When you click Continue you will be taken to a site owned by , not GEICO. GEICO has no control over their privacy practices and assumes no responsibility in connection with your use of their website. Any information that you provide directly to them is subject to the privacy policy posted on their website.
[This question refers to the major revisions made to the Gollum chapter, Riddles in the Dark, not to the multitude of minor changes made elsewhere.] In the original 1937 edition of The Hobbit Gollum was genuinely willing to bet his ring on the riddle game, the deal being that Bilbo would receive a present if he won. Gollum in fact was dismayed when he couldn't keep his promise because the ring was missing.
The Hobbit tells the story of how Bilbo finds the One Ring of the Dark Lord. Originally, the ring meant nothing; it was just a magic ring. It was only after Tolkien's publishers asked him for a sequel that he gave significance to the ring and built an entire 1000+ page novel around it.