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Archive for September, 2011
Thursday, September 29th, 2011
As the saga that began on Black Friday (nearly 6-months ago) continues to unfold for Full Tilt poker the news simply gets worse and worse for both Full Tilt poker and the thousands of online poker players who have some $390 million frozen in their Full Tilt poker accounts.
On Thursday morning the Aldernay Gambling Control Commission (AGCC) decided to fully revoke the operating license of Full Tilt Poker, after releasing its findings from the hearing that took place about a week ago in London.
In the initial press release and subsequent detailed findings, the poker world became aware of a number of things. First and foremost, Full Tilt poker representatives refused to take part in the hearing when their request for a further adjournment was denied –Full Tilt was then represented by AGCC officials in the hearing, who presented the site’s side of the case.
Additionally, it seems Full Tilt Poker was required to segregate player funds, as the AGCC listed the following regulation as one of the many Full Tilt poker was in violation of: “The Company will ensure that, at all times, there are sufficient funds in this account to cover all balances held by the company on behalf of its customers. The Company confirms that this account is not used as a security for any other operational liability”.
Another interesting revelation was that Full Tilt poker was fudging the financial statements it was sending to the AGCC by including funds that had been seized by the US government, as well as the shortfall caused by accepting eCheck deposits from US players when they had no means of processing the transaction –this “credit” to players accounts was also something the site was prohibited from doing under their licensing agreement.
You can read the entire press release here, and the complete list of charges here
Tags: Adjournment, Agcc, Black Friday, Breaking News, Complete List, Entire Press, Financial Statements, Full Tilt Poker, Gambling Control, Initial Press, Licensing Agreement, online poker, Poker Players, Poker World, Press Release, Revelation, Saga, Shortfall, Thursday Morning, Us Government
Posted in Online Poker, Poker Industry News | No Comments »
Thursday, September 29th, 2011
Full Tilt poker attorney Jeff Ifrah once again gave an exclusive statement to PokerStrategy.com regarding the possible deal that would see a French investment group take over the ailing online poker room. Ifrah told PokerStrategy.com that he was recently in France to help with the negotiations, and that the only major sticking point still remaining was the state of Full Tilt poker’s Aldernay Gambling Control Commission (AGCC) license –which if revoked is apparently the deal-breaker.
Here are Ifrah’s comments to PokerStrategy.com:
“The investors are totally committed to doing this- we’ve met with them and seen the funds. Their primary concern right now is the AGCC’s decision on Full Tilt’s license. The investor’s position is that if Alderney revokes the license, they won’t go through with the deal because it makes things too difficult.”
“They called and volunteered to discuss their commitment directly with the commissioners. Without hesitation, they are prepared to review the terms of their offer. Additionally, they’ve hired a prominent and respected lawyer in the gaming industry and are setting up a meeting with the DOJ to try and work out the issues Full Tilt has in the U.S.”
The group is rumored to be fronted by French businessman Laurent Tapie, who would infuse the company with enough capital to repay customers around the world as well as settle the civil case brought against Full Tilt poker by the US Department of Justice.
While these deals can fall apart at just about any moment during the proceedings, the fact that there are still viable investors for Full Tilt poker will be viewed as really, really, good news for the thousands of players who have nearly $400 million in funds frozen on the site.
Tags: Agcc, Alderney, Businessman, Civil Case, Department Of Justice, Doj, Full Tilt Poker, Gambling Control, Gaming Industry, Hesitation, Investment Group, Laurent Tapie, Lawyer, Negotiations, online poker, Poker Gambling, Poker Room, Proceedings, Sticking Point, Us Department Of Justice
Posted in Online Poker, Poker Industry News | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 27th, 2011
While the entire poker world awaited a statement from Full Tilt poker stemming from the requested amendment to the civil case that was filed last week, few will be satiated by the out of touch, off-topic, statement that Full Tilt Poker released. Basically the only point of contention that Full Tilt poker decided to address in the statement was the use of the term Ponzi scheme by US Attorney Preet Bharara.
Nothing regarding the massive shortfall, huge dividend payments to owners, or the other alleged fraudulent activity that took place at the site. Instead this is what Full Tilt Poker determined was the most important aspect to push-back against:
“Full Tilt Poker is not a Ponzi Scheme.
On September 19, 2011, the Department of Justice issued a release stating that Full Tilt Poker was “A Global Ponzi Scheme.” While the government has taken issue with the underlying activities of FTP, under any reasonable interpretation, there is no way to characterize the operation of Full Tilt Poker’s virtual online card room as a global Ponzi scheme.
A “Ponzi” scheme is an investment fraud that involves the payment of purported returns to existing investors from funds contributed by new investors. Ponzi schemes do not involve any legitimate investment, but rather use the new investor funds to pay “dividends” to the initial investors.
Despite recent events, FTP remains committed to identifying a suitable investor and paying back its players in full.”
Whew, and here I thought the company may have been in trouble *be careful not to slip in all of that sarcasm!
Tags: Address, Civil Case, Department Of Justice, Dividend Payments, Dividends, Fraudulent Activity, Full Tilt Poker, Initial Investors, Investment Fraud, Investor Funds, New Investor, Point Of Contention, Poker Online, Poker World, Ponzi Scheme, Ponzi Schemes, Sarcasm, Semantics, Shortfall, Whew
Posted in Poker Industry News | No Comments »
Thursday, September 22nd, 2011
Just as things were starting to settle down in the poker world, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York decided to rip off the band-aid that had been placed over Full Tilt poker since Black Friday by issuing a proposed amendment to the civil complaint it filed in conjunction with its Black Friday criminal case.
In the proposed amendment US Attorney Preet Bharara called Full Tilt Poker a “Global Ponzi Scheme” stating, “Full Tilt insiders lined their own pockets with funds picked from the pockets of their most loyal customers while blithely lying to both players and the public alike about the safety and security of the money deposited,”
Also, for the first time Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, and Rafe Furst were named as owners of the company –while some 19 other owners/shareholders were spared having their names attached to the amended complaint, most likely because of the limited roles they had in the operation of the company.
The complaint alleges that Full Tilt Poker stated in numerous E-Mails and on public message forums that player’ funds were safe and secure, and were kept segregated form operational expenses –which turned out to not be the case. The complaint also alleges that Full Tilt Poker owners were paid over $443 million between 2007 and 2011, and these payments continued even after problems arose in the processing of US player funds, and even in the days before Black Friday.
You can read the entire complaint at the following link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/65666240/Amended-Full-Tilt-Poker-Complaint-PR
Tags: Band Aid, Black Friday, Chris Ferguson, Civil Complaint, Criminal Case, Doj, Full Tilt Poker, Howard Lederer, Insiders, Loyal Customers, Operational Expenses, Pockets, Poker World, Ponzi Scheme, Public Message Forums, Rafe Furst, Safety And Security, Scribd, Southern District Of New York, Time Howard
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Wednesday, September 21st, 2011
On the 2+2 poker forum on Monday, ‘PokerStars Stephan’ posted a brief, but revealing, message in response to the following question posed by 2+2 user ‘MagicMurderBean’, “Did someone mention that they were adding something like Rush or testing it? or am I just dreaming.”The response by PokerStars Stephan simply read: “PokerStars is developing a fast moving ring games product. We expect it to be available for public beta testing in a few months.” Giving rise to the speculation that PokerStars is developing some form of Rush Poker.
The move isn’t overly surprising considering the Rush Poker tables at Full Tilt poker were quite popular, with plenty of traffic –which when coupled with the blistering number of hands that were being dealt meant a huge increase in rake for the site.
Rush Poker was advertised as a patented technology by Full Tilt poker, which could be why PokerStars is still a few months away from releasing their own version of the game, and would lead me to believe that the finished product will bear little resemblance to Full Tilt poker’s Rush Poker tables –or perhaps they could simply contact Full Tilt Poker about purchasing the rights to Rush Poker, or even leasing the technology??? Lord knows Full Tilt poker could use the money!
So keep an eye peeled for a major PokerStars software update in the coming weeks, as their version of a “fast moving ring games product” is unveiled.
Tags: Beta Testing, Contact, Finished Product, Full Tilt Poker, Game, Games, Lead, Leasing, Patented Technology, Poker Forum, Poker Tables, PokerStars, Purchasing, Rake, Resemblance, Rival, Rush 2, Software Update, Speculation, Traffic
Posted in Poker Industry News | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 21st, 2011
Chalk up yet another European country that has passed pro-online gaming laws, as a law passed in Denmark almost two years after the factwill finally go into effect on January 1, 2012, allowing foreign online gaming providers to legally operate in Denmark.
The change to the Danish gaming laws puts an end to the 50-year monopoly by the state run Danske Spil, which has controlled the brick and mortar casino industry in Denmark. Danish slot machine providers protested the 20% tax that would be imposed on online gaming providers, while brick & mortar gaming taxes remained at 41%, which caused the year-long delay as the matter was taken before the proper authorities. A formal complaint was filed by the Danish Association of Slot Machine Vendors in conjunction with the Danish Casino Association, with the complaint eventually making its way to the European Union Commission.
Early this week the EU Commission put out a statement where they stated:
“After an in-depth investigation, the European Commission has concluded that a law liberalising gambling in Denmark and at the same time creating lower taxes for online casinos than for land-based ones is in line with EU state aid rules. This is because the positive effects of the liberalisation of the sector outweigh potential distortions of competition.”
“The Commission’s decision establishes that the lower rate of taxation for on-line gambling indeed constitutes state aid but finds it compatible with EU rules, because the positive effects of the liberalisation of the market outweigh the distortions of competition brought about by the measure.”
The law not only allows foreign operators to operate in the Danish market, but will also allow licensed online gaming sites to freely advertise in Denmark.
Tags: Brick And Mortar, Casino Industry, Danish Association, Danish Market, Depth Investigation, Distortions, Eu Commission, European Commission, European Union Commission, Formal Complaint, Gaming Laws, Gaming Sites, January 1, Liberalisation, Lower Taxes, Monopoly, Online Casinos, Proper Authorities, Slot Machine, Spil
Posted in Poker Industry News | No Comments »
Monday, September 19th, 2011
On Wednesday the $300 Mixed Holdem event in the 2011 running of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker saw an impressive lineup of poker pros at the final table. Of the six players to reach the final table, three of them are among the top young players in poker: Noah “Exclusive” Boeken, Shaun “shaundeeb” Deeb, and Steve “gboro780” Gross.
In the end it was Boeken who would come out on top of the tournament, winning the top prize of $44,480 –the tournament was played out with no deal taking place. Here is a look at the final table payouts from Event 26 of the WCOOP:
- Noah “Exclusive” Boeken — $44,480
- gangst3rn1 — $32,799
- Fulham8 — $25,230
- Steve “gboro780″ Gross — $17,661
- Shaun “shaundeeb” Deeb — $12,615
- Goldenboys — $7,569
Four other top players made the final table of the following tournament, Event #27, a $300 Badugi event: Mike Leah, Kevin MacPhee, Greg DeBora, and Andrey Zaichenko. In the end it was Leah who would come out victorious after outlasting Kevin MacPhee in a heads-up battle. Here is a look at the payouts from the tournament:
- Mike “goleafsgoeh” Leah — $17,082
- Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee — $12,702
- nada123455 — $9,636
- PUCIPUCO — $7,008
- Ig123456789 — $4,818
- Greg DeBora — $3,504
- spieler52 — $2,628
- Andrey “Kroko-dill” Zaichenko — $2,190
Tags: 8243, Badugi, Dill, Greg Debora, Impressive Lineup, Kroko, Leah, Macphee, Noah Boeken, Poker Pros, Running, Shaun Deeb, Shaundeeb, Steve Gross, Wcoop, World Championship Of Online Poker
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Monday, September 19th, 2011
The current #1 ranked poker player in the world continues to be Jason Mercier according to the Global Poker Index’s three-year rolling average which is weighted toward players’ most recent results. Mercier’s lead over Erik Seidel has diminished to just over 20 points, which is a drop in the bucket considering both players have around 2,600 points each.
Two other players remain within striking distance as well as Eugene Katchalov and Bertrand “ElkY” Grosspellier are both around 100 or so points behind Mercier. From there the point totals drop off significantly, with 2010 Card Player Magazine Player of the Year Tom Marchese rounding out the Top 5 with 2,117 points, just over 500 points behind Mercier.
Here is a look at the Top 10 point totals on the Global Poker Index as of September 13th, 2011:
- Jason Mercier — 2618.67
- Erik Seidel — 2598.49
- Eugene Katchalov — 2505.06
- Bertrand Grospellier — 2486.00
- Thomas Marchese — 2117.52
- Sorel Mizzi — 2115.12
- Fabrice Soulier — 2099.22
- Daniel Negreanu — 2043.77
- Scott Seiver — 2035.13
- John Juanda — 2014.97
There were a handful of big movers this week as the following players broke into the Top 50 on the GPI:
- Chris De Maci: Up 29 spots to #42
- Roberto Romanello: Up 32 spots to #40
- Martin Jacobson: Up 23 spots to #32
- William Thorson: Up 38 spots to #23
In addition to the above players, Emanuel “Will the Thrill” Failla also shot up the GPI rankings after his first major tournament victory at the 2011 WPT Legends of Poker Main Event, jumping 24 spots overall to land at #19.
You can view the entire Top 300 players on the GPI at their website: www.globalpokerindex.com
Tags: Bertrand Grospellier, Card Player Magazine, Daniel Negreanu, Drop In The Bucket, Elky, Emanuel, Erik Seidel, Gpi, Index Rankings, Jacobson, John Juanda, Legends Of Poker, Marchese, Mercier, Poker Main Event, Poker Player, Sorel Mizzi, Soulier, Striking Distance, Tournament Victory
Posted in Poker News | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 13th, 2011
The 2010 Partouche Poker Tour Main Event was supposed to establish the tour as one of the biggest in the poker world, and even though the tournament received more attention than it could ever imagine, it was for all the wrong reasons –which is something PPT organizers are hoping stays in the past.
With a WSOP-style hiatus between the final table participants being set and the final table taking place, a €1.3 million first-prize, and notable players including eventual champion Vanessa Selbst as well as Fabrice Soulier and Tobias Reinkemeier, the PPT Main Event was set to become a force rivaling the Aussie Millions and the PokerStars PCA as big world-wide tournaments.
Instead the tournament was plagued by the cheating allegations that revolved around Ali Tekintamgac’s use of fake reporters and cameramen to relay opponent’s hole card information to Tekintamgac.
Now, in 2011, the Partouche Poker Tour Main Event is back, and based on the opening day attendance numbers (as well as the star-power in the field) it seems that the PPT has moved on from the Tekintamgac episode, and is once again ready to challenge as one of the most prestigious tournaments in poker.
A total of 318 players showed up with €8,500 in hand on Day 1a of the tournament, and with Day 1b still to be played it appears the tournament will easily surpass the €4 million guarantee set by the PPT prior to the tournament.
Tags: 1a, Ali, Allegations, Attendance Numbers, Aussie Millions, Cameramen, Champion, Fabrice Soulier, Hiatus, Hole Card, Main Event, Opening Day, Opponent, Organizers, Partouche, Pca, Poker World, Prestigious Tournaments, Star Power, Tobias
Posted in Poker News | No Comments »
Thursday, September 1st, 2011
In a scene reminiscent to the way the company initially conveyed their message to the public after Black Friday, a representative from Full Tilt Poker –this time Full Tilt Poker attorney Jeff Ifrah—has been answering questions on the 2+2 Poker Forum. Ifrah has been actively engaged in the conversation since just after the site issued their most recent statement –which was their first in a very long time—on the status of negotiations with potential investors.
Ifrah has been peppered with questions since creating his 2+2 account, some of which are legitimate concerns from the players, while others are the usual half-cocked theories that seem to plague these sorts of threads. Overall Ifrah’s responses have been what you would expect from an attorney, neither corroborating anything or flat out denying things, all the while leaving enough wiggle room to maneuver should things go in a different direction.
That said, the communication line between Full Tilt Poker and the poker world as a whole has been non-existent for roughly two months, so any correspondence is a welcome sight at this point. Here is a look of at a few of the more straightforward questions that Ifrah has answered:
- Ray Bitar is still the CEO of Full Tilt Poker
- The 8-week silence from the company is from a confidentiality agreement with one group of investors
- Full Tilt Poker will be releasing more statements in the near future
For anyone interested in reading through the lengthy thread you can find it at 2+2
Tags: Answering Questions, Bitar, Black Friday, Ceo, Communication Line, Confidentiality Agreement, Correspondence, Full Tilt Poker, Investors, Legitimate Concerns, Lengthy Thread, Long Time, Negotiations, Poker Forum, Poker World, Silence, Sorts, Straightforward Questions, Welcome Sight, Wiggle Room
Posted in Poker Industry News | No Comments »
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