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The Status of US Online Poker Regulations

Senator Harry Reid’s online poker bill died for the year 2012 during the Friday lame-duck session of the Legislature. This marked the official expiry of federal efforts by Congress to pass laws on internet poker, and is perhaps the end of the last chance at regulation by the federal government before online gambling is taken on by the states.

Speaking to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Senate Majority Leader’s Chief of Staff, David Krone, explained that time has ran out for the Nevada Senator in pushing for the establishment of  Internet poker licensing and regulation in 2012. Krone implied Reid’s intention to try again next year, though optimism was far from apparent.

“Our goal is to definitely try again next year but Senator Reid’s feeling is that after a while there comes a time when you’ve lost momentum, you’ve lost the consensus you’ve built,” he said, adding, “There will be a window next year, but I don’t see it going long.”

The effort during the lame-duck session appeared like the best and last chance for creation of an online gambling federal structure prior to the states striking out and making their own systems and regulations. In Nevada, companies are already acquiring licenses for the State’s online poker, and the operations are set to start running within the New Year’s first half.

This year legislation was passed by Delaware for full online gambling, to be offered through the State lottery. New Jersey is waiting for next week to pass legislation that allows full online gambling by Atlantic City casinos. New Jersey and Nevada aspire to influence other states into approving online poker and allowing US players to play within their borders, and in return the states get tax revenue.

John Pappas, the Poker Player Alliance’s executive director, had something to say about the disappointing end to a year full of optimism, “It is an extremely disappointing end to a year where tremendous progress was made… I am most upset for the players, who have been calling on Congress for years to pass an Internet poker law that protects consumers, restores their freedoms and raises revenue. While I don’t think these voices have fallen on deaf ears, I am discouraged that Congress could not coalesce around a solution in the wake of the ongoing fiscal crisis.”

Full Tilt Is Back and Thriving

Since the November 6 relaunch of Full Tilt Poker, there has been a continuous slide in traffic and presently, the online poker room is recording a massive 53% off its record of 8,000 cash players while at the highest peak.

All is not gloomy for the poker room though. The good news is that with an average of 4,300 cash players in seven days, Full Tilt Poker is still in the range of its closest competitors, coming second behind PokerStars. It is comfortably ahead of the iPoker Network, which includes Bet365, William Hill, Titan Poker, and Betfred and has an average of 2,750 cash players, as well as PartyPoker which is not far behind in fourth position with an average 2,650 cash players every seven-day duration.

The FTOPS is even back at Full Tilt Poker.

In the meantime, PokerStars continues to reign over the industry, boasting a multitude of real money game players averaging at 23,400.

Last week PokerStars may have seen a 10% decline in traffic, which is probably a result of its behemoth promotion finishing. According to the PokerScout, 93,168 cash game players were reported on the day the 90 billionth hand promotion’s hand was hit. $66,380 went to “m1sspiggy”, the lucky winner, while $14,000 went to each of five other finalist players.

Lastly, Microgaming Poker Network (MPN), which was recently rebranded, enjoyed a boost in player traffic by 20%, and is now looking set to continue making strides in the poker traffic rankings following the initial hitches experienced when transitioning.

Mark Lipparelli Gives Insight into Online Poker Regulations

Nevada is still rolling ahead with its online poker plans, as recent comments by former Nevada Gaming Control Board chairman, Mark Lipparelli, have revealed.

He may be out of the regulations business, but Lipparelli is still a key player in the collective push for federal legalization of online poker. The former regulator was at the helm of a gaming regulatory body in the Silver State when he joined the process that resulted in the United States’ first-ever regulations for online gaming to be adopted.

He was the spokesman for the regulatory body at a US Online Gaming Law conference in 2011, whereby he unveiled the agency’s plan to start accepting licensing applications in Nevada for Internet poker operators as early as February 2012. This was an application allowance made in accord with the legislation Governor Brian Sandoval had signed that summer, calling for license holders and gaming regulators to adopt the licensing rules.

Lipparelli was a pillar of Nevada’s front position as other states now look to legalizing poker. However, a new law needs passing. The Nevada market may be open, but Lipparelli and the state now want a nationwide market, as this brings a host of benefits including the creation of liquidity.

He argued for poker legislation at Capitol Hill, saying that it is an excellent idea because “without congressional action, slot machines and roulette wheels will soon be spinning inside every computer and cellphone in America.”

This is not the first time Lipparelli has broached the federal issue. The fall of 2011 saw him testify on the possibility of intrastate online gaming during a House hearing.

Meanwhile, Lipparelli is poised to spend the first year of retirement following the step-down from the Control Board cooling off before re-entering the private sector.

bwin.com Now Shares the PartyPoker Network

bwin.com poker players can now enjoy the full share of the PartyPoker network following bwin’s re-emergence. The poker site took a day’s downtime to transition its player base successfully from Ongame to the Partygaming platform, and now shares PartyPoker’s player pool.

In spite of no announcement being made prior to the bwin.party transition, the poker room was dedicated to completing the move within this year. It was pending since the March 2011 merger of PartyGaming and bwin and became possible in October 2012, when the final sale of Ongame to Amaya, which had earlier been delayed, finally took place. The transition has been confirmed in a bwin blog post, which also pointed out touted features on the new platform like custom avatars and tournaments.

bwin players can expect to see a significantly wider range of real money games running, as the number of active cash game players on the PartyPoker network is approximately double that of Ongame. Party’s fast-fold product will also be accessible to them.

Should the majority of bwin players migrate to the new software, PartyPoker players should expect the new traffic to sport a noticeable bump. Micro-stakes will be central in the weighing of the highest percentage of the increased liquidity. A number of estimates put the bwin player base on Ongame Network at 30-50%, which may possibly translate to a 15-25% bump in Party traffic.

Other players certain to notice the traffic increase are those in other Party skins, for instance Empire Poker and WPT Poker.

This bump will probably put PartyPoker on the number the spot ahead of iPoker, its perennial rival, on the much-quoted poker networks global ranking by PokerScout. Rankings are usually determined by average traffic on cash games.

Players on other Ongame skins should expect the traffic to drop. Fortunately, this drop may not be so pronounced outside the micro-stakes since a large number of bwin’s Ongame tables were exclusive to the poker site.

Zynga Applies for Online Gaming License in Nevada

The Nevada gambling industry has fallen in the crosshairs of Zynga Inc. Zynga, a top rated gaming firm boasting some of social network site Facebook’s hottest games, has a pending application for operation in the highly dynamic Nevadan gambling scene. It hopes to be granted a license to operate by the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

The application paperwork comprises of requests to get the gaming firm a preliminary hearing that determines its eligibility for the gaming license. However, according to Nevada’s Gaming Board, the application failed to specify the kind of game Zynga seeks to offer.

As customary in the treatment of applications within the state since it began shifting its legal perspective to allow intrastate online poker, Nevada will seek to ensure Zynga meets and complies with its current terms in respect to a regulatory track record and financial standings. There is no specified time period before decisions on applications are made, but Zynga should expect a response within 18 months.

Zynga is one of numerous operators seeking operational licenses in the Nevada marketplace due to its potential income ramifications, greatly facilitated by the state’s huge population. A number of leading national operators have also submitted their gaming license applications, including Caesars Entertainment, Bwin.Party Digital, and MGM Resorts. More entrants are expected to make submissions, although it remains to be seen which big names will ultimately operate in Nevada’s tightly regulated market.

Barry Cottle, Zyngas’s Chief Revenue Officer, says, “As we’ve said previously, the broader U.S. market is an opportunity that’s further out on the horizon based on legislative developments, but we are preparing for a regulated market.”

WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic Champion Raghavan

Ravi Raghavan has become the new champion of the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic following a defeat of 503 entries. The 26 year-old pro from the US battled bravely at the Bellagio to be rewarded with the first place prize of $1,268,571, bringing his total live earnings to an astonishing $1,817,346. No mean feat to accomplish.

In the wake of the victory, Raghavan called this Las Vegas challenge the biggest and most memorable conquest of his life, “It is the biggest achievement of my life, and it’s amazing. Just winning is amazing, regardless of the stage. I should expect to win, but I didn’t.”

Exactly 368 players took part in the $10,300 buy-in tournament, and this total, combined with 135 re-entries, created a whopping $4,879,100 prize pool. Notable names that cashed out include Brain Rast, Scott Clements, Jeremy Ausmus, Freddy Deeb, Greg Mueller, Andrew Robl, and Yevgeniy Timoshenko. Fininshing in the top ten were Jason Somerville at 10, Theo Tran at 8 and Jonathan Aguair at 7.

The final table was dotted with the toughest of competition. One could be forgiven for imagining the players were wearing blank poker faces and surrounded by a thick cloud of cigar smoke, holding cards close to their chests as they waited, ever so patiently, to swoop in and take the loot. Andrew Lichtenberger, Jeremy Kottler, Antonio Esfandiari, Thomas Winters, Shawn Buchanan, and Ravi Raghavan were the last six competitors. Kottler was the first to leave the table with $187,845 after his A-K gave way against Winters’ pocket sevens. Lichtenberger, already short-stacked, followed him with $234,197 after losing out to Raghavans’ Q-4.

Raghavans’ pocket aces saw Esfandiaris’ A-K off and he bagged $329,339. Shawn Buchanan went ahead to eliminate Thomas Winters, who departed with $483,031. Raghavan pulled away to a 4 to 1 cheap lead against Buchanan’s K-7 when the final hand was played. Raghavan’s pocket sevens squashed Buchanan, who took home $746,502, and Ravi went on to win the 2012 WPT Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic series.

PokerStars May Purchase Atlantic City Hotel Casino

The online gambling legalization debate that has been going on just got more intriguing after gaming giant PokerStars made known their intention to purchase the struggling The Atlantic Club.

PokerStars, according to the Wall Street Journal, is in negotiations with Colony Capital, a private equity group, for the purchase of this Atlantic City hotel casino at a price below $50 million. This Boardwalk property originally went by the name Golden Nugget when Steve Wynn founded it in the 1980s, before being called the Atlantic City Hilton.  PokerStars’ interest in it comes as no surprise, and the price being considered is a real steal.

The concern that supersedes even this purchase is whether the player from Isle of Man will garner licensing approval from the gaming regulators of the mega-restrictive New Jersey gambling industry. PokerStars already has a record of a nine-count court indictment, for which an agreement to pay the federal government $731 was reached in August. If they can pull this off, the other question relates to whether they will go for a similar strategy in Nevada.

Evidence of the ground work in New Jersey already being underway is the increased presence of PokerStars attorneys in the state. According to the Wall Street Journal, the success of the deal is dependent on the passing of a bill to legalize online gambling, which is currently being debated in the legislature. Once approved, Atlantic City casinos will be allowed to operate websites that gamblers would have access to while within the New Jersey borders.

On April 15^th 2011, the U.S federal government ran a crackdown on Internet poker and PokerStars ended up ensnared in a legal tussle. The company and its founder, Isai Scheinberg, were accused of operating an illegal gaming business, bank fraud, and money laundering, in a nine-count indictment.

PokerStars finally got from the wrong side of the U.S. Department of Justice on August 1^st 2012 when they agreed to the $731 million settlement. However, they denied all allegations leveled against them by the prosecution and have been restricted from operating in the U.S. gambling market. Isai Scheinberg is still under indictment for various charges, but he is yet to be charged officially.

PKR Nominated Again at 2013 Internet Gaming Awards

Once again, PKR finds itself as a contender at the 2013 Internet Gaming Awards. The UK-based online poker powerhouse, greatly popular in the poker virtual world community, made it as a nominee of both the Online Poker Operator of the year Award and the Socially Responsible Operator of the Year Online Award.

Having already won the 2010 and 2011 titles, this is the fourth year in a row that PKR has made it on the nomination list of Online Poker Operator of the Year award. The award acknowledges the operator with the greatest progress in the online real-money-poker marketplace within the year, and the judges consider originality, usability, growth, and scale, marketing, and payment processing. The Socially Responsible Operator of the Year category considers the easy accessibility of problem gambling assistance, as well as the execution of conscientious gaming safeguards in accord with various legislation.

The IGA is now in its 6th year and boasts the leading global brick-and-mortar and online gaming segments, covering 21 categories and moderated by a select panel of elite players in the industry. This time, the Internet Gaming Awards celebrations will be held on 4^th February, 2013, at The Brewery in London.

Commenting on the 2012 IGA celebration, the PKR Marketing Director, Simon Prodger, explains that the IGA is a great event to be involved with, commenting,“It’s great that our unique approach is still recognized within the industry and we’d be thrilled to win for a third time. We take pride in our responsible approach to gaming and the relationship we have with our player base, so it’s nice to be named in the Socially Responsible category. Win or not, the IGA are significant and it’s great to be involved. I’m sure it’ll be a fantastic evening in February.”

Blom Victorious Over Dwan in $400K Heads Up Battle

Poker fans from all around headed to Full Tilt Poker to marvel at Tom “durrr” Dwan and Victor “Isildur1” Blom battling it out, whereby Blom emerged the victor between the two Full Tilt sponsored pros. For his variant efforts, Dwan took home a whopping $100,000 stake in an online session that was over in less than three hours.

Dubbed “Dwan vs. Blom”, this is the latest edition of a series of battles that date back to 2009, when the pair began the occasional high-stakes battles that they are so well known for. Prior to the battle, both players had already joined Full Tilt’s “The Professionals” team, which is new and comprises of sponsored pros.

The straightforward set up required both Dwan and Blom to put up $100,000 each across four tables with bets of $100/200 NLHE, playing until one pro had stashed all the cash in his corner. Dwan had a pilot lead before Blom’s luck changed.

A total of 1,391 hands were played across six tables by the two players. Some of the largest hands, like second to last hand played between the two poker giants, bore witness to Blom rivering or turning flushes that resulted in Dwan losing some hefty pots.

Dwan was down to his last $4,000 on just one table by the time of the final hand, but he turned a pair of 10s while Blom’s held an A/3. The board was once again going Blom’s way when a turn landed him an Ace, and he acquired an even better hand to guarantee him a win. This was the climax of the challenge, and no spectator could say they didn’t see it coming from a mile away.

As the game drew to a close, the two players left the tables with a “gg” exchange, leaving the spectators to speculate on whether or not Full Tilt will host another match like this one as the increasingly popularity of challenges like these, similar to the matches Blom took part in on PokerStars, grows.

Successfull Spanish Championship of Online Poker

Last month, the world poker community received announcement that Rafael Nadal, the Spanish tennis prodigy, began playing on PokerStars’ real money tables. It wasn’t too long before the seven-time French Open champion found himself among 1,842 players seated at the main event €200 buy-in tournament of the ESCOOP, the Spanish Championship of Online Poker, Spain’s answer to the WCOOP at PokerStars.

Nadal took up the nickname ‘RAFA’ during the tournament, and his participation is probably the link behind the event’s recorded massive success. The tournament’s prize pool exceeded the proposed guarantee by far, reaching a whopping €339,241.14.

RAFA has proved his worth for a high place in the pro world of poker, showing the world that his success is not only restricted to the tennis court. The tennis star is among the most famous sportsmen in the world, colossus on the court and famously all smiles off it. He is that guy whom everyone wants to hang out with and everyone loves his sunny smile, which he even takes with him to the poker room. His failure at mastering a poker face has not put a damper on his remarkable career though.

As a Team PokerStars SportStar player, RAFA flew past the first levels of the ESCOOP main event without a hitch, remaining solid in the face of his competitors’ aggressiveness. He even took part in the elimination of a player, earning him a leadership spot. Unfortunately, he lacked the necessary experience to avoid all poker pitfalls, but ultimately he still came out a winner. The tennis star went only a few levels before he abandoned the championship, which eventually ended with tonet_1981’s victory. All the same, Nadal had still won himself a place in poker. It will be exciting to see where his poker career goes alongside his tennis career.

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