On July 15th Ongame introduced their new rake and points distribution system called Essence. This new system is confusing to say the least. While the points and rake generated in tournaments stayed the same there isn't any way for a player to figure out how they are earning points. Winning players now receive fewer points and their affiliates and site operators receive less rake and the losing players now receive more points while the site operator receives more rake. This has caused quite a few problems for players and affiliates.

For many, if not most, players trust is extremely important. When a player signs up for an Ongame site now there isn't any way to tell them how the bonus will clear. This is a problem we have to continually address on our rakeback retail brand, RakeTracker. Sure the player will know they will have to earn 8 points per $1 but now they don't have any idea how those points will be earned. Every other site and network has a definite answer to the question "How do I clear the bonus?" but not Ongame. Winning players that have played on Ongame for years are now in a situation where they are earning fewer points. Players have no way of knowing if this formula was fair or if they earned the correct number of points.

There is also another dilemma. Losing players are now earning more points than before. If one of these players does any research or contacts the site they will figure out that Ongame has now labeled them a losing player and they are now subsidizing their losses. Some players might think that is great because now they will deposit less but quite a few players will find it insulting to find out the network is helping to support them because they are a fish.

There is also the affiliate side of this issue. Part of the reason Ongame says that they did this is to encourage affiliates and Ongame site operators to attract more losing players. There isn't any good way to do this. Many affiliate sites are tied to poker coaching or bonus information sites. For players these are some of the most popular portals out there. A player sees a great offer or gets some coaching and to support the site a player signs up through them. A portal owner doesn't have any serious way to stop winners from signing up through them. Now the skin, the affiliate and the player all get penalized.

Another argument is how does a site operator or affiliate attract more losing players? "Do you lose $10,000 a month in online poker? Ongame is the best network for you. The more you lose the more player perks you receive." Perhaps this is how casinos work in the real world but poker rooms have never adopted this model. Now a casino model designed to attract losers is being used in poker where players can actually beat the games. On top of this players that win are treated poorly and pushed out of the network because their VIP Program is worse than it used to be simply because they know how to play the games.

There is also a plan that can cause this to backfire. For example, a player has made it high up on an Ongame skin's loyalty program is a winning player. Now all at a sudden their points and perks have been cut drastically. This player might decide to just move to another Ongame skin so they can start all over with a big 8x bonus and an average player's Essence rating. Now the Ongame skin and affiliate that spent money marketing to this player and spent a fortune retaining this player has just lost the player to another skin simply because the player was not a losing player. This is the complete opposite result Ongame is trying to achieve.

In my opinion the absolute worst outcome of this type of promotion is that the network now has the reputation of not wanting winning players. Word will get out that you shouldn't play on Ongame if you want to win because they will just short change your VIP deal, bonus and cashback. I simply cannot see how any gambling establishment, brick and mortar or online, could possibly want to have such a reputation where winners are treated poorly.

Ongame says they are doing this to help with the poker ecosystem. Running off winning players will certainly help with that but all that will be left are players grinding away slowly and never winning. When nobody is winning on the network because the rake eats all of the deposits and the regular players that once helped act as cheap props are gone the games will dry up and all of the action will move elsewhere.