Wired Magazine: Online Poker Players Bet on Prohibition Repeal

Nothing more for me to say, and nothing further after the jump.
This is an excellent article from Wired Magazine showing the current state of online poker due to the UIGEA, and the damage it has caused to the typical grinder at the poker table.

The tables really have dried up...both for myself, a mid-stakes pokerbot, as well as my friends that play everything from $5,000NL to heads up Omaha. As income levels drop, collusion becomes more apparent at even the small stakes tables.

I do not collude, never have, and never will. I feel that is cheating, unlike a poker bot that has no information outside the bounds of a rule abiding human. However, you are about to see an influx of collusion that will make everyone forget about the "danger" of poker bots.

Trust me...I've talked to them. Automated collusion-bots are on the rise.

Wired.com - Refusing to Fold, Online Poker Players Bet on Prohibition Repeal

DOJ Siezes More of Our Money: Citadel Commerce

More bad news.
Personally, I've never used Citadel Commerce, but they've fallen victim to another DOJ cash grab. You may know them better as myCitadel Wallet.

Citadel Commerce, a Canadian based company, gave a press release in late April that they had money "held up" by one of their U.S. based processors. Now, they confirm that the DOJ has seized over $9,000,000.

This is a company that stopped dealing with any U.S. customers at the same time that the Neteller legal problems began and yet they are still a target. They did more to comply with the DOJ's wishes than the e-wallets that continue to operate to this day, and yet...they did not escape the US Government's wrath. I hope nobody has any money sitting in ANY e-wallet. At this point, we have to assume that any of them can shutdown without any warning what so ever.

You did read your new Epassporte Terms of Service, right? Did you catch the changes where you now agree that Epassporte can confiscate your entire account if you fund it from an "illegal" source? Sounds to me that Epassporte doesn't want to deal with the headache of returning seized money to players. Easier for them to keep it all, eh?

Thank you, Big Brother. I feel safer already.

Firepay Assets Siezed by U.S. DOJ

Shares of Optimal Group Inc. (parent company of the Firepay e-wallet service) fell sharply Monday after the Montreal-based company had nearly $20,000,000 frozen by the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York.

$4.2 million has been siezed directly from the Firepay reserve accounts, with another $15 million siezed from Optimal Group's money market accounts.

While this won't be as disastrous as the Neteller account siezures, this is bound to catch some online poker players off guard. Neteller, E-gold, and now Firepay...Epassporte and the other e-wallets currently in operation can't be far behind.

Full details at Forbes.com

Poker Stars Cashout by Check Increased to $10,000

In this post UIGEA world, any news of relaxed banking is good news! According to reports in the Two Plus Two Forums, Poker Stars has doubled their maximum cashout by check.

As quoted on the Two Plus Two forums:

"Hello xxx,

Thank you for emailing us.

The minimum you can request on any one cheque is $25 and the
maximum is $10,000. If you wish to cashout more than this, you will
need to use an alternate cashout method. Please contact
security@pokerstars.com for more information about what options are
available to you for cashouts of larger amounts.

If you have anymore questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to
contact us.


Regards,

Jeffrey
PokerStars Support Team "


Of course be aware that a $10k deposit is likely to require a little more paperwork at the bank. Pay your taxes and you have nothing to worry about. I've been on the bad end of the IRS and it isn't pretty.

UIGEA to be Repealed? Barney Frank Introduces Bill

Great news for U.S. Online Poker players and gamblers!
Bad news for the Euro's who've gotten used to the absence of the U.S. sharks!


Rep. Barney Frank, House Financial Services Committee Chairman, announces today that he will introduce legislation on April 26 to repeal the UIGEA. Hopefully this is a bill with a real chance of success. I'll be scouring the net for more information, but wanted to get this up as quickly as possible for those reading on their lunch break. This should make the last half of the work day much more tolerable for some of you.

News.Yahoo.com

Online Poker for U.S. Players Post UIEGA

Contrary to popular belief, there are several reputable online poker rooms accepting U.S. players. A small list of the most notable, recognizable, and trustworthy of U.S.-facing online poker rooms:

• PokerStars - The largest online poker room in the world with a reputation for the best customer-friendly service in the business. No rakeback is available, but their frequent player point store can equal all but the most generous of rakeback offers for high volume players. The only thing keeping this site from #1 in all categories is the lack of rakeback. It truly is the bar by which all other sites are measured.

• Full Tilt Poker - 3rd in overall total size, Full Tilt Poker is the largest U.S.-friendly site that offers rakeback to its players. Home of the most sponsored pros in the world and some of the biggest games spread online, Full Tilt is a railbird's paradise.

• Ultimate Bet - Great software with a high number of hands per hour. They were recently bought out by the owners of Absolute poker and seem to have taken a turn for the worse as far as their customer service and player incentive bonus offers are concerned. The games are tighter than most sites and the micro-limits are swollen with obvious poker bot players. While this may sound like a bad thing, it is a great opportunity for testing yourself or your bot against stiff competition with very little risk. A $.02/$.04 table with 25% of players see the flop is not uncommon.

• World Poker Exchange - 100% rakeback is the draw for WPEX. Traffic is light, the software isn't the best, and they restrict the value of Poker Tracker opponent analysis by removing villain names from your hand histories (this limitation can be overcome with 3rd party software, however). All that being said, playing rakefree poker is a strong incentive to at least give this poker room a look.

I AM NOT AN AFFILIATE!

In fact, I don't want you to sign up for any of these sites from the links above.

To do so would only cost you money (and not make me a red cent). If you are first time customer to any of these sites then research a reputable rakeback/incentive affiliate that will give you something for your signup. Pokerstars affiliates often offer Poker Assistance Software, Books, or even small cash rewards. Ultimate Bet and Full Tilt are conventional rakeback sites that pay their affiliates (and ultimately the players) fixed percentages of rakeback. WPEX pays back 100% of rake automatically to your account without need for an affiliate go-between.

These sites all have several options for deposit and withdraw for American players. Withdraws from PokerStars to Epassporte (an online e-wallet similiar to Neteller of old) are reportedly taking less than 2 days for most players. Bank Wire, Western Union, e-wallets, site-supported debit cards, or the old fashioned paper check in the mail...Don't believe the rumors coming from your local poker sewing-circle. Online poker is alive and well in the United States and YES, you can withdraw.

Antigua Gaming Commision Open Letter to US Online Poker Players

This hit my email this morning, passed along from World Poker Exchange. Get involved!

Greetings Players,
As you may be aware, online gaming has been under attack by the United States for the last decade. The Government of Antigua and Barbuda has successfully challenged the malicious prosecution of Antiguan operators in the World Trade Organization. The WTO has found that the US's application of its laws against Antiguan entities is protectionist and in violation of the General Agreement on Trade in Services. Now that Antigua has won the legal battle, it can use political support in Congress. Here's how you can help. Please email and phone your Representative in the House of Representatives and your two Senators. Remind them that the United States needs to abide by the decision in the Antigua-Gaming matter if they expect other countries to comply with WTO decisions in favor of the United States.

Here is a link to a letter to the USTR from Representative Ros-Lehtinen, the ranking Republican on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs: PDF

Rep. Ros-Lehtinen eloquently noted, "...our failure to resolve this dispute may harm our credibility as we seek to press countries like China regarding their violations on a range of issues, including intellectual property protection, subsidies, and currency manipulation." She further warned, "In the event the United States fails to reach a satisfactory resolution of the Antigua dispute, it could provide China with an argument to ignore a WTO decision favorable to the United States."

Please send the link above to your Representative and Senators. Ask them to send similar letters to the United States Trade Representative. Let them know you vote, you pay taxes, and you think the United States should comply with the decision in the Antigua-Gaming matter.To contact your Representative and two Senators, follow the links below or call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and give them your zip code. Make sure you call three times.

www.house.gov
www.senate.gov

We will continue to fight the legal battle, please help us with the political fight.

Thank you,
Antigua Online Gaming Association
www.aoga.ag

WTO Ruling Good News for U.S. Gamblers

If market expectations are any guide, the United States will likely end up allowing its citizens to gamble online. In the hours after the WTO ruling was announced, stocks in online gaming companies lifted. Investors clearly see the writing on the wall, even if the U.S. government does not.



Read more at Cato.org