blonde poker forum

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15095619/ (http://msnbc.msn.com/id/15095619/)

I don't play on 888 but the site I do play on has mostly american players. Not looking good.

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9070-2384407,00.html (http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9070-2384407,00.html)


I was thinking that Party being a bunch of greedy scum bags wouldn't do it but 888 are just as bad...

I'm a Yank who's fortunate enough to live in Europe, but at the same time I can see how banning it in the States will affect online poker across the globe.  Living in Europe and seeing it from your point of view....there won't be half as many Yanks (fish) on in the morning to take money from with their stupid late night plays/calls.  But there also won't be as many big sponsorship deals because at least half their market has just been cut.  WSOP won't come close to the numbers they had this year if the new laws stick.  But then...the pros would be delighted with that news and so should we because it makes it that much easier for the rest of us in Europe to win a seat.  But...is one seat for a few days in the year worth being glad to see the back of em?  Sad day really and sad the way they were able to stick it onto the back of legislation that matters, just to be sure it passed.

PartyGaming shares are down 60% this morning already....... scarey stuff

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5397920.stm

Looks like the end is nigh for Americans playing online.  >:(

I'm glad I don't own any shares in the gaming companies.  Party lost nearly 60% of it's value.   It's possibly a good time for a speculative buy.

yes it is..but not in a company like Party..they are in all sorts of bother now as they mainly focus on the american market.
This is a fair time to look at poker sites that mainly cater for europeans and are looking to move into Asia.

er anyone know of any half decent jobs? at least I'll be able to play APAT events now :D

http://www.londonstockexchange.com/LSECWS/IFSPages/MarketNewsPopup.aspx?id=1308926&source=RNS (http://www.londonstockexchange.com/LSECWS/IFSPages/MarketNewsPopup.aspx?id=1308926&source=RNS)

Paradise

http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20061002:MTFH40081_2006-10-02_06-26-29_WLA3665&type=comktNews&rpc=44 (http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20061002:MTFH40081_2006-10-02_06-26-29_WLA3665&type=comktNews&rpc=44)

Looks like the yanks are pulling their money out of everywhere, I can usually 6 table at Absolute at this time of day. Only 2 tables running now. I dunno whether to withdraw my bankroll or not, I have to wait 24 hours because I deposited yesterday. They might have run out of money by then???

Provided the players funds are held in a separate account to the main business (which they should be), mass withdrawals from a site should not be an issue for you.

I'd be surprised if any of the majors have player funds intermingled with the main business monies.

Sheriff

What poker sites are mainly european based ?

I feel sickend for anyone that has a decent wedge invested in theseat the moment.   A couple of years back we took a right pelting on the markets and are still paying dearly now. I no longer dable but I do know a member of our family is quite heavily invested in one of these mentioned here.b Good luck all..xx

A few random thoughts.....

One option open to the US players still is likely to be the sportsbooks (Mansion, WSEX, etc) as they accept horse-racing bets which, as far as I know, are unaffected by this bill.

This is also likely to have a potential knock on effect to the big live events too, as the online satellites are going to have a much smaller player pool if this becomes law and wipes out the US players.  Assuming this, its hard to see how the WSOP Main Event is going to attract 8,000+ runners again.

Hopefully, one benefit we'll see is that sites will make their big events more Euro-friendly in terms of start times as we are surely now the main market for them to focus on.

It might not all be bad news, although I say this as a recreational player and without meaning to trivialise someone such as Byron's position.  For the full-time players the loss of a huge chunk of the player pool is obviously a massive concern.

Sheriff

wimpy hill and lads are mainly euro based and moving towards Asia more then the states (I just hate playing there)

prima and tribeca very euro. wpex have said they'll carry on with yank custom

What will happen to sites like Full Tilt who have alot of US players and Pokerstars?    I don't think either are US based, but they have many US players.   Do you think some sites will be forced to merge with each other.

http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?topic=10773.msg229870#msg229870 (http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?topic=10773.msg229870#msg229870)

This is surely the key.

As much as I hate the hypocrisy, horse racing is specifically exempt, so US players can use this to legitimately make deposits in a sports book, and once the funds are offshore, transfer them from the sportsbook to the poker account.

Poker rooms without a sportsbook who rely on US players will suffer, but after consolidation in the industry we should be left with European centred operations, and sportsbook partnered, US centred operations.

So not necessarily any reason to worry about these developments, as long as the right poker rooms make the most of the opportunity we could be left with a very similar market to what we have now.

I might just be an optimist though.  :D

What gets me on all this is the hypocracy of the people who pushed for this legislation.  They are all backed by the live gaming lobby the indian tribes the lotto companies and the race tracks.    I got used to working in my night shirt and siestas in the afternoon.The lifestyle that the net provided not to mention the money will be greatly missed,hopefully a good percentage of the new internet players will find their way into B and M s.          We can hope for this, there is evidence that the net has helped live poker by being sponsors to big events which in turn are on the box which attract new blood . Unfortunately for some those big big fields are over               but the spin off to live cash games is happening Vienna   Paris  Spain are all on the up. I dont know about the UK but there seem to be many poker clubs opening, so perhaps every cloud has a silver lining.It seems to me its back to the days of have bank roll will travel, so when the going gets tough the tough get going. ;shitfanhit;    :goodpost:  Sherrif Fatman A Spanish lawyer once said to me theres no such thing as a problem only a solution if the solution is only a click or 2 away there is no problem.                                                   

crypto

http://www.londonstockexchange.com/LSECWS/IFSPages/MarketNewsPopup.aspx?id=1309089&source=RNS (http://www.londonstockexchange.com/LSECWS/IFSPages/MarketNewsPopup.aspx?id=1309089&source=RNS)

So it's ok to own an M-16 Assualt rifle but you can't play a $5 sit n go.

As Nomad points out, the hypocracy is a right bugger. If only some of the more successful online pros had the foresight to back their own congressmen. ::)

Be glad you live in Europe.  We are very lucky over here.

There are still plenty of poker rooms.  Online poker is going nowhere IMHO.  If and, it's a big IF, Americans cannot find a loophole to fund poker accounts, emerging markets in Asia will help soften the blow in the coming years.

Unless you're a US citizen or own shares in these companies, there is no need to panic.

At the end of the day this is just a case of big traditional businesses throwing their weight around in the states and lobbying ( perhaps bunging lol ) certain government officials to get what is obviously a massive threat to their casino empires and its a appalling that they are seemingly going to pull it off.

On a lighter note Im just starting to lobby my MP to bring in an "anti muffing " law to get all scandies banned from poker cos with the yanks gone and asia not yet up and running online I dont fancy the odds anymore  lol

Dammit, I might have to start playing during the day  :D

Would this be the time for a rich Asian business person to buy a bunch of shares in a site like Party?

If the said business person wants to lose some money as quickly as possible.

Don't try to catch a falling knife, as the say.

I'd prefer if they made a deposit instead.  :)

But surely this has to be the end of Party in the US, it wouldn't be able to recover from this.  The next big market is in Asia and they would still have a good business with many European players.   

When will all the banks actually stop dealings with sites, don't these things take about 12 months to actually go through

There are plenty of businessmen making certain kinds of deposits today. :)

I wonder whether this will affect my package that i have won with an American Poker site, as the sat's for it are still running.

I'd contact them today Maureen, just to find out.

It shouldn't since the money for your package came from the winnings of the tournament.

I believe it could become law this week when genius, George Bush, signs it off.  I think banks have 270 days to act, though.

Think I will do Andrew..x

I would have thought the way to deal with this is for US customers to open UK bank accounts and fund their poker playing accounts from those.

i believe there is nothing in the Bill that prevents a US citizen funding an overseas bank account.

Is this to easy a solution?

Cheers

Brumb

Determined American players will still be able to flaunt the rules, use loopholes and play, yes.

The issue as it affects most of us though, is that the casual US player will no longer be able click-click play. This is equivalent to cod numbers plummeting, and tough tough games across the board.

I can't repeat my thoughts on this at the moment as this is a family site. Just to say i might well be teaching again by the new year, oh joy.

Could be the best thing that ever happened for non us poker players. Imagine this, for two years the US players are prevented from playing online. The all round standard of play rises dramatically and the games get much harder to beat. As a direct consequence most online players raise to a previously impossibly high standard.  Then a right thinking Democratic president is elected and repeals the law. FEEDING FRENZY.

Obviously that’s complete rubbish but felt like cheering myself up a bit. 

So does this apply to every state? I mean, it seems ridiculous that people who live in Nevada state can't play online.

Do they really wonder why the rest of the world takes the piss out of them all the time.

Technically, I thought it was already illegal to play online in Nevada anyway.

The new law doesn't over ride any existing law, so if it's already legal in their State then they can carry on.

Obviously the problem is with the blanket approach some companies might have of just refusing all US trade - just to make sure.

Exactly, theres so much dough in this game people will find a way, people always do when theres money involved.

The U.S Government have thrown their toys out of the pram because they weren't getting their bit and decided that they now own the world and everything in it and knowone can go for a piss without there say so, but its very difficult to enforce and online poker in the U.S will live on, It will just take a bit more effort and investigation on the part of the average U.S based recreational player.

Over half of the 888 poker clientel are non U.S based and they're share prices have recently reached 1.00 after being as low as 80 earlier on.

Absolute joke this is....is it 1st April???

...but surely there will be ways around it....eg. payment to a third party...I mean we are talking businesses worth millions of dollars here, and growing!

Maybe theres a business opportunity here for someone.

Set up a company over here they could make payments to and we could deposit on their behalf into their account. It wouldn't be a bank so would be legal?

There are so many casual players all over the world, not just America.  Players numbers will drop but there will always be a beatable game.

Italy have just relaxed their laws on gambling, this will mean higher numbers of Italian poker players logging on.  This won't make up for the loss of America of course. However, if the big sites start marketing in Asia, things will improve.

I believe Betfair have recently started an Asian tour.

I really don't see the need for concern amongst European players unless you cannot beat a national of any country but America.

The legislation is quite clever in that its not trying to enforce action against the sites themselves, which are outside US jurisdiction, but it is shutting down the US players options for getting money into accounts.

If the banks aren't allowed to action transfers into poker sites and are made to report these attempted transactions to the US Govt then it becomes very difficult for the average US punter to play.

People will find ways around it, but they will be the ones who are most likely affected by this (i.e. the full time pro players).

Sheriff

CALM DOWN!!!! CALM DOWN!!!

(http://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/content/images/2005/01/31/voices_scousers_200x150.jpg)

Its just a commercial!!

(http://www.cherwell.org/files/winner.jpg)

it's those things they are going after.

moneybookers and netteller and the likes

 rotflmfao rotflmfao rotflmfao

  :redcard: ;frustrated; ;grr; ;grr; ;grr;


for using winner.

But are they banks? And would a private enterprise be different? The cash could come from your stars account (or other site where you can transfer funds) once they made a payment to you with a small % premium for the service.

moneybookers is not a bank. it's just an intermediary between the "real world" and the "online" world.

I don't know how moneybookers works, or whether its on the same basis as neteller. But the difference could be the final payment comes from one poker account to another, rather than a bank, intermediary or whatever else.

I don't have an entrepenerial bone in my body, but thought this could be an idea for others to look at.

The bill has it covered anyway

Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006

And there is a boring bit I've missed out which defined what a financial institution is, i.e. what is covered by this clause - basically this boiled down to 'whatever the US wants it to be'. So whatever you set up the Authorities could classify it as a financial institution and it would be covered by this clause

Let's not let some perspective get in the way of some good doom-mongering Mr. Moves.  :D

888 up to 108

is that 108 players online  8)

No, its stockholders that have attempted to jump out of a window

Actually its waiting time (in days) for a cashout to Neteller.

 :D

Sorry if I sounded harsh, Tank.

888 have recovered a lot of their share price loss during the day.  Their exposure in America is less than some.

I believe Ladbrokes were positive earlier too.  They seem to do alright without Americans.

Same old for me.  Losing money to everyone, that is.

Noone to play with? Thats because you're using PartyPoker dot com!

LOL!

Expect to see more of their ads here now, Mikky.

This couldn't have come at a better time for my latest project - should be ready very soon :) But I'm not giving any more info lol. Just gives me a bit of meat with which to pad things out a little!

But anyway back to the poin tin hand. Neteller et al will not be affected. You can use these services to make legitimate purchases, so the US banks will not be stopped from transferring cash at the customers request.

Once the money is in neteller, it is offshore and therefore out of reach of the US DOJ. However, they might want to slap down any neteller employees in the US, so I can see toll free neteller numbers in the US disappearing as they move all staff out of the country.

 rotflmfao

Mikky makes a funny

Might I suggest making your voices heard here...

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/popup?id=2516519

Another one gone, boss network are banning americans. Tho i believe this is more a european network.

http://investors.bossmedia.com/index.php?p=press&id=1050800&lang=en

Boss is populated by scandies anyway, no worries there. Infact theres nothng to worry about I assure you.

Unfortunately Scandinavia have a higher concentration of good players.

It could be good for the US economy, and the value of the $$ could get a boost.

Not all bad news perhaps.  :dontask:

"Oh say does that star spangled banner yet wave, o'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave"

Party is still full of players from the land of the free this morning.


not to sure what they are free to do though  ;goodvevil;

91,000 at the mo

just as high as usual

The US Government trying its best to put a stop to Americans playing online poker while at the same time a man bursts into a school and shoots several girls dead with several firearms freely available without restrictions.........

Glad to see they still have their priorities in order.

i dont understand the problem.i play on mainly english based sites such as ladbrokes and betfair and actually prefer them.i still make money without playing against yanks.every country has its share of donks and i personally find a lot of them are english.

If he paid his taxes, then in thier mind you are probably right.

Is this at 2am on a saturday morning?  ;goodvevil;

thats 24/7

Anyone know what Doyle's Room have made of all this?

(Seeing as Doyle's Room is Tribeca and therefore I'm guessing a drop in customer base there will probably somewhat affect the fortunes of the Blonde Poker room?)

Doyle's Room is based in Costa Rica - not aware of any announcements yet.

Sheriff

Anyone else announced, or is it just Party, 888 and Bodog so far?

This thread is useful (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=7509074&an=0&page=0#Post7509074).

Sheriff

Interesting potential legal loophole in the full tilt statement where they say that the bill is

"trying to outlaw online gaming as opposed to online poker"  which as we all know is a game of skill.

The lawyers are going to make a fortune....

Speaking of which where is our own leagal beagle RobertHM, not seen or heard from him in weeks ?