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Friday, July 25, 2008

Should Sun Bingo Players Choose Tombola Or The New Sun Bingo?

It's no secret that one of my favourite online Bingo sites is Sun Bingo, which runs on the Tombola Bingo platform. They have since the start stood out for their value, the strength of their Bingo community and their focus on good old fashioned Bingo over slots and casino games. The Sun's name and Tombola's community focused Bingo software helped make Sun Bingo the top online site for the game in the UK beating off competition from the likes of Gala and Mecca Bingo.

Given this success, it came as a major shock to hear at the Online Bingo Summit last month that Sun Bingo and Tombola would be parting company in August this year. More shocking was when one of the software vendors in the exhibition hall inadvertently revealed who the Sun Bingo will be relaunching their Bingo with. In my opinion, the new partner offers a far inferior Bingo platform to the current Tombola one.

This last week, Sun Bingo members have been receiving emails about the move, telling them they will have to re-sign up on the 26th August to access the new service, or they can stay with Tombola Bingo who will retain their existing accounts and they can play as normal. If you're an existing Sun Bingo member, then you'll be wondering which option you should choose. Personally, I would suggest that existing members stick with Tombola Bingo for the time being, as I think they will be disappointed when they try the new look Sun Bingo. I believe it will be found wanting compared to the existing site.

In fact, the Sun's choice of it's new partner Jackpot Joy could be seen as a cynical attempt to get more money out of its gaming platform and Bingo members, which for me is reason enough to stick with Tombola. This is merely speculation on my part, but after discussing it with a number of people at the summit it would seem to be a fairly typical opinion. Jackpot Joy offer Bingo, but it is not their focus, slots and skill gaming is its focus. It's my opinion that Sun Bingo looked at the amount of money being made at other sites on the side games against the Bingo, and this swayed The Sun to look for pastures new, eyes filled with the potential of expanding its already big profits even more. In fact it could be a counter-productive move on their part and backfire spectacularly.

Personally, I don't like these high stakes games being so prominent in online Bingo, which makes Tombola's choice to avoid them all the more impressive and commendable given the greed in the market place. Let's face it, slots where you can easily spend £20+ a spin are not typical Bingo side games, your average Bingo player just wants to play their cards, and maybe play the odd 'cheap' side game once in a while. Tombola with their years of experience in Bingo have recognised this and focused on value and Bingo, which is why they have succeed so well and have built so much good will in the industry and amongst players.

The Sun seems intent on throwing this ethos away in favour of getting players to part with cash on a whole plethora of slots, keno and casino games as well as Bingo. It could back-fire on them in a big way, especially if the new Jackpot Joy powered Sun Bingo fails to replicate the community features of the old look site. With around 2000 concurrent Bingo players at the existing site, the chat rooms were split into different rooms within the same club. Given Jackpot Joy's limited existing chat features, I can't see how they will replicate this at the new site, and if they don't the current users won't like it and will stay with what's familiar.

I also think that The Sun's current great value and ticket limitations will also not be carried over to the new platform, which is another downside for the players. I really think this move is motivated by money and not what's right for the members, which is a real shame from a company that excelled in providing a great environment for its players. So yes, at the moment I'm suggesting Sun players stick with Tombola Bingo. The Tombola site has all the same features as the existing Sun site, just with a different design and colour scheme. More importantly it also has the members accounts that Sun Bingo has.

I really feel sorry for all the regular Sun Bingo players, the community that's there will be split and decimated after a couple of years building such a strong bond around the site's chat and other member events. It almost feels like a retail closure to me, I believe it will be difficult for either Tombola or The Sun to rebuild what it currently has, and let's hope that spark is not lost for good.

Posted at 9:30 AM |

62 Comments:

Anonymous xxmoney4nuffinxx said...

without a shadow of a doubt i will stick with tombola ive been with them since the start and will continue to do so. they are by far the best bingo site on the entire internet beleive me i have tried them all

5:51 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will be staying with Tombola :-)
I am already a member of JPC and rarely play there as I have only won a fiver in over a yr that I have been with them
The sun will lose a lot of members.
I love playing in Cinco and the chat is great, I have made some good friends there and will definatly stay.
SlinkyChrissy

11:30 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I for one will be staying with TOMBOLA I have tried Nemours sites but have never once had any doubt about playing on TOMBOLA. As for JPJ all I can say is blahhh it is not for me having played there before but gl to anyone whom chooses to go there with the Sun. And I can guarantee they will come back to this site Best wishes TOMBOLA on the split

12:45 AM  

Anonymous lisa said...

ill be sticking with tombola.i have been playing online bingo for around 3 years & have played all the uk well known bingo sites & have not found a site no where near as good as tombola!!!

1:58 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

ive been with tombola about a month now good site still winning

3:14 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I completely agree. Tombola is very good value for money and offers a level playing field for all players, not like some sites that allow players to purchase 60 tickets or more per game giving them a much better chance than those on a limited budget. The number of jackpots given away is fantastic, I think most players would agree they would rather have a good chance of winning something smaller than no chance of winning something big.

6:44 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

sticking with tombola here, love their bingo and cinco which is quite unique in the online bingo sites.

jackpot joy is very expensive compared to tombola and i don't like their software at all.

10:25 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i will be staying with tombla i love the chat the players and have won sometimes lol but i have tried other sites and they are not a patch on tombola so gl with your move its the suns biggest mistake
from suekitten xx

12:56 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have been a sun bingo member since the beginning but really feel that its gonna lose its appeal for most players once the switch over happens. I too will stick with tombola.

7:05 PM  

Anonymous gina x said...

ive been playing online bingo 4 some time now an i must say this bingosite tombola :)X is by far the best jpj omg i have lost hundreds an hundreds on there !!!!money which i havent got (credit card loans xxthinkin im gonna win ) be careful all u peeps out there who decide to go with the sun coz ull be sucked in with some lovely wins (maybe ) an whamm before u know it yr scaping 4 cash cuz its gone all in there !!!! what i found myself doin was winnin nice sums in bingo an then blowin it on slots an trust me u will do the same xxxbe v v careful STAY WITH WOT U KNOW!!!! tombola 4 me x

10:04 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think to look at who's better, which provider actually advertises? JPJ!! proving that they need the business! Tombola has a wonderful community spirit, fab cm's, great games and i for one will not be moving over- you are right, Tombola has excellent value for money and i regulary win with them, unlike i did on jpj. i spent a near fortune in a year and won just once.
I will most definately be sticking with Tombola- thats where my loyalties lie- thanks Tombola, good luck and really looking forward to the new site!!

11:03 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I shall definately be staying with Tombola. I have played on various other bingo sites but always return to Tombola. It is good value for money, the CM's are always friendly and helpful, it is the only bingo site I have visited where the tickets are just like the real thing.

Keep up the good work Tombola. The Sun is making a big mistake moving to pastures new!

9:16 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i love the tombola and im not going over with the sun they are just being greedy . they should be looking at keeping their players happy not poor. i think tombola has the better chat and the cms are fantastic and always willing to chat which dosnt happen on other sites gl tombola from montypython xxxx

9:29 AM  

Anonymous shellyshoes said...

I will be staying with tombola...not only is the bingo the best...the chat moderators are too!!!...Sod the sun...Im staying put! xxx

7:19 PM  

Anonymous mackylou said...

i too will be staying with tombola i have had some good wins and the chat and the cm`s are brill. sun bingo are making a big mistake moving to jackpot joy its not a very good site at all. tombola all the way. mackylou xxx

8:19 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will be staying with Tombola, I think JPJ just swallows up your money. Tombola is very fair and the chat is always good even though I don't always get a chance to join in.

10:21 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will definately be staying at tombola. I joined at the start of sun bingo but i think jpj is a terrible site and wont be wasting my money there. I have won over 4 grand over the time ive been playing and i wouldnt play anywhere else. Its your losss sun you have jumped into the fire going with jpj.

8:52 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i have to agree with all thats already been posted by players that tombola beats all other bingo sites and like alot of you ive played on them all.Slots are there to make companies huge profits and not much else.Good luck tombola as im defo another player that will be staying put but wish all players regardless off what site they play on all the very best of luck.
imadreamer

1:50 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

JPJ is a scam site if you ask me, I spent loads and loads there and never won even once, And always the same winners over and over, Even when i went into a another bingo room with only 20 people, The same person won 15 times in a row. Sun are stupid to use there flawed software. I will be sticking with tombola. I won more than I lost on tombola.

2:01 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have to disagree! I currently play at JPJ and tombola, and I think that they both have their advantages.

I think that you're wrong to say it's a money making effort, I think pitching your bingo offering to another bingo site now and then keeps the games fresh and fun!

From JPJ's current offering, I think the new sunbingo site will be bigger and better than ever! Don't be afraid of change!

I for one welcome Jackpot Joy and cannot wait to see what they offer.

Nobody said that you can't be a member of both!

8:43 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will be staying with tombola had more wins with them than any other site jpj just swallows your money

7:51 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

To the person who wrote "which provider actually advertises?":



err... have you not seen the numerous Sun Bingo adverts on TV these days!?!? plus all the advertising they do in other places.



All companies advertise. That's just a ridiculous statement to make.



And to the original poster:



You've made a load of assumptions about what JPJ may or may not provide for the new Sun Bingo. How do you know what they're going to offer? It sounds like you obviously don't like JPJ for whatever reasons (each to their own!), but as you say, that site doesn't just do bingo but does a mixture of lots of different types of games. Sun bingo is a completely different site so it may offer different things to what JPJ currently offer. Until it's actually released we won't know.

I for one, am going to wait and see what the new site offers me and make my own mind up about which site to play on, instead of just following what one person thinks is best.

9:56 PM  

Anonymous NU NUS M8 said...

I love playing at tombola and i am also a member of JPJ, and out of the two TOMBOLA gets it for great chat friendly peeps, and overall chances of winning are better, i will be sticking with tombola, as i do think that JPJ are ok !!! but very expensive with not so good prize money. GL tombola XXXX

11:17 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will be staying with tombola best site on the web !!!

3:06 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will stay with tombola as it is one of the best sites i trust and i have seen a few bad ones

1:33 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Tombola Is a scam site like most on-line bingo sites, Only winners is the house.

4:56 AM  

Blogger nutterduck said...

I, for one, will be sticking with Tombola.

Having played at JPJ for many years, I know how easy it is to get carried away. You can purchase up to £25 of tickets in bingo gold, which is tempting to do when jackpots can stand at £100,000+ but you have little chance of winning and a big chance of overspending.
Also, as previously stated, they concentrate heavily on slots, which dwindle your funds very quickly. Those with a gambling habit beware!!! The chat at jpj, has in my opinion, gone somewhat downhill over the last couple of years. Most of the good CM's having left to go to gamevillage.

At least with Tombola, you can only buy £2 worth of tickets, and have chances of winning £10,000+ jackpots. The CM's are great, the roomies are great and fellow roomies are geniunely pleased when you win.

I should point out that both sites to have exclusion options to enable you to limit your spending should you find yourself in trouble.

7:31 AM  

Blogger susie98 said...

i will try out new sun site even tho, i love playing on tombola,i hope new sun site is not like jpj.i hope they keep max tickets to a sensible limit ie; £2.00.i also hope the graphic's are not like jpj and simular to like they are now on tombola.nothing wrong with healthy competition.im looking forward to trying new site.

10:48 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Cynical people may think the guy who wrote this might have something to do with Tombola...

12:10 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

good luck to both sites,i think everyone will try them both and then decide what is best for them gl to everyone.

10:43 AM  

Anonymous Rachie1973 said...

I will be staying with Tombola. Was a member of JPJ for years and I just like Tombola 100x more

7:37 PM  

Blogger minxsyneverwins said...

im staying with you tombola i love the cms and the players have done since i joined nearly 2 years ago

7:34 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

im staying with tombola thats 4 deffo!! hate jpc (sorry) it's got 2 be bingo 90 amber room 4 me i love it

1:20 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm one for staying with Tombola used it for 2 years now and regulary win on it i do have bad days too but you cant win them all.

Sun is making a mistake moving to JPJ! i lost thousands on that site i was glad i noticed an ad in sun paper about their sunbingo/tombola site.

Look forward to seeing the regs staying Bingoking86

4:58 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i think the sun have made a big mstake for leaving tombola but i am staying with tombola becaese the people are freindly and the cms are great and we have lots of fun and laughs

10:24 PM  

Anonymous dondon1 said...

i will stick with tombola as ive tried the lot and they offer too many tickets at least with tombola you get a reasonable ticket price and it is good value and what will prob happen is everyone will try jpj and return too many bingo sites now i set a limit once a week and thats good enough for me
oh and i am a member with jpj but no longer play

dondon1
xxx

12:07 AM  

Anonymous jenny_1971 said...

you talk about Tombola like it is a charity. they all take our cash! don't be daft.

I love sunbingo because my friends on there and i'll follow them. may the best site win.

10:50 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

lol, any chance a Tombola rep wrote that article. From what I have heard, The Sun is moving their bingo purely because they are unhappy with the level of service that Tombola provides so they are moving it to another provider with better services. Nothing to do with profits! Even for those 'loyal' tombola customers, I would suggest you at least try the site, you may like it! :D

6:43 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

oh, and it is not JPJ that are getting the sun bingo, but gamesys.

6:45 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Why don't you all pop over the the new sun bingo pre registration site at https://www.newsunbingo.co.uk/home.html

You will see that they are trying to keep everything as similar as possible as well as offering massive prize deals and promotions.

6:57 PM  

Blogger sunny1sback said...

hi, ive been know as sunny1, lastyrswinner and am now sunny1sback,i am a total bingo freak lol, have tried practically all of them available on the web, my first was jackpotjoy aka sunbingos "new" site, yes i won infact i won a 1K jp within 2 days of joining but believe me i lost a whole lot more after that infact i landed my self in quite a lot of debt thro that site, so i decided to move on, i found sunbingo 3 weeks after they had started, i loved it, won loads 2 jps infact. but more than that i found it fair play, with a maximum of 24 cards per game as jackpotjoy is 100 = £10 per game and believe me players on there pay it, so peeps who moan at the moment about not winning, u dont stand a chance of winning on there. what a lot of peeps dont realise is tombola have always ran sunbingo, just take a look at yr bank statements. i for 1 will defo be staying with tombola, goodbye sunbingo u got too greedy

9:09 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

my user name is cuteylynda and i am definately staying with tombola its simple easy and enjoyable and no hidden agendas what you see is what ya get the cms may not be sane or on this planet but they know what they are doing and handle every situation without predjudice good on you tombola you have my vote and loyalty x

3:40 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I CAN'T UNDERSTAND AL;L YOUR COMMENTS AS SUNBINGO AND TOMBOLA ARE ONE OF THE SAME SITES ANYWAY???? SO ITS NOT GONNA CHANGE WHETHER YOU LOG ON TO SUNBINGO OR TOMBOLA YOU CAN AT THE MOMENT USE YOUR LOG ON NAMES AND PASSWORDS FOR BOTH TOMBOLA AND SUNBINGO SO WHATS THE DIFFERENCE ???? THIER IS NONE WE HAVE ALL BEEN PLAYING ON THE SAME SITES ANYWAY??? AS SOME OF YOUR NAMES I HAVE SEEN IN CINCO ROOMS WHEN I'VE BEEN LOGGED INTO SUNBINGO BUT AS YOU SAY YOU THINK YOUR PLAYING ON A TOMBOLA SITE???? BUT LIKE I SAY ITS ONE OF THE SAME

10:18 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I will most definately be staying with Tombola, I have tried just about every single bingo site there is and quite frankly none of them match up to Tombola in any way at all.......

6:26 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

its tombola for me too having joined as a sunbingo player id rather stay with tombola, i saw someone say that sun bingo in going to gamesy not jpj well it's gamesy that run jpj!!! I too have played many a bingo site some run by same company and i mention no names but they know what you are going to win before you finish the slot game so i tend to stick to where i am happy and contented
felixthecat

11:26 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i will be staying with tombola.it is by far the best site.i have made lots of friends.the cms are fab.we are one big happy family.

2:33 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nothing to do with profits!!!!!!! hahaha this is The Sun we are talking about and if there is anything we should agree on its that the Sun will only do anything for profits. Let the battle commence thats all I can say. I know where my buddies are and thats on tombola.

can't wait!!!

5:21 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have been with sun bingo from the start I will continue to stick with sun as its all I have known and I was happy with their layout and will continue to stick by with them as they need some of their true patrons to stand by them no matter how others feel about them. If I feel its like the other sites then I will throw my daubers away like I have with other sites Long Live Sun Bingo where ever they lay their hats ,,its my home too!!

9:51 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Isn't it Jackpot Joy that runs the TakeaBreak site too? The outrageous rules that say you have to gamble 4 times your stake (inlcuding the bonus) which means deposit a tenner & you have to gamble £80 before you can withdraw.

If it is, I'm staying with Tombola all the way.

R

10:20 PM  

Anonymous rhiannon10 said...

i will be sticking with tombola for sure,sun bingo is getting very greedy,they had enough off me infact most of our life saveings and for jpj been on it once and that was enough for me i dont trust any other site apart from tombola

10:27 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

from tardis58
I"ll stick with www.tombola.co.uk/
Bingo has always been about meeting friends and having some fun. This site is the internet version of my local Bingo hall. If I wanted a casino I'd go to a casino!

5:33 PM  

Blogger debs1108 said...

Tombola defo staying with you same site no changes keep up the good work been with them for about a year been on all bingo sites this site tops the lot

8:44 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just saw the comment about jpj's wagering requirements, if that is so I will definitely not go over to that site. I have played a couple of times on sites that expect you to deposit loads of money before you can withdraw, think they should be banned.That ruling is scanderlous. All sites should be: make your deposit if you win be free to withdraw winnings.
Will stay with Tombola.

8:01 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I joined Sunbingo when it first started online bingo and Tombola was good enough for them then and its good enough for me now and I will be sticking with Tombola. I have been on most of the online bingo sites and Tombola is a cut above the rest. Personally I think the new sunbingo site is rubbish, the software is awful.. You let us all down there sunbingo... the grass isnt always greener... better the devil you know.

5:40 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

sunbingo is ok won well over 10 houses within first week and i like the cheap slots 10p a go!!!!!
Though i don not like tombola and never have but there you go thats my opinion

5:51 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i for one will be following sun bingo to jpj...in my opinion jackpot joy has better games and chat room facilities. as far as them being inferior to tombola that made me chuckle...if tombola are so good then why have sun bingo chosen to go with jpj? ask yourself these questions..sun + jpj all the way baby !!!!!

3:42 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

denbow:- I'm a member of lots of bingo sites and play them all at some time or another but many have strange and frustrating withdrawal terms or the ability for players to purchase 100's of tickets which gives the less well off less chance of winning. None of this applies to the tombola site and the software is great and easy to understand, it's THE best site around in my opinion keep up the good work tombola

12:01 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

denbow:- I'm a member of lots of bingo sites and play them all at some time or another but many have strange and frustrating withdrawal terms or the ability for players to purchase 100's of tickets which gives the less well off less chance of winning. None of this applies to the tombola site and the software is great and easy to understand, it's THE best site around in my opinion keep up the good work tombola

12:03 AM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

tried the new sun ingo site and without doubt it is an inferior game experience. i have closed my account and gone back to tombola.

1:22 PM  

Anonymous fatman said...

played on tombola for yrs thought i would join the sun for the deposit bonus big mistake sunbingo stole the lot and i really do mean stole. they got my name wrong and i could not change (so cannot cash their cheques)it also could not cash out to card and i do not have a current account to withdraw to bank. middle finger up to sunbingo tombola is the best

8:33 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Tried both sites and no contest - Tombola is definately the best. Goodbye Sunbingo!

11:51 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Not realising I could stay with Tombola I registered with sun bingo
but as soon as I knew I could go back to Tombola I did long live
Tombola.

12:54 PM  

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