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.
Eleven months after Black Friday, Bitar finally has something to say, but it seems to be a matter of too little, far too late. Players have been looking for a sense of accountability from those associated with Full Tilt for quite some time– most players could have dealt with the “you’re not getting your money back right away” if there had been honest communication about what was going on. Given that Full Tilt was not the only company affected by Black Friday, and that one of these companies, PokerStars, is now doing better than ever, the scandal doesn’t seem to be the issue. The problem is that players have been waiting for almost a year for someone to come forward and account for the site’s actions, and all they’ve gotten is radio silence and continual delays.
Most people don’t consider this information blackout to be over, as Bitar’s statement was indirect at best: “I would like to offer my sincere apology to all who have been affected by these events and to clarify that my silence was not an attempt to “hide,” or “ignore,” the situation. It was done out of necessity to ensure the focus remained on the continued efforts to reach the best outcome for the players. My entire focus is on obtaining a successful resolution for the players. I hope that before long I can provide some good news for all of the players involved.”
Why wait this long to say that, when the statement is so vague that it could have been made at any point in the last year? How does it Bitar’s refusal to speak about events at FTP benefit the players in any way, especially given that an official statement from Bitar months ago could have eased the minds of concerned players, at least for a time? There’s a lot of speculation around why Bitar chose to speak now, but a common opinion is that Groupe Bernard Tapie is close to reaching a deal with the US government (and if they don’t manage to do so, another company is ready to swoop in and salvage what little value the company still has), and he wants to be able to make a statement now in an attempt to preempt that finalized deal.
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.
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