Gambling Rule

2007 Prediction Scorecard
As the end draws to a close and the good and bad of the UIGEA has mostly played out or has progressed far enough to identify trends I thought it would be a good idea to go back over what I wrote over the last several months. Some of the things I predicted were [...] As the end draws to a close and the good and bad of the UIGEA has mostly played out or has progressed far enough to identify trends I thought it would be a good idea to go back over what I wrote over the last several months. Some of the things I predicted were pretty spot on and others didn’t play out as I thought they would. But I don’t like to gloss over things so let’s take a look. First, let’s start off with the things that didn’t play out as I expected them to. I thought the fear of the DOJ would cause a bigger impact on the payment processor market. While new processors are not popping up as quickly as many expected the market still remains somewhat robust. Despite the relatively solid health of the payment processor market it does seem as if many poker rooms are turning on and off processors with a lot more frequency than they used to pre-UIGEA. Next off, I thought the proposed rules for enforcing the UIGEA would be much more comprehensive. The US Treasury left enough loopholes in there that the teeth have been pretty much taken out of it. Granted, I was right in what was possible but I misjudged how stringent the US Treasury would be in coming up with their rules. I would blame that on the banking industry but several banks have spoken up and said they would welcome a list of banned institutions which would make things pretty harsh on the payment processor industry. Based on how I misjudged the ability of the payment processor industry to weather the storm I was also wrong as it pertains to my thoughts that the liquidity at the US facing online sites would begin to dry up as players had trouble getting new funds into the online gaming system. My call on consolidation seems to be proving true. Many of the US facing rooms are struggling while traffic consolidates to the bigger sites (Stars and Tilt). For instance, if we look at the numbers from Jan 2007 we see the following sites being tracked by Poker Site Scout: PokerStars 16380 Full Tilt Poker 7420 Microgaming 2944 Ultimate Bet 3169 Bodog 3376 Absolute 2086 World Poker Exchange 420 If we look at the peak players for those same sites today we see a consolidation trend: PokerStars 20058 (+22%) Full Tilt Poker 8706 (+17%) Microgaming 1963 (-33%) Ultimate Bet 2512 (-21%) Bodog 2062 (-39%) Absolute 2378 (+14%) World Poker Exchange 117 (-72%) Stars and Tilt have certainly benefitted from the consolidation effect. Absolute seems to be the lone standout that has higher numbers than they did in Jan of 2007. There have been some new sites to sprout up that are US facing but since they don’t have numbers that can be compared I have not included them in this comparison. I’ll accept any criticism that this isn’t a perfect comparison but I am sitting in the lobby of my hotel in Phuket and I’m not quite motivated to chew through a bunch of data for this post. I think the numbers are fair enough as a comparative tool to see general trends. If you disagree please feel free to post a comment (and maybe your own numbers so we can all benefit). Despite some folks who took issue with my numbers I was also right that the Neteller pullout did stunt the growth of the industry. Even some of my critics later acknowledged that given how I was defining the comparison that my numbers did in fact demonstrate what I said they did. Unfortunately, I am still unaware of a better way to compare pre and post UIGEA numbers that is 100% accurate due the massive disruptive factor caused by the legislation. As I previously commented Barney Frank (and others) has not had the impact everyone thought he would. As I argued at the time when Frank jumped on the anti-UIGEA bandwagon, it would be a long uphill battle and we should not expect to see anything major to occur for at least a year or more. Don’t get me wrong, he’s had an overall positive impact but there’s a big difference between having a positive impact and passing a pro gaming law. We’ll just need to be more patient. Likewise the Democrats taking control of both houses of Congress has had little overall impact. Many Democrats are anti-gaming for other than religious reasons. I also did not put too much hope in any sort of WTO ruling. Although I believed that various countries had a good case against the US I just didn’t think that it was going to be the watershed event everyone was hoping it was going to be. Things are still developing with this one though so I could still be proven wrong. While I have no hard numbers to support this next one I think all one needs to do is look at any of the popular poker message boards to confirm that the game of online poker has gotten a lot tougher. My belief is you have two converging factors leading to this. First is that as poker becomes more popular and access to quality learning material makes its way into the mainstream players will gradually become better poker players. The second is that without the ability to aggressively market in key markets (like the US) the inflow of the super fishy players is more like a trickle than it is the fire hose it once was. Well, I think that pretty much wraps up the major things I made predictions on in 2007 (and late 2006) in regards to the UIGEA so I’ll go ahead and close out this post with promise to continue being both right and wrong in 2008.
More Phuket And Some Pimpage
Now that I’m back in BKK I have access to some reliable internet connectivity so I can upload photos from the last few days. The other day I went on a little eco tour in Phuket. It was a little touristy but we got to see an elephant show, ride some elephants through [...] Now that I’m back in BKK I have access to some reliable internet connectivity so I can upload photos from the last few days. The other day I went on a little eco tour in Phuket. It was a little touristy but we got to see an elephant show, ride some elephants through the jungle, watch a monkey show, see a Muay Thai kickboxing exhibition, learn about how rubber is made, see rice farmers demonstrate their craft, and take a short rafting tour down a mangrove forest. I spent the last night in Phuket over at Star Bar. It always feels comfortable there because I know the owners and most of the staff so you can sort of chill out. After beating the owner’s wife 3-1 in the dice game and 2-1 in backgammon she asked if we wanted to go over to dClub which is at the end of Soi Crocodile and is a quasi disco. The owner’s wife bought a bottle of Jack Daniels for the table and we watched the gals/guys were doing their show. The normal show was cut short as the owner of dClub was brought out on stage to celebrate his birthday. Several Thai pop and television stars came out and did a few numbers in his honor. Don’t ask me who they are but all the Thai people definitely knew them. Literally, we partied until I thought I was going to drop from exhaustion. Saturday I woke up at the crack of noon to pack my stuff and wait around for my flight back to BKK. More about BKK in the next post. Now, some folks down in Phuket asked me about my website so I told them I would give them a little pimpage here. Up 2 U Bar: Located on Soi Eric the Up 2 U is a nice little bar with friendly staff. It’s the kind of place where once they get to know you get the VIP treatment. My friend and I only stopped in there a few times on my last trip to Phuket but the second I walked in everybody there greeted me like I was a long lost friend. Do yourself a favour, check it out and tell them I sent you. Yorkshire Inn: As I said previously, the Yorkshire isn’t exactly an extravagant hotel but if you’re looking for a nice, clean, place to stay that’s close enough to shopping and the nightlife yet far enough away so as not to keep you up all night, Yorkshire fits the bill. Located on Soi San Sabai at the top of Soi Bangla it’s less than a 3 minute walk to either the Jungceylon shopping center or Soi Bangla. It couldn’t get any more central. The thing I dig about the place is that it’s so friendly. In fact, when we popped in there for a drink last trip we took a brochure exactly for that reason. The gals who work the bar and restaurant are friendly and efficient. The receptionist is a lovely lady who always has a smile. The on-site travel agent is a really sweet girl who helped me book the eco trip. But most of all, what makes it work is Paul and Ian. Paul is the owner and Ian is the marketing guy. Paul is always on-site. He’s constantly looking after the smallest of details. Always says hello, asks how things are going, and if you need anything is there to accommodate. One of the other things that impressed me is that a lot of local expats come in there for drinks and to grab a meal. They’ve obviously done something right if locals are always in there. Star Bar: I’ve written about Star Bar from my last Phuket trip. While Dave is no longer the manager there (he’s moved on to a bar right at the entrance to Soi Tiger – but for the life of me I can’t remember the name of the place) the other Dave and his wife are still the owners and still offer a great place to have a few drinks and relax. Star Bar my personal favourite in Phuket. You just sort of gravitate to places that make you feel welcome and this is one of them. When I first walked into the bar on this trip there were a lot of new faces amongst the staff but enough of the old faces welcomed me so warmly that the new faces just joined right in. Again, if you’re on Bangla and want to find a nice place to chill out, this is the place to do it. Just head down Soi Crocodile and it’ll be on your right. Okay, now for some unrequested pimpage: Mike’s Mexican: I have not had a decent Mexican meal since I’ve moved to Europe. I was walking down Rat-U-Thit road on my way to go buy a new dive watch/computer and I noticed this little Mexican place on Soi La Diva. I bought my dive equipment and strolled back over to check it out. Now, given that what they consider nachos in Europe is Doritos with melted cheese and crappy store-bought salsa I was thinking that this was going to be a pretty interesting experience. I ordered some chips and salsa along with a taco and burrito combo. I was encouraged when the girl brought out the chips and salsa and both had been made from scratch. The tortilla chips were still hot from being cooked up as I had waited and the salsa was pure homemade goodness. When the taco and burrito came I thought I had died and gone to heaven. One bite into the taco and I knew this was going to be the best taco I had eaten in over a year and a half. Yes, Mike’s uses real shredded beef unlike the usual fare in Europe which is chilli con carne poured into a store-bought shell. No, not Mike’s. This shell had been freshly made and the meat was seasoned perfectly. I’m still drooling thinking about it. By the time I got to the burrito I was so full I could only eat half. I made a mental note to return which I did a few nights later where I had the tortilla soup (again excellent) and a two taco combo as I couldn’t get the thought of those tacos out of my head. Viva la Mike’s. Indian Auto Rickshaw Challenge: One of my best pals and former roommate, Giampiero, has entered himself into some crazy race going from Chennai, India to Kanniyakumari, India over 9 days. That’s about 1000 kilometers in total distance. Just thought I would wish him some luck and give him a little linkage love. Anti-Pimpage: I wasn’t really happy with the Air Asia flight I caught from BKK to Phuket and I was even less impressed with the service on my return. On the way there we had a 1.5 hour delay and on the way back we had over a 3 hour delay. It just seems like these guys can’t get a flight off on time. And the worst part is that when I picked my flights I paid extra for specific departure times. The 7am flight is relatively cheap but I have no desire to get up that early so I went for something in the afternoon and paid considerably more for that choice. If they’re going to end up jerking you over for 1.5 - 3 hours on every flight I might as well book the earlier flight and just show up when I want. I really had some hope for these guys. Yeah, I don’t expect much from a low fare airline but I didn’t want much more than leaving sometime within the general time of my scheduled departure. If there’s one thing that a discount airline should be is efficient and timely. That’s how they make their money. Finally, some more pics from Phuket: You can see all the photos here. Advertisement: PokerFilter.net combs the internet looking for the best poker related news and articles.
Gambling On The Move
It was bound to come, the use of mobile phones for gambling. Considering how many people walk around with cell phones (70-80% of the adult population?), the appeal for the gambling industry is too good to miss. In fact, the revenue from mobile phone gambling is set to exceed all other forms of gambling, according to a new report.
PGA TOUR Launches 2008 Season As Recreational Golfers Gear Up At PGA TOUR Superstore (Press Release)
To get an early jump on their season, many golfers in colder climates are headed south to Myrtle Beach, S.C. where they can affordably tune up their games and get the kind of specialized attention that the pros take for granted. With more than 10