In this week's Industry Update, Jon Kyl signals progress on federal online poker bill. At Full Tilt Poker, we gained fresh insight on what may be the cause of the sale progress with GBT. Kyl Says Federal Bill "Possible": Last week we informed readers that Harry Reid was quoted as saying that a federal online poker bill was "making progress." This week, Arizona Senator and staunch online gambling opponent Jon Kyl told the National Journal that "quite possibly something will get done." After the recent DOJ change on the Wire Act, Kyl may be motivated to get something done that bans other forms of online gambling while compromising on online poker. Full Tilt Deal in Trouble?: Subject Poker gave us insight into Chris Ferguson's secret Full Tilt Poker bank accounts that may shed light on why the Full Tilt Poker-GBT has been delayed and may be in danger. According to Subject Poker, Chris Ferguson is trying to get back around $14.3 million that was used towards Full Tilt Poker expenses in the days after Black Friday. In other notable Full Tilt news, Phil Ivey won the$250,000 buy-in event at the Aussie Millions Sunday morning. PokerScout Traffic Update: Traffic was down 2% last week at top online poker sites last week, according to PokerScout. Merge Gaming was the biggest loser of the week, down 10% after a $1 million Bad Beat Jackpot was hit the previous week. PokerScout does note, however, that Merge is up 14% since December. Among other U.S. facing networks, Cake Poker is up 5% while Bodog/Bovada is down 5%. PAS News: Seb Loaiza wins iGB Affiliate Award for Best Affiliate Manager (Non-Traditional). You can watch Seb accept his award here (47 minute mark). Congrats Seb and thanks to all our publishers, fans and affiliates who showed their support over the last two months! In other PAS news, Pokeraddict was interviewed by QuadJacks' Marco Valerio for an engaging one-hour long interview last Monday on the subject of payment processing and other topics. Jottings: Entraction renamed IGT Poker...Nevada regulators talk of future of Nevada intrastate gaming...Online poker worth up to $5 billion to Zynga if they get into online gambling...Hawaii looks to internet gambling regulation...United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs will hold a hearing on online poker on February 9th...
In this week's edition of the Weekly Industry Update, Harry Reid signals a federal bill is making progress and a Black Friday processor pleads guilty in New York. Check out these stories and more in this week's report. Reid: Federal Bill "Making Progress" While Nevada gets ready to regulate online poker and more states follow suit, Harry Reid offered fresh hope that a federal bill could still be in the cards. Harry Reid told a Gambling Compliance reporter that "we cannot have a series of laws around the country related to gambling." Most interestingly, Reid told the reporter that he was "making progress" with Jon Kyl on federal legislation. Jon Kyl has traditionally been one of online gambling's biggest foes but could agree to a internet poker bill if other forms of gambling were barred. Zynga Changes Position on Real Money Poker?: It seems that Zynga, the world's largest social media gaming company, may be softening their position on real money gambling. The company confirmed on Friday that they are now speaking with potential partners to "better understand and explore" the opportunity in real money poker. The entry of Zynga, which has 30 million monthly users, into the real money online poker market would be an undeniable game-changer for the industry. Full Tilt Poker Update: Last week Ira Rubin, one of the payment processors indicted on Black Friday that processed for Full Tilt, pleaded guilt to conspiracy charges in New York. Rubia was alleged to have helped offshore poker companies process billions of dollars in illegal gambling proceeds. As part of the plea deal, Rubia could face 18 to 24 months in prison. In regards to the Full Tilt Poker/GBT sale progress, there have been no major developments since Full Tilt Poker agreed to transfer assets to GBT in the middle of December. PokerScout Traffic Update: Online poker traffic stabilized last week accroding to PokerScout after a large 10% upswing the previous week. PokerScout was the only room in the top five to decline, however. Merge Gaming saw its traffic increase by 3%, likely due to a Bad Beat Jackpot that had increased to $1 million and was subsequently hit hours later. Jottings: Superuser scandal victims sue Ultimate Bet...Internet world rallies behind SOPA opposition, Megaupload seized following day...PokerStars CEO Steps Down...State race for online gambling begins...State profits from internet gambling may be smaller than expected...Iowa lawmaker making push for online poker.
Be sure to follow the Poker Affiliate Solutions Twitter feed for the latest up-to-the minute updates. In today’s Black Friday update, we take a look at a possible new policy shift from Arizona Senator and anti-gambling advocate Jon Kyl as well as a new update from Players Only and Sportsbook.com. Jon Kyl: Poker “may be considered later this year”: One of online gambling’s leading opponents MAY be coming around to online poker. On his website, listed with opinions on various other topics, he states the following about online poker: “I have opposed efforts to legalize Internet gambling in the past because evidence suggests that it fosters problems unlike any other forms of gambling. Online players can gamble 24 hours a day from home; children can play without sufficient age verification; and betting with a credit card can undercut a player’s perception of the value of cash — leading to possible addiction and, in turn, bankruptcy, crime, and even suicide. Efforts to carve out an exception for games like poker, which many believe is a game of skill, may be considered later this year. Until I have the chance to review them, I cannot make a judgment about their merits; but I will consider them carefully as long as they leave in place the broader proscriptions against online betting.” Players Only/Sportsbook Not Accepting US players: Both Merge Gaming sites, with affiliate programs run by CommissionAccount, will no longer accept new US players after May 1st. Existing players will continue to be allowed to play, however. PokerAffiliateSolutions has been told the move is temporary while the site catches up with demand. At this time, the move does not appear to affect the rest of the Merge Gaming Network. Traffic Update: PokerScout has reported that the Merge Gaming Network is now of the top 10 largest online poker sites in the world and has broken another traffic record Monday night (2,496 peak players) and again on Tuesday night (2,643). The streak of new daily traffic records was stopped Wednesday night when the network saw *only* 2,575 players at the tables. The number still marks the second highest number in Merge Gaming’s history. PPA’s Message to Take Action: The leading poker play advocacy group, the PPA, has posted a list of ten actions citizens can take to stand up for online poker. Among the list of steps players can take: call/email/Facebook the DOJ, email the president, contact your local Congressional representative and write a letter to your local paper. A New Arrest: Bloomberg News reported yesterday that the latest arrest has been made in the Black Friday indictments. Ira Rubin was arrested in Guatemala on April 25th and appeared in a Miami court on Wednesday with no lawyer. He is charged with nine counts, including conspiracy to violate the UIGEA, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and money laundering. Ira Rubin will appear at an April 29th hearing to determine if he can acquire new representation. Jottings: Legal expert explains that state legislation is most likely, not federal (check 15:20 mark)…. Washington Post says online poker raids were a waste of resources….online high stakes action still thriving….Conservative Andrew Breitbart’s Big Government weighs in. Feel like you’re behind on the developments?: You can also check out our Twitter feed where we provide you with the latest up-to-the minute developments. For your convenience we have also provided an archive of previous updates: PAS Statement on DOJ Announcement 4/15 4/16 Cliff Notes: Details of indictment, when US players were shut out, Player funds, canceling of B&M partnerships, Initial statements from PokerStars, Full Tilt and the PPA DOJ Domain Name Agreement 4/20 4/21 Cliff Notes: DOJ agreement, A new not guilty plea, AP/UB.com new message for US players, statements from gaming commissions of Kahnawake, Isle of Man and Alderney Incredible Black Friday Promotions: We lay out the best of the best 4/22 Cliff Notes: Online poker traffic update, Antigua weighs in, Absolute Poker statements, collection of statements since 4/15 4/25 Cliff Notes: Merge gaming Breaking traffic records, Arizona credit union shut down, comments from Steve Wynn. 4/26 Cliff Notes: PokerStars Making US Cashouts, Merge Gaming now up 60%.
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