POKER/GAMBLING NEWS

It must be so frustrating.  I really do feel for USA players.

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Merge Network Loses Hero Poker

According to the latest reports, a non-US online poker brand Hero Poker has departed from the Merge Poker Network, and its players have been moved to one of the flagship sites on the network.

It has been revealed by Hero Poker CEO David Jung that he may start up another poker site in 2013, presumably on an alternative network.

Addressing Hero Poker players, he assured them that their funds were secure, and their migration to another Merge site would be "relatively painless."

He said: "In terms of player VIP points and coupons, I have received confirmation that VIP point balances and tournament tickets will be transferred to your new accounts.

"You do not need the client to get access to your funds as you will be able to transfer your account via a weblink, which I will be posting once the client has been disabled tonight. But for those with the client, they will be prompted with a message screen to that effect."

He also added: "I do want to thank the Merge gaming management for making this transition as smooth as possible as it has been clear that it has been both Hero's and Merge's priority to ensure that the players are well taken care of," Jung wrote, promising to remain active on the message board.

"I expect to do a full update within in the next couple of days on where Hero is going, but for the moment, I'd like to focus on ensuring that our existing players are able to transition properly," he wrote.

"While I'll save my own personal statement on all of this later, again, I'd like to be clear about 2 things right now. Simply put, Hero and Merge weren't going the same direction any longer and it just didn't make sense on both sides to continue."

Regarding the future plans, Jung noted that "Hero Poker will be relaunching on a new network for early 2013, but it was decided that this was the best course of action for existing players to enjoy the full tournament MTT guarantees and more payment processing options."

Source

Poker Legalization Proposal in Texas Leaves Out Internet Users

In December 2012, the Democratic Party Senator Eddie Rodriguez presented to the Texas law makers the new bill called “Texas Poker Gaming Act of 2013” aimed at regulating the poker activities to be offered by the state-licensed land-based casinos facilities, the website Pokerfuse reports.

Unfortunately for the internet poker players, the new measure explicitly bans other forms and channels for the game, including online and mobile poker and even electronic poker tables, focusing only on the traditional variance of the popular game.

At the moment, there is only one legal live poker room in Texas - the tribally owned 12-table Lucky Eagle enterprise in the vicinity of Mexico border.

"The bill would also allow licenses for offering poker to be applied for by existing pari-mutuel facilities, bingo halls and tribal concerns," Pokerfuse reports.

"Participating tribes and pari-mutuels could offer poker around the clock, while bingo halls would be limited to providing poker only during the halls’ normal hours of operation."

In his proposal, Rodriguez advocates for establishing a new poker department within the Texas Lottery Commission, even though the poker has been defined as a game of skill and not a lottery.

The designers of the bill included also the bad beat and promotional jackpots provisions, as well as the suggested tax regime for up to 18% of operators’ gross revenues, with tax allocation to the state's Department of Housing and Community Affairs.

The bill also proposes cash-game activity without limits on buy-ins and with a 10% rake maxed at $4. Additionally, the new measure allows live tournaments with top buy-in of $100, making it difficult for the operators with major prize pools to plan their activities.

Last year’s federal bill launched last year by Texan Joe Barton addressed different authorities compared to the state-based measure proposed by Rodriguez. Namely, Barton’s bill HR 2366 - the Online Poker Act of 2011 was presented to the House of Representatives in Congress in June 2012 but, despite the support of 27 co-sponsors, has not yet been endorsed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security.

Source

Sen. Rob Wright About His Latest Online Poker Initiative

Following its recent reintroduction California Senator Rod Wright remains optimistic about his intrastate online poker legalisation chances in the California Legislature in 2013.

At the recent National Conference of Legislators from Gaming States in Las Vegas, the Senator explained why his measure SB-51 should succeed when previous attempts failed.

He said that this year interested parties in the issue have a larger number of partners which would allow them to participate in a potentially lucrative Californian online poker business.

The State of California offers greater player liquidity potential than a smaller state like Nevada, where a significant number of large companies and partnerships are applying for licenses because of its well advanced intrastate regulation and licensing.

No doubt that Nevada-licensed operators would be interested to pursue players in other states, something that would not be necessary in California due to its larger poker population.

"As I look at the Nevada game, I believe it to be a stalking horse for federal legislation that will allow them to encroach their borders and come into California," said Wright.

Nevertheless, Wright is against federal legalisation because it infringes on states' rights, if individual states wish to legalise intrastate internet gambling or enter into interstate compacts it should be a state prerogative.

As he explained: "The federal government should not be in the business of controlling or taking money out of the gambling revenues that are generated by the state. That’s never been a federal process, and it should not begin now."

As more states enter the online gambling sector, they would interact with other states in a bid to reach sharing agreements and compatible regulatory requirements by the participating parties, and it should be an option available to individual states, not one dictated by federal government. The states' interactions on lotteries is a good example of how these regulatory themes could work.

Wright underlined that regulators in California would have to master the complexities of regulation completely before looking to create relationships with other like-minded states.

Being a major force in the state gaming business, the tribes' combined revenues in California are now larger than the take of Las Vegas. It is in their commercial interests to merge land and online gambling so as to broaden commercial opportunities. Tribal interests could operate some of the internet poker hubs envisioned in California, said Wright.

Therefore the Senator stressed: "Clearly we would not be able to violate the compacts that we have, so the Class 2 games that are currently being played in California will be the only games allowed on the Internet platform as well, so it will not be a violation of exclusivity. And we will not go into trying to renegotiate the tribal compacts as they’re written."

Source

I'm sure hoping that Senator Wright is right!

katt

I'm sure hoping that Senator Wright is right!

 

katt

There's too much money to be made for it not to happen.

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Equity Poker Network Goes Live

The latest reports from the online poker industry contain info about the new Costa-Rica based Equity Poker Network (EPN), which has been defined as a cooperative non-profit poker network where "operators can now sign up to a fairer future where profit and cross cage is balanced ensuring that mostly losing players will be winners."

Revealing more about the new launch, Clive Archer, referred to as the "architect" of the EquityPokerNetwork, said: “We’re rewriting the rules to provide small and medium size businesses with an opportunity to offer their players online poker without losing their shirts each month to cross cage and sharp players. We understand how valuable player wallets are to operators, and can now offer a solution with our new cooperative poker network where everyone wins.”

Apparently, the plan is for EPN to redistribute profits back to operators on a basis of contribution and offer very low fixed fees to be part of the network, which will reportedly be less restrictive on promotions and provide lower costs, better liquidity and a level playing field favorable even for recreational players.

Archer, who is believed to be the previous chief executive officer of BetOnline, also noted that “Equity Poker Network is on track to make many operators leap at the chance to become a part of the cooperative, sick of the month on month costs of having online poker as the black sheep of their product set – now they will have something to really get behind. With rock solid software that has been tried and tested for over 10 years we are certain that creating this new fairer playing field for both operators and players is going to provide a huge relief to all that will be joining our Network over the coming months.”

EPN was set up by an un-named group of investors who reportedly have a long-term "blue chip track record in Gaming." It also includes additional revenue opportunities such as proprietary sportsbook, terminal products and casino games in its offering.

Source

Fertitta’s Nevada Online Poker Site Ready for Launch?

News came recently that Ultimate Poker will be online operating under a Nevada licence in the near future, however not as the sister of Absolute Poker (with which it comprised a notorious duo), but as a wholly new brand owned by the Fertitta brothers of Station Casinos.

Namely, the online poker venture has been preparing a dedicated 20,000 square foot premises just off The Strip in Las Vegas for a while now, so the launch should come soon. Reportedly, the personnel at the new center seem enthusiastic about the potential for online poker in the Silver State, especially if interstate compacts are signed to generate greater player liquidity.

The dedicated team for the new Fertitta venture includes Pokerstars veterans like Joe Versaci, who was at one time head of North American marketing for PokerStars, Scott Yeates, who helped create the PokerStars VIP Program, and Terrence Chan, a former Pokerstars support team manager.

In addition, online poker software developer Cyberarts which was recently acquired by Fertitta Interactive, will provide the platform for the Fertitta Ultimate Poker operation, and Cyberarts CEO Chris Derossi will be in charge of Ultimate Poker's software team.

Source

Fortune Poker and AdamEve Poker Close Their Doors

Players of another two online poker operators received notice this week that they won’t be able to play there any longer.

In its statement, Fortune Poker operated by Malta-based Casidio Limited on GTech's International Poker Network, informed players that it will close on April 1st, adding:

"Over the past 9 years, we have been very grateful to service you and provide you with the most personal and VIP oriented poker room online. With many changes in the online gaming industry, it has been a struggle to continue to support our players and affiliates to the fullest. While we have grown very fond of our Players, Partners and Affiliates – we regret to inform you that Fortune Poker has made the unfavorable decision to close its gaming/poker operations.

"Gameplay at Fortune will cease March 31 at 23:59 GMT and the cashier will be open until April 2 at 23:59 GMT to handle cashouts. Rakeback, VIP Prizes and Race Prizes will be paid into accounts promptly on the 1st of April. The site will cease all communications effective April 15."

As for the other closing operator, AdamEvePoker, its closure seems to be at least partly related to pay-out problems at US-facing Revolution Poker Network where it is one of the skins. Apparently, the operator is now looking for a new home for its poker offering, announcing that its online casino and mobile gambling operations will continue to serve players, but that the poker operation needs to be closed for now, starting from April 1st.

The poker room also notified players that their account balances are safe and that “...all poker related withdrawals will be processed as soon as the network covers all due settlements.”

Providing reason for suspension of deposits, the operator said they lie in "....recent events and the difficulties faced by our poker room", adding that such a move is necessary “...for the safety of funds of our players” as the difficulties were due to “many months’ settlements transfer delay from the network.”

Source

***BREAKING NEWS***

Ultimate Gaming Debuts First Legal Real-Money Internet Poker Site in US

As of Tuesday, poker players located in Nevada can play their favorite poker games at the Ultimate Poker website, the first legal real-money online poker site in the United States launched by a Las Vegas-based Ultimate Gaming, a majority-owned subsidiary of Station Casinos LLC.

"There was black Friday, and now we're going to have 'trusting Tuesday. Players won't have to worry if their money is safe. They are going to be able to play with people they can trust and know the highest regulatory standards have been applied," said Ultimate Gaming CEO Tobin Prior.

Provided players are older than 21, they can register an account and deposit online in advance of visiting the State of Nevada whether resident or not. Deposits and cash-outs can be made at 16 Station Casino locations across the State.

As a part of the security measures, players will need to complete a lengthy account setup process involving a Social Security number and a Nevada address. 

Ultimate Gaming was founded by four gaming and technology entrepreneurs and its top executives include: Tom Breitling as co-founder and Chairman, Tobin Prior as CEO, Chris deRossi as chief technology officer, Joe Versaci as chief marketing officer and Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta of Station Casinos LLC.

“We have worked closely with state gaming regulators to demonstrate our unique and compelling poker platform that, above all, players know they can trust. Ultimate Poker is dedicated to being the players’ choice for online poker,” said Tom Breitling.

The company’s operations are based on the Ultimate Poker own software developed through the company's acquisition of CyberArts in 2011. The initial offer available at the website will include Limit Texas hold'em and no-limit Texas hold'em ring games ranging from $0.01/$0.02 to $10/$20.

According to the Ultimate Poker Chief Executive Officer Tobin Prior, the company’s technology is one of its key competitive advantages:  “We feel our technology is a major advantage. Ultimate Poker’s proprietary software is completely owned and operated by parent company Ultimate Gaming, allowing for continuous investment and product development. The technology was acquired in 2011 and initially developed by a U.S.-based company with a completely clean regulatory profile.”

The launch of Ultimate Poker was announced well in advance with its logo advertised on the mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship brand which is owned by the Fertitta brothers.

"This is a really huge moment for our company, the state of Nevada and the gaming community. We're hoping to make poker fun again." Breitling said.

By launching the Ultimate Poker website, Ultimate Gaming has officially become the first company in US to offer legal and secure online poker.

Source:  LPB News

That is awesome news and i am tickled pink! Before we know it more and more states will be joining the band wagon and i can hardly wait!

That is awesome news and i am tickled pink! Before we know it more and more states will be joining the band wagon and i can hardly wait!

I'm thrilled for USA players too Lips.  The first of many no doubt.

Utah Zion Bank Involved in Illegal Online Poker Payments?

Zion Bank in Utah is reported to be under federal investigation on allegations of processing "tens of millions" of dollars in illegal online poker payments in the mid-2000s.

According to the court documents filed by the federal authorities, a local businessman John Scott Clark was allegedly involved in the illegal operations and he used the bank’s services to transmit around $150 million to various accounts overseas.

Clark is also accused of operating an illegal Ponzi scheme, in which the investors were promised sky-high returns while Clark was actually using their money for personal projects, Securities and Exchange Commission's Salt lake City office says.

"Clark recruited new investors through referrals from earlier investors who thought the Ponzi payments they received were actual returns on their investments, and sought to share the lucrative opportunity with family and business associates,” SEC official Ken Israel explained.

As per court reports, Clark pleaded guilty last year to four charges of conspiracy and obstruction of justice related to processing of millions of dollars from illegal payments to online poker companies. He was sentenced in December to time served - around a week following his arrest back in 2009.

It may also be assumed based on the court documents that Clark is cooperating with federal investigators in the online payment processing case. Furthermore, there are certain indications that Zion may have handled accounts involving Jeremy Johnson, whose name was mentioned also in previous processing cases.

Zion Bank spokesman notified the public that investigations are underway, emphasizing that the bank takes steps at substantial cost to prevent illegal or fraudulent use of the bank services.

"Obviously we process millions of transactions, and there are situations that develop over time where we perhaps have given customers the benefit of the doubt and, in retrospect, perhaps that trust was misplaced," he said.

The federal authorities fined Zion Bank with $8 million in 2011 for failing to properly monitor foreign customers who performed wire transfers to Latin America between 2006 and 2008 in the amount of $7.9 billion.

Source

Wow, that's quite a hefty fine, but well deserved!

LGA Malta Suspends Everleaf Poker Network

An announcement came this week from the Lotteries and Gaming Authority of Malta that it has suspended Everleaf Poker Network’s license.

After finally losing its cool with the long-suffering network, the LGA specified that the suspension also carries a requirement that the operator desists from offering any games licensed by Malta and may not register new players or take any fresh player deposits.

Claiming that it has been involved in a protracted investigation of the Everleaf case, the LGA said: “Everleaf Gaming Limited is not authorised to continue conducting gaming by means of distance communications under an Authority Licence.”

However, this is not necessarily good news for players, who are unlikely to get any help from the regulator, judging by the previous experiences such as the one with the Purple Lounge poker disaster.

Still no response has arrived from Everleaf about its license suspension, and its future seems to be pretty uncertain at this point.

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Documentary on UltimateBet Scandal to Air

Doublehead Pictures will release its documentary on the UltimateBet cheating scandal on Tuesday October 22 in Video on Demand format.

Director Scott Bell is promoting production via Youtube and social and poker channels.

"After successfully launching a popular [online poker] site, a group of insiders used software access to defraud players over a period of years without detection. When discovered, they went to great lengths to cover-up the crimes in order to repay less than the amount stolen,” according to publicity material.

"Nobody was ever investigated, arrested, indicted or prosecuted for the crimes. The subtext is how a small group of players crowd-sourced an online investigation to force UltimateBet into repaying far more than they intended, if not fully."

Bell claims: "The guys who ran UltimateBet could not have succeeded at this without some level of player and poker media acquiescence during the boom years. That general sense of 'don’t rock the boat because we are all making a lot of money' thing.

“Working on this case is a story unto itself with a lot of ups/downs and weird twists. One example is the lawyer for Pierson, et al sending a young intern down to help us out last year on a Vegas shoot. I mean, spies. C’mon."

The promotional video may be viewed

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Can't wait to watch that, what a scandal in the gambling world! I'm curious to see the end result.

I'm interested to learn about Phil Hellmuth's and Annie Duke's involvement in all this too.

It should be interesting to watch.I also have to admit I'm glad I didn't deposit a lot of money into these sites.I have a hard enough time winning when the site is legit. :(

Norwegian Challenge Set to Prove Poker Involves Skill

A poker pro has challenged a local politician to a $170,000 (NKR 1 million) challenge which he accepted in an attempt to prove that poker is a game of skill.

Ola “Odd Oddsen” Amundsrud and local Progress Party politician Erlend Wiborg will face off in to prove to Norwegian lawmakers that there is no luck involved.

Poker is not legal in Norway so the challenge will have to commence in another location although legislators are considering legalization with tight regulation which will likely include taxation.

Thus far, details regarding the when and where of the challenge are unknown.

source

Thanks for passing through this resourceful poker gambling news here......its quite helpful for beginners...nice share....!!

That should be a real interesting game to watch! How is that politician gna talk his why outta that one if he loses!  LOL

That should be a real interesting game to watch! How is that politician gna talk his why outta that one if he loses!  LOL

Assuming he does lose of course....

13 Sites Included in NJ Online Gambling Soft Launch

Thursday was the launch of online gambling in New Jersey and the only unexpected event was the lack of the Golden Nugget.

As of 6pm EST on Thursday, the official five-day soft launch began in an effort to work out any kinks prior to the official launch.

There were a total of 13 online gambling websites that launched on Thursday night including:

Borgata-Bwin-PartyPoker

www.Borgatacasino.com,

www.Borgatapoker.com,

www.NJ.Partypoker.com,

Caesars Entertainment - 888

www.HarrahsCasino.com,

www.WSOP.com,

us.888.com,

us.888poker.com,

us.888casino.com,

Caesars Entertainment - Amaya Gaming

www.CaesarsCasino.com,

Tropicana - Gamesys

www.tropicanacasino.com,

www.virgincasino.com,

Trump Plaza - Betfair

www.betfaircasino.com

Trump Taj Mahal - Ultimate Gaming

www.ucasino.com.

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Full Tilt to Offer Casino Games

In an attempt to attract more players, Full Tilt Poker will feature various casino games on its site.

The process will be done slowly to determine its success and its sister site, PokerStars, has no plans to follow suit.

Testing of games including Blackjack and Roulette is underway.

Players should also take note of Full Tilt’s release of “Adrenaline Rush” which involves 4-handed tables with preflop action and 10 big blinds max. The concept is meant to take a player to a new table when they fold. Raise Max and Quick Fold options are integrated and according to a spokesman, the speed will surpass that of the Rush product.

source

In an attempt to attract more players, Full Tilt Poker will feature various casino games on its site.

Interesting tactic, particularly the low key approach in how it is being done... I mean, I get the site's newsletters and read (or at least skim) most of them yet I don't remember this move ever being announced ???

Poker Host Moving to Equity Poker Network

Reportedly Poker Host is set to leave the Merge Gaming Network to join the Equity Poker Network (EPN) within the next two weeks.

According to reports:

* Segregated player funds will remain in Pokerhost’s control.

* Deposit and withdrawal methods will not change.

* All VIP points earned will be converted to a new VIP program.

Source

Don't Give In To Amaya (5th of November Protest)

Big poker forum 2+2 announced protest against new Pokerstars policy.

Amaya/Pokerstars have a monopoly on online poker and are making any changes that they believe will increase their bottom line. They have just increased rake across most games.

Added a 2.5% margin on cashouts and deposits when changing currencies.

It is time for players to do something. While it may seem that player power is limited, history has shown that organized player movement can have results. The alternative is to do nothing and let Amaya walk all over you.

A few ideas:

i) A mass player sitout on the 5th of November at 6pm(GMT). At this time you open as many tables as you can and sitout for 2 hours. Explain to other players why this is happening.

ii) Do not use the name pokerstars anywhere. If you do this it gives the company soft advertising. Pokerstars was the old company, Amaya is the present. Call them Amaya.

iii) An organized player movement away from Amaya. Players join together as a union/single group and approach the other sites. If this group of players is significant enough they should be able to negotiate a deal with those sites that gives them amazing rewards and customer service.

How can you protest/what should you do?

- Do not play on Pokerstars/Full Tilt on the 5th of November

- Withdraw money from the sites

- Spread the word and tell others

i) A mass player sitout on the 5th of November at 6pm(GMT). At this time you open as many tables as you can and sitout for 2 hours. Explain to other players why this is happening.

--> Really nice idea. Breaking ToS by "mass sitout" ended up with temporary bans by Poker Stars  LOL I guess people never learn.

:-pp That sadness. They take advantage of the good will of the people: (.

$$ $$

$$ $$

They gain millions and want more.

:-pp That sadness. They take advantage of the good will of the people: (.

$$ $$

$$ $$

They gain millions and want more.

in the first 3 months of 2015 pokerstars won 368 million dollars...with 37 million dollars more than in the same period of 2014.

:-pp That sadness. They take advantage of the good will of the people: (.

$$ $$

$$ $$

They gain millions and want more.

in the first 3 months of 2015 pokerstars won 368 million dollars...with 37 million dollars more than in the same period of 2014.

They're certainly "raking" it in (pardon the pun).

How can {insert poker site} take your money faster.

How can (insert any successful business ever) increase their profit.

They aren't robbing anyone, they offer a service for a price.  Don't play if price is too high.

I feel for the super nova elite players who won't receive the benifits they expected next year, stars should have given more warning.

For everyone else though, it's just reality.  Amaya has tons of data theyve analyzed and they believe they will be most successful by implementing the changes.

are those link still active??

il try some of them but not working badly...

still thanks for the links...

<i_love_lcb>

Pokerstars rake in so much profit it's unbelievable.

Now they have slots their profit will rocket.

Unbelievable

Sit & Go 2.0, the next evolution of poker!

This revolutionary new twist on the traditional Sit & Go creates opportunities for bigger prize pools and more players paid, each and every game. You determine your fate!  The decision you make, the card you pull, makes all the difference.

How it works

The rules of Sit & Go 2.0 are no different than those of a standard nine-handed No Limit Hold‘em sit-n-go. The difference comes before players’ hands are even dealt, and only affects the prize pool amount and number of places paid.

Before the tournament begins, each player receives one card face down. The player to the immediate left of the button then turns over his or her card, revealing it to be either red or black. A red card puts a stop to the pregame action and means that the prize pool will remain the same as it was outlined during registration. In that case, the total prize pool will be equal to 7X the buy-in, with only the top two players getting paid. When a red card is revealed, the cards are shuffled and a standard sit-n-go is played out.

If the first player turns over a black card, however, the prize pool is increased to a factor of 9X the buy-in, and will guarantee payment to the top three finishers. The action then falls on the next player to the left, and continues until a red card is revealed. Each time a black card is turned over, the prize pool increases, creating a potential pool of up to 51.3X the buy-in, with six places being paid.

The likelihood of all nine players receiving black cards is very low, of course, and happens around once every 1,180 trials. Roughly 75% of the time, the pregame action will end immediately with a red card or with just one player producing a black card.

Coming Soon, exclusively at Americas Cardroom

Read more at: Americas Cardroom

Sounds very intriguing.  I shall look forward to seeing that working

Hmm... Need to test that

Right now the thing sounds very interesting )

Really revolutionary )

Last week I won 200$ in casino. I think sometimes I can be lucky. My favorite game is 888 poker. Check here https://pokerglobal.info/poker-rooms/888poker/registration-instructions/ and find some guide of this casino.

All that you need for play on real money is to create an account with 888 poker following our instructions. After you complete the registration process, you will be eligible to participate in real money games.

888 is a good one, that's true

I used to gamble there , till I heard about $450 welcome bonus in the House of Jack, took it from this article divingintodart, and now I'm their client for like over a year )

888 is a good one, that's true

I used to gamble there , till I heard about $450 welcome bonus in the House of Jack, took it from this article divingintodart  , and now I'm their client for like over a year )

Was that the only reason you left the 888casino ?

i want to need more updates about poker game.

I'm from Australia is there any sites I can play poker?? Tried pokerstars, 888 poker etc. 

any advices?