As indicated by their Spanish name, Muchos Poker offers players “many” poker options. And we’re not talking about an extra game or two. We’re talking about the ability for players to play on SIX different networks when signing up Muchos Poker. Those networks include Cake, Enet, Everleaf, IGT, Live Poker and Merge. We’ve previously seen poker rooms give players a couple network choices before -- rooms on Boss and Everleaf come to mind -- but never to this extent. Oh, and by the way, more networks are being added soon. In an era of online poker homogeneity, it’s refreshing to see a poker room truly offering something unique for their players. Not only will Muchos Poker players be given six options, but they can receive top level deals on all networks (most at the network maximums). Because of the uniqueness of this offer, Muchos Poker is likely to be a highly marketable offer for PAS publishers. Muchos Poker affiliates promoting through PAS will receive 50% revenue-share, with whatever player deal they receive at a specific network deducted from commissions. So why should I promote Muchos Poker? --Licensed in Malta (Lotteries and Gaming Authority --Exclusive rakeback and bonus deals on each network --Six-in-one poker site that’s easy for players to manage (including transfers between poker sites) --Players are given options on six different networks (Cake, Enet, Everleaf, IGT, Live Poker and Merge) --Run by an experienced organization that truly understands online poker and affiliates What do players receive who sign-up at Muchos Poker through a PAS site? --Maximum Rakeback on each rakeback-friendly network (33% at Cake, 40% on Everleaf, 30% IGT, 30% on Live Poker) --Bonus VIP on other networks. Players can receive €1,000 bonuses on ALL deposits, regardless of amount deposited. Players receive the equivalent of 40% on Enet from these bonuses and 40% on Merge. Bonuses release in €30 increments and expire after 90 days. --The same bonuses are available on Cake, IGT and Live Poker. Clearance rates are 7% on Cake, 10% on IGT and 10% on Live Poker --Standard network promotions (freerolls, Bad Beat Jackpots, where available) --Access to games and tournaments on six different networks (more coming soon) How do I promote Muchos Poker through PAS? If you are an existing PAS publisher, log-in to the PAS publisher admin and navigate to the “Rev-Share Offers” tab. Make your request and your campaign will be processed within 72 hours. If you are not yet a PAS publisher and would like to start promoting this offer or any number of revenue-share, CPA or rakeback offers, sign-up today and get started in minutes. Why Should I Use PAS for my Rakeback and Revenue-Share offers? There are many reasons for affiliates to use PAS for standard MGR deals including centralizing your accounts to avoid monthly headaches. We encourage you to read some of the top benefits of using PAS for your CPA and revenue-share needs. Where can I receive additional information? We have a provided publishers a helpful FAQ for answers to some of the most commonly asked questions. If you're looking for in-depth information about Muchos Poker or the Muchos Poker affiliate program, check out our Muchos Poker affiliate program review. For additional questions about PAS or the Muchos Poker revenue-share offer, feel free to contact us and we will be happy to help. We are here to assist you with your online poker affiliate business. Please let us know what we can do for you.
While we continue to wait for progress reports on the Full Tilt Poker sale discussions, a report was issued this week supporting the Alderney Gambling Control Commission's handling of the Full Tilt Poker saga after Black Friday. Meanwhile, another European regulator, the Lotteries and Gaming Authority, released a statement pertaining to Everleaf's compliance with that agency's regulations. Be sure to check out these stories and more in this week's Industry Update. Full Tilt Poker Update: Despite another week passing, there is still nothing nothing substantive to report on the Full Tilt Poker/GBT sale front. Wicked Chops again reported that the deal still appeared to be on track stating that GBT investors met in Ireland last week to negotiate the latest terms. In the meantime, we continue to wait and wonder. In related news, an independent report on Alderney's handling of Full Tilt Poker stated that the agency's actions were "appropriate, timely and fair" and their handling of the situation was "an example of regulation working as it should." A AGCC Director praised the findings and said "Our focus now is to assist other authorities to recover as much of the players' funds as possible." LGA Releases New Statement on Everleaf: The Lotteries and Gaming Authority, the licensor of Everleaf Gaming, has released a brief statement that reads in full: "The Lotteries and Gaming Authority would like to notify the public at large that Everleaf Gaming Limited has closely collaborated with the LGA and is addressing the identified non-compliances, where the LGA is closely following Everleaf's operation in order to ensure continued adherence to the Laws of Malta." It has now been almost two months since U.S. players were abruptly shut out of Everleaf Gaming sites. There is no new word on how U.S. players will be paid but there have been reports of players being cashed out of foreign bank accounts. Non-US players are being cashed out in approximately one month. Campos and Elie Trial Averted: Two weeks before a landmark online poker trial was to take place involving SunFirst VP John Campos and payment processor Chad Elie, both defendants have plead guilty. Elie plead guilty on a single conspiracy charge and could face 6-12 months in prison while Campos got off with a misdemeanor charge. The plea deals, which were seen as quite favorable to Elie and Campos, likely mean the prosecution will now focus on the CEOs of PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker. A sentencing hearing will take place on June 27th where the Judge presiding in the case will determine whether to accept the plea. PokerScout Traffic Update: For the seventh consecutive week, online poker traffic dropped, down approximately 1.8% from the previous week. According to PokerScout, four major networks declined by more than 5% including Party Poker, iPoker, Ongame and Microgaming. Warm weather and the increase interest in PokerStar's Zoom Poker are being blamed for the decline. Jottings: Bwin.Party Revenue falls during 2011...888poker earnings double...Golden Palace and Win2day receive Belgium licensees...Nevada licenses likely in June...Bad Beat Jackpot tables removed from Party Poker...Delaware to introduce online poker legislation...CA Senator says internet gambling is already happening.
There is no online gambling market more volatile, perhaps in the history of online poker, than the one that currently exists in the United States. The market has changed drastically in the last year and with regulated poker expected to come to Nevada and possibly other states by the end of the year, 2012 is likely to be another eventful year for U.S. players. In this edition of our Handicapping Series, which follows our previous discussion on Full Tilt Poker, Pokeraddict and I go over various scenarios revolving around the "Status Quo" U.S. market. Next edition will focus on how we see the U.S. "Regulated" market. Again, as is the case with our previous posts, please don't take any of these topics too seriously (or bet on the lines!). Hopefully, our discussion can result in some good food for thought for anybody reading. Odds of Merge being overtaken as top U.S. room in 2012 (with a full status quo market)? Pokeraddict's line: +800 Gonzo: +1000 Pokeraddict: I do not think there is any room in a position to overtake Merge Gaming. With more than double the traffic of their closest U.S. friendly competitor, no site can keep up. As long as Merge Gaming does not leave the U.S. market, and can offer cashouts within 2 months, I feel they are the clear winner. Gonzo: Agree 100%. Even with some of the negatives at Merge right now (lackadaisical action on certain issues, slow payment processing) Merge Gaming is doing a fair amount of things right. The next two biggest sites, Bovada and Cake, have negatives that some players find as deal breakers (Cake Poker with even slower cashout times and Bovada with their anti-reg philosophy) that are enough of an issue that I don't see them making a strong run. The one exception I see is Winning Poker because they seem to really *want* to be #1, but at 15% of Merge's size, they have a long road to the top. By the way, this question assumes that Merge Gaming is not forced out of the U.S. Odds of Bovada dumping Anoymous tables? Gonzo: +600 Pokeraddict: +800 Gonzo: The recreational player model seems to be an obsession for poker rooms that have it implemented. The rooms that have these systems feel it is the only way to the long term health of a poker room. Call it dedication or stubbornness, this mindset will not be changing any time soon. Pokeraddict: Bodog seems stuck in their ways, regardless of how they affect players or their traffic. They firmly believe that anonymous tables are the way to go to protect their sports and casino whales. While I disagree and see several issues with that, I respect their right to run their business as they see fit. I think it will take a major security scandal to break the anonymous tables. Odds of Bovada.lv Leaving the U.S. market? Pokeraddict: +350 Gonzo: +300 Pokeraddict: I feel that Bovada is here for the long haul. As we learned today, they are being cautious by leaving high risk states. As long as their processing is not completely strangled, I feel they are in the U.S. to stay. I also feel that if they should leave the market, players funds would be at little risk. Gonzo: I also think the state-by-state approach is an indication they don't plan on leaving any time soon. The Winning Poker Network illustrated that a poker room can operate after a domain name seizure so I don't see how Bovada will be any different, especially given that they have operated a sportsbook when the legality was under little question. Odds of network/room leaving the U.S. without government action during 2012 (Merge, Cake are the only ones not to have had a major incident. Winning Poker and Bodog (Bovada) have but have continued to operate after seizures): Gonzo: +200 Pokeraddict: EV Gonzo: This question is basically "will Cake or Merge Gaming leave without obvious government action." I think Merge Gaming is more likely due to their LGA license and being relatively proactive in the past (bans in 6 or 7 states where legality is more in question, temporary suspension of all new sign-ups). Pokeraddict: I think it is a coin toss. Processing is going to get harder and harder. Some rooms appear to be stressed harder than others. Any more processor failures or busts could be catastrophic to some of these rooms. Odds of there being any new major new U.S. rooms pop up (non regulated)? Pokeraddict: +5000 Gonzo: +1000 Pokeraddict: No poker room that goes to the trouble of creating a software is going to take a chance in this market. Some feel that the U.S. is on the edge of regulation. Entering the U.S. market now would be suicide for any company looking to be in the U.S. long term. I doubt players would trust any new site enough to make it a major room. Gonzo: Well said. Any NEW U.S. room NOT popping up on a major network needs to be met with extreme skepticism. Odds of payment processing improving during the year? Gonzo: +500 Pokeraddict: +200 Gonzo: I think it's very likely that payment processing for U.S. rooms will continue to be under extreme pressure, however, I don't think it's a foregone conclusion that things will get much worse from where things are now. I don't see how it can get much better, however. Pokeraddict: There are a few rooms that are having few problems with cashouts. Considering bank wires appear to be near impossible, I think that could improve in the future. I feel they can only get better for a few rooms which is why I do not see it as being as big of an underdog as Gonzo does. Odds of Everleaf Gaming paying players by the start of the World Series of Poker? Pokeraddict: +700 Gonzo: +500 Pokeraddict: I have a bad feeling about whether Everleaf Gaming will ever pay U.S. players. At the very least, 2.5 months from now is very short term. Gonzo: I share your pessimism, unfortunately, and don't see myself getting my $200 any time soon. With that said, I don't think their situation fits into any specific previous scenario. They haven't lost a huge % of their traffic like Absolute Poker/UB (only 25% or so) and can't be fairly compared to PokerStars, which clearly had a ton of cash to pay out players very quickly. Hopefully, there is a light at the end of the tunnel before the World Series. Otherwise this is going to start to feel a lot like Full Tilt. Odds of the following rooms leaving the U.S. market in the hypothetical scenario of their domains's being seized: Gonzo: Merge Gaming +100, Bodog (already happened), Cake Poker +200, Winning Poker (already happened) Pokeraddict: Merge Gaming +100, Bodog (already happened), Cake Poker +300, Winning Poker (already happened) Gonzo: Bodog and Winning Poker have been two victims of domain seizures and have continued to provide online poker to players, while Everleaf Gaming left after a payment processing seizure and a cease and desist. Merge Gaming is the more likely of the two to leave after this hypothetical scenario given their Malta license (which apparently played a role in Everleaf leaving). I could see Merge going back to Kahnawake if they wanted to stay and then just leave the states where there are laws against online poker or states that are regulated. Cake would be more likely to stay because A) they don't have a Malta license and B) they would presumably get hit much harder than Merge Gaming or Everleaf if the U.S. market were to be cut off. Pokeraddict: I see things exactly as Gonzo does. We are in a situation where I think Merge could feel some heat in the near future. They are processing many more times the payouts than Cake Poker in the U.S. so I feel they are more likely to be the target. Merge Gaming processes most of the payouts on their network while Cake Poker has many skins that process their own payments. In addition to this, Merge Gaming is triple the size. As for the rooms that have already run into trouble in the US, I feel that they are here to stay. If getting indicted and losing their domains did not affect them, nothing will. Odds the top U.S. rooms (Merge, Cake and Bovada) stop accepting U.S. players from states where there is regulation? Pokeraddict: Merge -500 Cake -200 Bovada -200 Gonzo: Merge Gaming -300, Cake Poker -200, Bodog +200, True Poker +100 Pokeraddict: I seriously doubt all of the U.S. friendly rooms will attempt to compete in Nevada or any other state where online poker becomes regulated. Few players will want to play there due to the ease of playing on regulated sites, and the penalties would be harsh for the rooms. There is little reward based on the risk. I believe there is little chance Merge gaming stays. Cake Poker and Bovada would be more likely to hang out in the markets in my opinion. Gonzo: Unless regulation is incredibly restrictive or unattractive (ridiculously high rake, few games in the case of intrastate poker in low populated states) playing on non-regulated sites in regulated states is likely to be unappealing. I think a couple poker rooms may make statements by leaving the regulated states while a couple others may continue to offer their games to players that prefer them for one reason or another. In general, regulation itself will effectively do most of the work with more attractive sites to play. Thanks for reading this edition of our Handicapping Series. Stay tuned for the next edition when we will be discussing and handicapping the regulated U.S. market.
More big news this week as Shuffle Master announced the purchase of Bwin "surplus assets," while on Everleaf Gaming, the LGA announced "sanctions" on the network. At Full Tilt Poker, CEO Ray Bitar finally breaks his silence. Check out these stories and more in this week's edition of the Weekly Industry Update for March 11th. Shuffle Master Purchases Ongame: American gaming supplier Shuffle Master officially announced their acquisition of Ongame Network "surplus assets" this week. The announcement comes almost a year after the merger of bwin and Party Gaming and approximately nine months since the network has been on the market. It is believed that bwin and Party Gaming will merge platforms before the completion of the acquisition, which is expected within 9 months. It is believed that the departure of bwin from the Ongame network will result in a 20%-30% traffic loss. Pokerfuse weighs in on what the sale could mean for players. Bwin.Party Applies for Nevada License: Bwin.Party has joined a list of two dozen companies to apply for licenses in the regulated Nevada market. If accepted, it would be the first time Party Gaming or Bwin have operated in any part of the United States since the enactment of the UIGEA in late 2006. Last October, Bwin.Party announced a partnership agreement with MGM and Boyd Gaming. LGA Issues Sanctions Against Everleaf: The Lotteries and Gaming Authority, the licensor of Everleaf Gaming, issued a brief notice on the agency's website on Thursday which stated in full that "The LGA Enforcement Unit issued sanctions against Everleaf Gaming Ltd following an investigation which emerged with a number of irregularities in their operation. Everleaf Gaming is being monitored closely to ensure its operation respects Maltese law." The statement came one month after Everleaf abruptly banned U.S. and French players. Since the removal of U.S. players from the network, Everleaf has been "business as usual" for non-US players but U.S. players have still received nothing of substance related to the future of their funds. Traffic is down a relatively modest 23% since the removal of U.S. and French players. Cashouts for non-players remain slow (3-4 weeks) but steady. Full Tilt Poker Update: Ray Bitar broke his long silence this week with a brief interview apologizing to all that have been affected by the Full Tilt Poker situation. In the interview, Bitar says that he has been working every single day since Black Friday to ensure players are paid. The explained his silence by saying that any public statements could diminish the likelyhood of a successful outcome. In other Full Tilt news, a report surfaced this week that suggested that there may be another interested buyer in Full Tilt if the GBT deal falls through. PokerScout Traffic Update: Online poker traffic dropped slightly for the forth straight week, down 0.6%. Among traffic movers, Bodog was down 5% after having the Bodog.com domain seized. Meanwhile at Everleaf, traffic was down another 2%, bringing their three week decline down to 23%. PAS News: A couple notable exclusive PAS promotions started this Sunday, a $4,100 Rake Race from Coral Poker and a $18,000 Tournament Fever Series at Party Poker. In PAS offer news, the Party Poker CPA was removed from PAS. Jottings: Report suggests online poker bill in New Jersey could pass within days...D'Amato makes case for legalizing online poker (VIDEO)...Casinos want fair gambling...Judge decision will shape Campos and Elie trial...Europe Regulatory News: Spanish license applicants see 80% approval rate, Danish Online Gambling Association approves Betsson, Bet24 and Ladbrokes....Sporting says license unaffected by court ruling...Internet gambling worries tribes
Two more states introduce online poker poker legislation while Everleaf releases a statement on their departure from the U.S. market. Check out these stories and more in this week's edition of the PAS Weekly Industry Update. California and Mississippi Introduce Bills: The last week saw two more states join the recent wave of states interested in online gambling. On Wednesday, a bill was introduced in Mississippi by House Minority Leader Bobby Moak. If passed, the legislation would take effect on July 1st. Meanwhile, in California two lawmakers introduced a bill on Friday dubbed the Internet Gambling Consumer Protection and Public-Private Partnership Act of 2012. The Calfornia bill faces obstacles from Governor Jerry Brown and tribal casinos. With over 37 million residents, a passage of a bill in the state would bring regulated poker to over 10% of the United States. Full Tilt Poker Update: Like last week, there were no major developments from Full Tilt Poker. See our update from two weeks ago for the last news on the ongoing situation. I'd also recommend checking out a good blog from Matt Glantz this week that details his opinion of where he sees things after discussions with Full Tilt Poker insiders. The theme: not good. Everleaf Releases Statement: Everleaf broke their silence on Friday with a statement explaining their departure from the US market and commitment to the non-US market. In a follow-up statement released on Friday, Everleaf also reiterated that player funds are segregated from operational are "ring-fenced." Shuffle Master Set to Purchase Ongame: Since June of 2011, bwin.party has been in discussions to sell their "surplus asset" after the two online gambling heavy heavyweights joined forced. According to the Sunday Times in England, a sale of the network to Shuffle Master is at an advanced stage. Shuffle Master is among more than a dozen operators who have applied for licenses in the state of Nevada. PokerScout Traffic Update: According to PokerScout online poker traffic decreased 3% over the week with 9 out of the top 10 sites seeing loses, the second decline in as many weeks. Merge Gaming and Boss Network are two sites mentioned by PokerScout as sites moving up the traffic rankings over the last week. PAS News: RedKings Revenue-share commissions have increased to 35% at PAS. Publishers who generate more than $5,000 in MGR will receive the new rate. Stay tuned for exclusive promotion news coming this week. Jottings: PKR launches .it site...Businessman accused of illegal payment processing...Boyd Gaming says federal legislation could be further off than hoped...Meanwhile, MGM expects online poker federal legislation in 2012...Germany online poker developments...Phil Ivey enters first U.S. tournament since Black Friday.
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