software providers continue to develop new ideas and features to enhance the gameplay for gamblers. The bonus buy feature in online slots could become a subject to scrutiny in the US, especially as the various states each begin to clamp down on gambling addiction.

However, with the US still being a considerably young industry and some states only just starting to regulate the ability to allow players to use online casinos, they may feel that there is too much money to be made until they think about banning certain elements of gameplay, such as the bonus buy feature for online slots.

It is highly unlikely that countries like the UK, for example, reverse their decision and allow the bonus buy feature for online slots again - regardless of the effect that this has on gambling addiction in the long term.

Some software providers may even find ways around this and develop slots in a way that appeals to operators so that the prohibition of the bonus buy feature doesn’t have too much of a negative effect on operators. It could be that they make it easier to advance to the bonus round, by limiting the number of combinations that is needed, in order to entice players to keep depositing.

The general consensus, certainly across most of the industry, suggests that eventually, the bonus buy feature will be banned, however, in certain markets such as the US and most of LatAm (Latin America), this could take a while longer.

It will ultimately come down to the policies that are put in place by the relevant country’s regulators and how much pressure that they receive from the respective government. Also, it is perhaps surprising that in the UK at least, the bonus buy feature was allowed to be in place for as long as it was, given the country’s strict regulation and stance on responsible gambling.