Last month Merge Gaming began accepting players from all of North America for the first time since June of 2011. Around the time of the June player ban, the network also halted new rakeback sign-ups, choosing instead to offer a standard VIP program, a tiered scheme that progressively rewards players the more they rake. Because a whole new group of players are now able to play on the network, I thought it would be a good time to go over what players can expect from these “new” rewards programs that have replaced flat rakeback deals and how affiliates should market these offers. On PAS sites, you’ll see most of the Merge Gaming offers on PAS referred to as “47% VIP,” “47% VIP Rakeback” or something similar. Although the language is sure to confuse some players, we believe that many who are aware of rakeback are also familiar with the “VIP” designation, which essentially references the fact the offer is not based on a traditional rakeback deal, but instead refers to the site’s standard VIP program. Affiliates may also refer to the Merge Gaming VIP program as “cashback” but should avoid the straight “xx% rakeback” language if only to avoid confusion with players who may think they are getting traditional rakeback deal. Old Rakeback Vs. New VIP Programs So what can new players expect who didn’t register for an account while rakeback was still being offered? In general, players that failed to register for a rakeback account prior to June 1st will see lower rates than players who are grandfathered into a flat deal. There are exceptions however, notably for players that put in a decent amount of volume. At Carbon Poker, for example, a player that rakes $2,500 or more in a month will actually receive the full 47% VIP Rakeback rate- 35% from Cash Rebates and 12% from VIP Point Exchanges, a rate that actually exceeds what flat rakeback players earn. A caveat is that players must rake that amount each month to receive that rate. Another exception is the Top-Up Promotion at Black Chip, which has been running for the last few months. Players who take part in that program basically receive 35% right away and up to 47% when raking $1,000 or more. This promotion is assumed not to be ongoing. Other VIP Perks Like many VIP Programs, players are often treated to a variety of miscellaneous perks for being frequent players. On Carbon Poker, top players received reduced check fees (no check fees at the highest level), a VIP player host and event invitations, among others. Other sites such as Black Chip Poker –which offer the default Ace-High Rewards Program -- add monthly freerolls up to $8,000 for players. With No Rakeback, Do Players Need Affiliates? Since the network no longer allows flat rakeback the need to use an affiliate has unarguably diminished. Despite this fact, players still have plenty of motivation to sign-up through an affiliate due to exclusive promotions. Merge Gaming sites are going to be the most appealing site available to many North American players due to the amount of traffic the site receives. Even though the site does not offer rakeback, exclusive promotions including Rake Races, bonuses and Free Coaching are still quite appealing to these players. An example of these exclusive promotions include $10,000 Rake Races at Carbon Poker and Black Chip Poker. PAS also offers a $5k freeroll at Carbon Poker and even added a $25 Free Bonus a couple months ago for publishers. In addition, Free Coaching is available at Drag the Bar at Carbon and Black Chip Poker and DeucesCracked at all Merge Gaming rooms. The Ace-High VIP Program The default VIP Program at Merge Gaming is the so called “Ace-High VIP Program,” which is offered by a few different Merge Gaming sites. In my opinion, these programs are inferior to the custom VIP programs offered by poker rooms such as Carbon and PokerView. In addition to the complex nature of these VIP programs, many players won’t be able exchange all of their points at the max value for their status level. Not only do players have to generate $30k before they receive the maximum rate (45%), but they can’t exchange all of their points at the maximum rate. One positive of the Ace-High VIP program is that players will get to keep their VIP level even if they are maintaining a certain level of play -- assuming they earn at least 1 VIP Point every 60 days. So IF a player generates $30k in rake AND then generates less than $6k per month after that – a point where they wouldn’t be forced to exchange VIP Points at a non-max rate – only then will the Ace-High VIP Program become competitive. VIP Programs; A Snapshot The rates below represent the rates players can expect from VIP programs of PAS partnered sites when generating certain levels of rake. *program based on cumulative rake. Not directly comparable to custom VIP Programs. Which Program Is Best? This question will depend a lot on the player. At this point, the Black Chip Poker Top-Up promotion provides players the best value at all levels but that does not appear to be a permanent promotion. The PokerView VIP program is very competitive at all status levels, despite the site not offering exclusive promotions. With that said, I like PokerView for low rakers and Carbon Poker for mid to high rakers. One additional thing to keep in mind is the various additional promotions that each of these sites offer. Carbon Poker, for example, is diligent about offering players monthly reload bonuses, which add an additional 13% to players’ when they are clearing a bonus. A player taking advantage of these bonuses each month will almost certainly be better off with Carbon Poker versus competitors. Because of all the various factors, I can not apply a “one size fits all” explanation, meaning each player needs to consider their own situation.
The Full Tilt Investor deal officially cleared a major hurdle late last week with a new deal signed by the GBT and the U.S. Department of Justice. On the regulation front, Nevada got one step closer to bringing online poker to the state. On a federal level, two new online poker hearings were held which debated the merits of regulation in the United States. Check out all of these stories and more in the PAS Weekly Industry Update. Full Tilt Update- Deal Signed: On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice and Groupe Bernard Tapie officially came to terms on a deal that will have Full Tilt Poker forfeiting the assets of the poker site and related companies to the DOJ, which would then in turn sell the site to Groupe Bernard Tapie for $80 million. The DOJ will waive the civil charges against Full Tilt Poker but criminal charges will remain. U.S. players will need to file claims to the DOJ to be repaid their balances while GBT would be would reopen to non-U.S. players and would be responsible for repaying these players. A time frame has not been given on when players would be repaid or when Full Tilt would reopen, but Bernard Tapie had previously indicated that he wished for the site to be reopened by January 2012. Hearing Roundups: On Friday, the House Energy and Commerce committee held a follow-up hearing on regulating online poker in the U.S. Discussions again ranged from problem gambling to the benefits of regulation. Supporters such as John Campbell drew the parallel of online poker to Prohibition and the need for regulation to prevent unlicensed operators from operating, while Rep. Frank Wolf mentioned the online gambling-Jack Abramoff connection and an opinion that "online gambling is the crack cocaine of gambling" as reasons why online poker should not be regulated. You may view the hearing here. Meanwhile, the Senate Indian Affairs Committee held a hearing on the effects of regulated online poker on Native American tribes. American Indian groups want a share of internet gambling but do not wish to lose their sovereignty to receive it. If federal regulation occurs, Native Americas tribes want to be assured they would be allowed to operate, tax and license online gambling as well. The National Gaming Gaming Commission maintains that they have the expertise to regulate online gambling given their experience of overseeing 422 gambling facilities in 28 states which generate $27 billion in revenue. The hearing can be viewed here. Nevada to License Intrastate Online Poker: Starting in February of 2012, the Nevada Gaming Control Board will begin accepting applications for licenses to offer online poker within the state's borders. Nevada would become the first U.S. to offer regulated online poker. The District of Columbia also passed online poker legislation but efforts to bring games to the jurisdiction have stalled. In Pokeraddict's article, he theorizes that online poker in the state will not be profitable and that Nevada needs a federal solution -- where more states or countries are allowed to join the player pool -- in order to assure long term sustainability. Latest Traffic Update from PokerScout: Online Poker traffic for the week decreased 7.9% due in large part to the ending of the 70 billionth hand from PokerStars. Traffic at other top sites was mostly flat, although the Boss Network saw a 10% decline after a 19% increase the previous week. Despite the dip, a jackpot of €530,000 on the network still has not been hit and remains the highest in online poker. PAS News Reminder: Voting is ongoing for the iGB Awards . We would appreciate if PAS publishers and fans could show their support. Jottings: Unibet to re-enter French Market...Gross gaming revenue up 7% in Italy...After loses, Gigamedia will be changing course...Cyprus to crackdown on internet gambling...Kyl to possibly co-sponsor Senate online poker bill?
Late Thursday, mainstream media outlets and Subject Poker began reporting that the U.S. Department of Justice and Groupe Bernard Tapie-- the investment group attempting to acquire Full Tilt Poker -- had officially inked a deal to allow the acquisition of the former #2 site to go on. From here, Full Tilt Poker shareholders will have to agree to the terms of the deal. Tuesday night, lawyers for Full Tilt Poker and GBT both confirmed the reports while the DOJ declined comment. Full Tilt Poker also issued a statement to Subject Poker with CEO Ray Bitar stating "I am extremely pleased with the efforts of the Department of Justice, and the Groupe Bernard Tapie corporation, and appreciate their continued dedication in working towards a mutually beneficial agreement that will facilitate repayment of the players." Reports from earlier this month had suggested that a deal had been agreed to in principle, with Laurent Tapie telling iGaming France that he expected the deal to be officially signed by November 17th. According to Subject Poker, if Full Tilt Poker shareholders agree to a forfeiture settlement, the U.S. Department of Justice would gain title to Full Tilt Poker assets and GBT would be required to pay the DOJ $80 million. GBT would then acquire the assets of Full Tilt Poker associated companies from the DOJ. To be paid U.S. players would be required to file for reimbursement through the DOJ, while GBT would reopen Full Tilt Poker and assume responsibility of player balances of non-US players. As part of the deal, the civil case against Full Tilt Poker companies would be dismissed by the DOJ, although the criminal charges would still be applicable. At this time it is still too early to tell when payments to US players would be made or when Full Tilt Poker would reopen. When information about the deal first came to light in late September, Bernard Tapie stated to iGamingFrance that he hoped to have the site reopened by January 2012. At that time that seemed like an optimistic timeframe -- assuming the deal would even happen -- but with the deal progressing faster that some expected, perhaps a positive solution could come sooner rather that later.
In the fast-paced world and instant gratification of social media, email marketing can often get overlooked as a bit of a relic of the past. However, despite the hype on the death of email over the last couple years, the bottom line is that email is still prominently a part of our lives and will be for the foreseeable future. As online marketers, we attempt to engage our users in any way we can. As long as our customers are using email, it will likely continue to be used by marketers as an effective tool to reach customers. So while many of us focus on staying ahead of the trend, sometimes using what has worked in the past can be a viable strategy (ideally, to be used in conjunction with some of the more cutting-edge strategies). So enough about the death of email; how and when should we use it? Monthly Newsletters (or at regular intervals) If you’re a PAS publisher, you’re likely familiar with our monthly newsletters. We feel it’s important to keep our publishers up with the latest news and tips that are most important to them. Our newsletters also serve as a reminder of our products and services. We attempt the same regular engagement with users of our retail properties, most notably RakeTracker. Our RakeTracker mailer allows us to interact with users and keep players familiar with the best available offers. Through these interactions, our goal is to meet the needs of the recipients while also promoting our brand(s). We feel it’s extremely important to not “spam” our players and publishers with useless information. Obviously, we won’t meet the needs of 100% of the target audience, but by knowing our customers, we should be able to minimize the “spam” label and provide a genuine service. So try not to take it too hard when that first user labels you as spam or unsubscribes, despite your best effort. Advantages: Reach a large audience easily, can be informative, engaging(lags behind social media, however) Disadvantages: Impersonal, may be seen as “spam” PAS Recommendation: We recommend publishers send a regularly scheduled mailer to your players. Special Events/Promotions/News There is some news that can’t wait for an appearance in a monthly newsletter. Or maybe you just want to give special attention to a particular bit of information that may otherwise get lost. Our retail property campaigns have covered a variety of recent current events including the Eurobet move to Coral Poker, Merge Gaming’s reentry into new markets, Minted Poker’s $1 Rake Caps, as well as special new offers: all of them worthy of a unique campaign. Like our monthly newsletters, these special newsletters are sent to a large number of users in an easy way, but are often targeted to a specific segment of our userbase. Advantages: Can give extra emphasis to a particular topic, Can reach a large audience easily. Disadvantages: Impersonal, Perhaps more likely to be seen as spam if the mailer is different from what is usually sent. PAS Recommendation: Use relatively infrequently. Make it count so when a user receives a non-regular mailer from you, it has extra impact. If these mailers are used for topics that you and your users care a lot about, they will look forward to receiving your mailers. Personal Emails One of the disadvantages of a mass-mailer is they are by nature impersonal: the same message being sent to hundreds or thousands of other people. Plus, with as many emails as we all receive on a daily basis, your messages may have difficulty standing out from the other commercial email your customers are receiving making it difficult to make that all important connection. Obviously our goal is to avoid contributing to the noise as much as possible. One option is a personal mailer that doesn’t contain your fancy logos and attempts to reach the recipient on a one-on-one basis. The challenge is finding the words that speak to the player in their language while coming across as professional. The goal is to instill trust, rapport and to avoid acting like you are trying to sell them something. I like to try to think of the customer as a good friend and try to relate to them as much as possible. This can come easy if you really believe in the product you are trying to “sell.” For PAS publishers, a good way to use this strategy is with your VIP players. Maybe even give out your instant message contact details so if the user is skeptical of your intentions, they can feel better by an even more personal contact with you. Advantages: More direct contact with your player, seen as less “spammy” Disadvantages: Time-consuming, finding the correct “voice” for your personal connection can be difficult PAS Recommendation: Because of the amount of time involved, using this option for your VIP players is the most effective way to get value out of this method. If you find the right formula and More Information Final PAS Tip: PAS publishers can export an email of their players via the “Export Members” function in the publisher admin. This feature is available under the “Users” tab. Stay tuned to PAS for more posts on effectively using email marketing in today's environment. If you wish to receive help on your email marketing campaigns, the PAS team is available to assist you, whether it’s simply helping you devise an email marketing strategy or PAS doing all the legwork for you (creating, designing and sending the mailer). If interested, feel free to contact Seb, PAS Brand Manager about these extra services and more.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board announced that applications will be accepted for online poker licenses starting in February 2012. While that news was not a surprise in itself, many industry observers were caught off guard by the other announcement that went with that. These licensees will be allowed to accept real money players from the State of Nevada. In other words, starting in February 2012, intrastate online poker will be legal in the state. That makes Nevada the first state with legalized online poker. Nevada has been an advocate for online poker. Seeing the potential for tax revenue and job creation, the Nevada Gaming Control Board was ordered by the state legislature to set up gaming regulations for online poker. These regulations would only go into effect if the federal government specifically legalized and regulated online poker. The Nevada Gaming Control Board took it another step. This additional step gives the licensed online poker companies the opportunity to accept real money players from within the state's border. Nevada online poker will likely not be a profitable venture. There is a large retired population that are not active internet users compared to younger age groups. Many in the younger age groups are going to be experienced poker players. It is doubtful that Nevada online poker would generate a lot of action. This still gives online poker licensees something comparable to a beta trial period. Software, support, security and servers can be tested while the small Nevada population becomes the software testers. Last month, South Point casino opened up a play money online poker room. That was in anticipation of a move like this. Having a software online with a trained support staff and a player pool could be something that gives South Point a big head start on the other companies. If all goes well in Nevada, there could be online poker in less than six months for state residents.
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