A Level Economics, Isolationism, Online Poker and you

[TightEnd]

I quote:

Pokerstars and Party Poker are going to bow to France's isolationist (and I feel possibly against EU rules) decision to allow only French online poker players to play against other French players. Ostensibly this is so that the planned 2% tax on each pot (so I read) will be easier to administer. Not because the French know that they are some of the worst poker players in the world.

It's all bad news, simply because, from an administrative point of view, it makes sense for countries to do this. And in the US it makes sense for individual states to do it.

The horrible possible conclusion will be all online poker players restricted to their own country and/or state. These things happen -- if a revenue opportunity appears, governments will usually find a way to exploit it. The continental Europeans are far worse than the Anglo-Saxon governments when it comes to this, and it's hardly a surprise that the first two movers have been Italy and France. Spain and Germany surely can't be far behind.

The online poker landscape will change dramatically if all of this follows through to its inevitable conclusion. Assuming that a revenue-maximization plan is in place (not the case in Italy, no surprise there) then France has got it about right. Invite the established offshore players to "go legal" and let them establish "segregated cells". But liquidity will be badly damaged. Even now I struggle to find enough games at my level, globally on any sites bar Pokerstars and Full Tilt.

On the plus side, the biggest sufferers would be the 24-table grinders, and they may be forced to go elsewhere to find a living. If I had to go up a couple of levels and two- or three-table against a smaller but generally weaker player pool (the UK players are not strong at full ring cash, on average), then I could live with it. But for multi-table tournaments, the implications are horrific.

If the UK brought in a 2% tax on every pot, either the poker sites would have to reduce their own take, or I'd probably have to look elsewhere. At an average of 80 hands won every day, of about $20 each, that would come to a personal tax of $32 a day, or, say, $10k a year, on an expected win of little more than $60 to $120. That would be a big hit.


Thoughts please.

[mondatoo]

Urgh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[boldie]

this is sooooo bad.

[GreekStein]

Literally the two best nations to play against.

They are so terra, I love them.

[Longy]

Not good, not good at all.

Even worse that the French and Italians are the 1st to do it, possibly the 2 worst poker playing nations in the world.

[kinboshi]

Not good, not good at all.

Even worse that the French and Italians are the 1st to do it, possibly the 2 worst poker playing nations in the world.

...and alongside England, pretty poor at footy too.

[DaveShoelace]

Who wrote this piece originally Rich?

[TightEnd]

Who wrote this piece originally Rich?

Laxie

[hector62]

I thought the article was from pbirks blog " everything has a limit".

[DaveShoelace]

I was thinking about this whole ringfencing each nation issue and the different levels of tax each country would pay. I think it would make more sense for the poker room to take whatever the biggest single tax % is from each player, so if say Norway takes 7% everyone gets 7% taken, but then each week/month or whatever anyone not in that tax bracket gets it back as a form of rakeback. By no means ideal (Some rakeback pros would love it probably) but at least it would keep everyone at the same tables.

Obv some Scandinavian country would end up expecting 88% tax and bugger up that idea though

[doubleup]

the planned 2% tax on each pot

This tax applies to all pots - even if there is no flop, so a tight game (I know we are talking about the French) would be impossible to beat.  I am disgusted that Stars isn't fighting this.  Under the guise of "regulation" the French government is simply stealing money from poker players.  

[Dewi_cool]

mass suicides in France then?

[boldie]

the planned 2% tax on each pot

This tax applies to all pots - even if there is no flop, so a tight game (I know we are talking about the French) would be impossible to beat.  I am disgusted that Stars isn't fighting this.  Under the guise of "regulation" the French government is simply stealing money from poker players.  

Especially since they still take American players.

[gatso]

But for multi-table tournaments, the implications are horrific.

I don't get this bit. surely it would be a piece of piss for sites to run mtts as normal and apply state/country specific tax to the winnings wouldn't it? or is the problem with writing off losses?

[doubleup]

But for multi-table tournaments, the implications are horrific.

I don't get this bit. surely it would be a piece of piss for sites to run mtts as normal and apply state/country specific tax to the winnings wouldn't it? or is the problem with writing off losses?

I think the idea was to completely isolate the French to protect them from bots.  The seriously ignorant ppl who debated this law postulated that if every player had a French address that would prevent bots.  They appeared to think that bots roamed the interweb as independent beings.