Who made Matchbook . . . and why?

Matchbook is a betting exchange designed by a group of venture investors and professional sports bettors with one common goal: to cut the bookmaker out of the betting process and create a neutral, transparent platform that players can use without any intermediaries.

We seek to create a global betting community where anyone - from the casual $5 bettor to the serious professional who's been underserved by the offshore industry - can trade on a cutting-edge exchange platform at the lowest possible cost.

Is Matchbook regulated or licensed by anyone? Who ensures that your clients are treated fairly?

Matchbook is fully licensed to process wagers by the government of Antigua and Barbuda, which has emerged over the past 10 years as one of the world's most rigorous jurisdictions for online wagering. The government of Antigua fully backs its online wagering industry and has vigorously defended the rights of Antiguan licensees to operate worldwide.

Legally, is exchange betting treated any differently than regular bookmaking? Is it covered under the WTO case that Antigua just won against the United States?

The WTO case dealt with Antigua's right to offer online gaming services to the United States, but not explicitly with exchange betting. (It was actually filed before exchange betting was on anyone's radar.) We are watching developments in the case with great interest, however.

Since exchanges are such a new innovation, there's been little legal or regulatory treatment as yet, except in the United Kingdom, where they've been awarded full and explicit legal approval. (This despite massive behind-the-scenes lobbying by the major U.K. bookmakers, who can still spot an overwhelming favorite even if they can't price one up correctly.)

I already have accounts at four sportsbooks - isn't that enough to make sure I get the best number on a game? Why should I bother adding another?

Matchbook isn't a sportsbook, which means our lines don't come from a standard source, but from other people just like you. Pricing is determined solely by market demand, not by an oddsmaker or bookmaker.

As exchange markets in Europe have proven, once an exchange achieves critical mass, it will inevitably have the best number on both sides of a game. Start trading with us, and you'll soon find those other four accounts won't get a lot of use.

What if everyone on the exchange wants to bet on Tiger Woods, and no one wants to bet against him?

The answer is pure Econ 101: when there's too much demand for something, the price moves up. Not enough demand, and the price moves down. In a remarkably short amount of time, the market will compensate for the imbalance and reach a price that attracts buyers and sellers in roughly equal volume.

How long does it take to learn to use Matchbook?

It should take about five to ten minutes to get the basics mastered, assuming you know a little about sports betting and nothing about exchange wagering. Our "Key" and "How to Play" sections are excellent starting points.

We also recommend that, before starting to wager in earnest, you make some small, test-style wagers just to confirm you've got everything worked out.

Suppose I send in a bet request and it doesn't get fully matched. I understand that the opposite side of my request shows up in the market, but how long does it stay there?

You can cancel a bet request at any time, or let it run until the start of the event (at which time Matchbook will cancel it for you.) Once a market is live, though, it's up to you to cancel any bet requests you have made.

Does my commission rate go down if I bet more? My online brokerage gives me a pricing break on large orders, for example. So does my local Costco, come to think of it.

Rather than give discounts to large players only, Matchbook has adopted a volume-based commission structure that gives everyone the possibility of a discount.

Because Matchbook actually pays you a 0.2% fee for any offers you post that are accepted, every trader now has the power to bring his or rate down to zero commissions or even better.

Ultimately, we believe that trading style (i.e., offer-side activity vs. accept-side activity) is at least as important as raw volume, and our new commission structure has been designed to reward trading styles that promote site liquidity.

How do I know I'll get paid if I win? I've got enough to worry about with a couple of my Costa Rican accounts. What if the guy who's on the other side of my bet withdraws all the money from his account after our bets get matched?

When you submit a bet request, Matchbook instantly reserves funds in your account sufficient to cover the cost of the wager, should it lose. All bets thus take place using reserved funds only - it's not possible to withdraw funds that are currently being used to back a bet.

Your account balance in the Cashier will show you exactly how much of your current funds are reserved. Note that Matchbook reserves funds intelligently: we only reserve funds sufficient to cover your maximum overall loss.

I've bet on live events before, but I'm worried my TV signal might be lagging behind. What's to protect me from trading against people who just saw a fumble that I won't see for another two seconds?

When an event is available for live betting on Matchbook (you'll see a blinking green light to indicate this), we impose a short delay before any bet is submitted to the marketplace.

This delay gives all clients time to react to sudden developments, and ensures that everyone is trading on the same page.

Which events are going to be available for live betting, exactly?

We'll put up live trading events on most nationally televised games. If you see an event that looks like a good candidate for live betting and it's not already listed as "live," shoot us an email and we'll try to make it available.

I've been betting basketball all season. How can I tell if I'm winning or not? Is there an automatic profit/loss calculation for my account?

You should check the "Reports" section of Matchbook. You'll find several different reporting functions that will enable you to pull up your current bets and recently settled bets. You can also run historical lookbacks of your account activity, including profit/loss.

Is there a "practice area" on the site, where I can make bets using practice money until I get everything totally figured out?

No, sorry. We thought about it, but it would have required setting up a segregated playground with its own play-money currency . . . not exactly the ideal training ground for wagering with real money against other clients.

We recommend that new clients learn by betting one or two dollars at a time. In most cases, it's no more difficult than placing a bet at a sportsbook.

I'm not real big on sending personal information offshore - do I have to supply my social-security number or a copy of my driver's license to open an account?

No, but please keep us informed of any changes to your contact details: payouts by check are sent by express delivery, and having the right address is obviously essential.

Any age requirements at Matchbook? My little brother is 16, but he's sharp as hell . . . especially on first-half totals. Can I get him a Matchbook account for his birthday?

Sorry, but he's going to have to wait until he's 18 to wager himself. Tell him to use the time to do some meaningful work on alternate run lines in baseball.

Is there a cost to opening or maintaining an account? Does Matchbook charge activity fees or other supplementary charges?

No. We try to run as lean as possible on the fees side. When we do charge a processing fee, you can be sure of two things: we had to pay the same (or higher) fee ourselves; and we'll make every effort to refund these charges to you via our Commission Credits. (These are credits we issue to offset commission fees you incur.)

Can I choose the currency I want my account to be in?

Sorry, no. All Matchbook transactions are denominated in US dollars. We can, however, reimburse non-dollar-based customers for their foreign-exchange fees on wire deposits.

I plan on having a huge winning year in '09. Is my local tax authority going to learn about it?

First of all, congratulations. We don't file any tax statements on client accounts, and Antigua doesn't impose any tax on wagering winnings.

Tax treatment in other jurisdictions varies, however. We urge all clients to remain abreast of - and in compliance with - local laws. Losing a close game is tough; getting audited is a hundred times worse.

Can I update my personal details if I change my e-mail or address?

You should make every effort to keep your contact details up to date. Your address is important since client withdrawals are often sent by FedEx. Your e-mail address is even more important, as we will use it to send you a new password in case you lose your old one.

How is my data encrypted while being sent to the Matchbook site?

We encrypt all personal financial data (see the question on "SSL" below) used for transactions on the Matchbook site. For further protection, we do not store any user's complete credit-card data on the site. (The full number string must be re-entered during any subsequent deposits.) Other session data, such as trading transactions, is generally compressed (to improve site performance) but is not further encrypted.

Your site uses SSL. What's that?

"SSL" stands for "Secure Sockets Layer," and is an internationally recognized protocol used to transfer secure data over the Internet. Matchbook uses SSL technology for all financial transactions, which is why our "Cashier" section appears as a separate, secured window.