Does auto hold really give players the best option?

Most online gambling softwares offer players the option to switch on an autoplay function to play video poker or spin the reels quickly and without the involvement of the player, and these are widely used.

But what if it can be proved that the autoplay or auto hold function does not always deliver the optimum decision from a player perspective? That could have serious legal implications in both land and online gambling.

That is the basis for a legal argument currently being heard in Oregon, where player Justin Curzin is taking on the Oregon State Lottery and a slew of machine providers that includes IGT, GTech and WMS on grounds that their auto hold claims are misrepresentations that disadvantage the player.

It’s a big-money case which could develop into a $134 million class action, with Curzin’s legal team claiming that the auto hold feature on ten land-based machines named in the court papers and including Jacks or Better Poker, Triple Ace Poker and Joker’s Vault Poker, are not consistently maximising the players’ chances of a rewarding hit as is widely perceived.

Curzin claims that the Oregon State Lottery and other defendants named in his action are aware of this but have not taken action to address player perceptions on the efficiency of the auto hold function.

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