In a recent press release, the eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA) released the final online casino dispute figures for 2005 through the Fair Gaming Advocate, the international standards body of the not-for-profit company. For the year ending 2005, a total of 439 complaints were received by the Fair Gaming Advocate (FGA). According to Tex Rees, and FGA official, 103 were for non-eCOGRA approved sites, so the complaints do not count towards the final tally of the 66 online casinos that bear the eCOGRA seal. Of the 66 seal-bearing casinos, a total of 336 disputes were filed. Of these, Rees says that roughly 10% were found to be true complaints that needed addressing by the group. This total represents a very small percentage of the overall business at the casinos, which make up the bulk of the most popular and heavily-visited online gambling sites. The rest of the 336 complaints that did not fall into the 10% category were simple Terms of Use or Conditions infractions where the customer usually did not understand the rules, or Customer Support errors that could be quickly resolved. Though complaints are expected to rise this year, it’s not because of faulty sites, but rather the expansion of the watchdog group, which has become a leader in the industry because of their attention to customer fairness and honesty on the part of the casinos. They expect to have over 100 casinos bearing their seal by the end of 2006. For more information, please visit the eCOGRA website.