Ever since Black Friday, American poker players have been at a loss, and the poker community around the world has felt the loss of American players at online poker sites. Americans, who make up the largest number of online poker players (or used to, at any rate), and who often possess a fair amount of skill in the game, have been banned from the major sites for almost a full year now. While plenty of loopholes existed before that would let US players get around the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which largely bans US banks from making deposits into and taking funds out of online internet sites, Black Friday saw a crackdown from the US government that prevented some banks and sites from exploiting these loopholes and scared others out of even trying. While some poker players in the US have switched to either live games or other pursuits altogether, the majority remain optimistic that their country and/or state will soon pass legislation that will bring back the access to online poker.
Legislature has been introduced in a good number of states. Here’s what’s been happening lately with poker legislation in the US:
Hawaiian Poker Bill 86’ed
Hawaii, which is one of only two US states that doesn’t have any form of legalized gambling (the other being Utah), has nixed another online poker bill. The state legislature has turned down roughly 150 gambling-related bills in the last 30 years, a surprising feat given Hawaii’s left-leaning political climate. Despite the rejection of the most recent bill, which pushed for the legalization of not only online poker but also state lotteries and land-based casinos, research is currently underway to examine the economic and regional impact of opening a land-based casino in Waikiki. While it’s a far cry from being able to play poker online from the Aloha State, it’s at least one indication that local politicians are interested in making strides in that direction… eventually.
Utah Actively Chases Poker Out of the State
Anyone familiar with Utah’s political history won’t be surprised to know that this ultra-conservative state is opposed to online gambling. Since around 60.4% of the state is made up of Mormons, followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a religion that openly forbids, among other things, gambling, it doesn’t come as a shock that the politicians are not only blocking internet gambling laws, but are actively campaigning to ban it from the state entirely. Stephen Sandstrom, a Republican Congressman from Orem, stated on his website: “We want to keep Utah free from the negative impacts of legalized gambling… the gambling industry profits from the vulnerabilities of its customers and opens the way for states to become further dependent upon tax revenues gained from a form of recreation that hits hardest those who can least afford it.”
Nevada Moves Forward on Online Poker Legalization
Unlike its neighbor, Nevada residents and their representatives aren’t squeamish about getting involved with gambling of any kind, least of all online poker. The state has been campaigning hard to legalize online poker ever since the DOJ announced that the decision would be left up to the individual states (albeit not without federal loopholes to jump through), and it seems that their efforts will bear fruit soon– online poker is likely to be completely legal in Nevada in late Autumn, making the state even more of a gambler’s paradise.
New Jersey Takes One Step Forward, One Step Back
Poker fans abound in New Jersey, whose Atlantic City is the number two spot for gambling in the US, and an online gambling bill has made some headway in the Garden State, pushing through the Senate committee. Currently, the bill is facing some challenges from the horse racing legion, which considers online poker a threat to their well-being as a gambling institution. Only time will tell where this leads, but parties on both sides of the issue are getting pretty annoyed.
Iowa Online Poker Bill on the Fast Track
Like New Jersey, Iowa has also passed an online poker bill through their senate subcommittee, and the bill is ramped up for the next committee hearing. Iowans on the pro- side argue that the bill will bring in millions in added revenue, while the anti- side is convinced that the bill will corrupt family values by encouraging underaged players to gamble online. Given the political climate in Iowa, which obsesses over “family values” but has lately been seen as surprisingly progressive, there’s no telling which way this bill will ultimately go.
California Makes Progress
A bill in California proposes that online poker (and only poker) be allowed for a two-year trial period, after which time either the whole thing will be abandoned or other casino games will be phased in. This bill has more potential than the two bills struck down in 2011, and with 60% of America’s online poker players residing in California, residents are hoping that it goes through.
Mississippi Kills Poker Bill
The state of Mississippi killed a proposed online poker bill last week, one that proposed that casinos currently existing in the state could open online casinos and offer internet gambling and poker to their players. Given Mississippi’s position firm in the middle of the Bible Belt, it’s not particularly surprising that the bill was quashed, but plans exist to reintroduce the bill in the future (perhaps when the next elections trade out some of the current representatives for those of a different political persuasion).
Anonymous sources have reported to eGaming Review and Gaming Intelligence that the deal between Groupe Bernard Tapie and the United States Department of Justice is looming in the near future, and should be completed very soon (by the end of next week– around the 23rd). Most poker players are unconvinced, however, as this is not by any means they’ve heard the “no, no, we’ll have things fixed soon” or “resolution is just around the corner!” spiels before. Most people aren’t getting their hopes up and are instead regarding the news with a dose of skepticism common among the once-bitten and twice-shy.
The timing of these rumors, released by “anonymous sources” to news outlets that require hefty subscription fees in order to get the full story, if particularly curious. Within a week of news breaking that another company might be interested in acquiring Full Tilt, and as more and more ire is directed at the flailing company and the players and other people behind it, not only does Ray Bitar come out of nowhere to make a statement– his first in the 11 months since Black Friday, but now more rumors are being leaked? It all just seems a little well-timed to be coincidence.
The schedule for the World Series of Poker Europe 2012 tournaments has been released, and it looks like this year’s WSOPE will be a repeat of 2011’s, only with a bigger turnout, which in turns means larger prize pools. Like last year’s event, the WSOPE 2012 will be held in Cannes, France, which saw a record-breaking turnout during its debut year last year.
While the WSOP lineup for this year offers some new bracelets, players in Cannes will be competing for more of the same, partially because French law only allows casinos to offer Hold’em and Omaha within the country. The lineup will keep the seven bracelets that it offered last year, and while there are an extra 48 side tournaments in the upcoming WSOPE, not much else has changed, apart from some miniscule changes to the buy-in costs. The vast majority of this year’s events are three days long, with two (the 10k Championship No-Limit Hold’em and the 1k No-Limit Hold’em) stretching to five days, with two separate starting days given to each of these events, the most popular WSOPE events by far.
At long last, Full Tilt CEO and co-founder Ray Bitar has made a statement about Full Tilt Poker and his prolonged silence since Black Friday. His statement, which essentially amounted to “I’m sorry that I didn’t say anything sooner, but it was for your own good, and that’s really all you need to know,” has further angered many people in the poker community, who have been calling for Bitar to make a statement directed at former FTP players.
Bitar claims that his lawyer(s) encouraged him not to speak about any of the goings-on at Full Tilt and that talking could have potentially impacted the ability of the company to make a deal, stating that “while it might satisfy people to have specific information about those ongoing discussions – and it would certainly take some of the heat off myself – I am convinced that such public statements would diminish the likelihood of a successful outcome.” Really? What kind of mess is behind the scenes at Full Tilt that a short, apologetic message might come across as bad for everyone? It’s far more likely that Bitar and his legal team have been trying to avoid admitting to any accountability for the condition of the company in the face of looming criminal charges.
Unlike Groupe Bernard Tapie, this British-based private equity company doesn’t seem interested in relaunching the Full Tilt site, which seems to be where a lot of the current negotiations are running into problems. Instead, the new interest seems to be solely in purchasing the Full Tilt Poker software, and they’re willing to pay between 30 and 35 million dollars for it. Between the considerable amount they’re offering and the potential formal death of Full Tilt Poker once and for all, it seems quite likely that the US Department of Justice would be willing to accept their offer, although what this means for players who are still hoping to reclaim the money that they’ve lost has yet to be seen. Since the company’s debts to its players are roughly ten times the amount offered by the new company, it doesn’t bode well.
The US Department of Homeland Security has gone after another site and its founder– this time Bodog.com and Calvin Ayre, a former Forbes billionaire and contender for most eligible bachelor throughout US media. The curious thing about this particular seizure, however, is that the site hasn’t been operational for nine months, so the US government isn’t shutting down a site so much as they are flaunting their power and taking it because they can. A federal grand jury in Maryland indicted Ayre along with James Philip, Derrick Maloney, and David Ferguson on February 22nd.
According to the paperwork in the case, investigators posed as players, using Maryland addresses, to see if they could get checks via mail (they did), and conducted interviews with Bodog employees and former employees to get a better understanding of the company’s operations. The affidavit filed with the warrant includes information from a former employee that the company has hundreds of employees in Costa Rica and Canada who are working specifically to launder money into the US. The heart of this matter can probably best be summed up by ‘s official statement: “Sports betting is illegal in Maryland, and federal law prohibits bookmakers from flouting that law simply because they are located outside the country.”
It’s true, as it’s been said on various poker forums, that sometimes the details can just fly right on by when you’re delegating responsibility to someone else and trusting them completely. It’s also mostly true that Lederer, 
Attention, poker fans– there’s a new poker information site on the web, and they’re gunning for the number one spot when it comes to comprehensive poker information. The Poker Wiki, backed by PKR Poker, who coughed up a lot of the funds to make this brilliant concept a reality, is now online. While the site is still new, it already offers plenty of great information, and it’s expected to grow rapidly and steadily until it becomes the internet’s best source for all things poker related.
Now that the site has gone live, PKR Poker has released it into the wild, so to speak. According to their press release: “Although initially funded by PKR, The Poker Wiki has been developed as a standalone project. PKR Media Manager Dan Grant explains: “PKR has worked with a team of writers to get The Poker Wiki up and running, but from now on our involvement will be very hands-off. The Poker Wiki’s future is now in the hands of the poker community who we hope will pick up the baton and contribute content to help create the world’s foremost repository for all things related to poker.”
PokerStars has just launched their mobile app in the UK, which allows players with compatible phones to play real money games, even if they’re away from their computer. The app, which was made available for download on February 14th, allows players to play sit-and-go games, multi table, and compete in all the PokerStars tournaments.