'Black Friday' and associated fallout megathread

[rowhousepd]

Just saw this at Bluff Magazine. This can't be good.

Players’ Only and SportsBook.com: no new US players after May 1

Two of the remaining US-facing sites accepting players, Players’ Only and SportsBook.com, will stop accepting NEW American players from joining the sites starting May 1. Existing customers will still be allowed to play, deposit and make withdrawals on both sites after the May 1 deadline.

Uuugh.

 

[OzExorcist]

my point is that there is really no reason for these sites to shutdown USA accts....unless theres something else we don't know yet(which is obviously the case).

you say the cost of doing business is too high now?
sorry that makes no sense; all you do is suspend USA payment processing, announce it to all USA players letting them play "at their own risk" per say, and continue rubbing USD-rake on titties to help foot the lawyer bill.

I think they've assumed, correctly IMO, that only a complete drooling moron would want to continue playing on a site that he knew 100% he couldn't get their money off. What's the point of playing poker and winning money if you can't claim that money at some point? The sane people wouldn't want to continue playing and they're doing the insane a favour by banning them.

Plus there's the chance of some leniency or leeway if they show they're cooperating with the DoJ.

Lastly, remember that the USA is just one country and in the case of both Stars and Tilt more than half their business comes from the rest of the world. How much damage does it do to their reputation if the rest of the world sees them screwing US players by letting them continue to play?

Sorry but there's no universe in which it makes sense for them to allow US players to keep playing.

 

[WVHillbilly]

Just saw this at Bluff Magazine. This can't be good.

Uuugh.

Meh, just as likely to be a way of getting lots of signups between now and May 1st as anything else imo.

 

[The Dark Side]

WOW. PS players are going to get their money already?

Hopefully FTP will not be to far behind.



Anyone know if ftp pts will be converted to money? I know they said iron man, and blackcard status will be held but what about the pts that I have now?

 

[The Dark Side]

Oh yeah. Ive been wanting to ask.


Since this happened and our transfers were blocked, no one has gotten their rakeback payment for that week.

Where does that $ go?

 

[Hordling]

At this point, I'm wishing i would have switched over to PS that many years ago.

Stuck with FTP atm... and no money coming back. Hopefully they will follow suit.... but i'm not holding my breath....

 

[Dreams of Tragedy]

thanks to the tournament tickets my BR is bigger on stars now then on full tilt. I guess u will take one last snap shot of my BR before it gone

 

[pokerchris]

Just saw this at Bluff Magazine. This can't be good.

Uuugh.

Comments for the Bluff Magazine:

Kes says:
<April 24, 2011 at 12:47 pm>
Syra, Iran, North Korea, USA: 4 bastions of liberty that deny their citizens
the freedom to play poker online.

Even China, which has been derided by the US many times for it’s
denials of freedom, allows its citizens the freedom to play poker on
line.

The US government is breaking international treaties. It is being
shown as a hypocrite, and we are the laughingstock of the world.

Proud to be an American… today, not so much.

 

[Dreams of Tragedy]

project mayhem anyone??

 

[5TR8 FLUSH]

WoW, good think PS is giving out cashouts. Lucky for me I don't have any money on any sites. Hope everyone's cashouts go through safely, easy, and fast. Hope there's still a site left after all this happens.

 

[the Styb]

Bwah hah hah hah hah!! PS will not cash out anything less than $1. Guess I shouldn't have blown my wad over the Black Friday weekend! PS is currently "reviewing options including donating this money to charity." **** you. It's only .93¢, but it's MY .93¢ and if I want it to go to charity, I'll choose my own, tyvm.

 

[Dorkus Malorkus]

At this point, I'm wishing i would have switched over to PS that many years ago.

Stuck with FTP atm... and no money coming back. Hopefully they will follow suit.... but i'm not holding my breath....

eh, you'll get your money, it will just take a while. FT has always tried to do what's right by their customers, it's just that they're quite often completely incompetent about it.

oh, and re: AP/UB, anyone who thinks they're actually planning on fighting the DoJ as they say and aren't just stalling for time because allowing cashouts would cripple them unrecoverably is pretty dense, just sayin'.

 

[Pascal-lf]

Bwah hah hah hah hah!! PS will not cash out anything less than $1. Guess I shouldn't have blown my wad over the Black Friday weekend! PS is currently "reviewing options including donating this money to charity." **** you. It's only .93¢, but it's MY .93¢ and if I want it to go to charity, I'll choose my own, tyvm.

If you're gong to be so bitchy about 93 cents then maybe pokerstars should make you pay the withdrawl fee yourself, which I'm sure is more than 93 cents

 

[BelgoSuisse]

Bwah hah hah hah hah!! PS will not cash out anything less than $1. Guess I shouldn't have blown my wad over the Black Friday weekend! PS is currently "reviewing options including donating this money to charity." **** you. It's only .93¢, but it's MY .93¢ and if I want it to go to charity, I'll choose my own, tyvm.

 

[ktx49]

I think they've assumed, correctly IMO, that only a complete drooling moron would want to continue playing on a site that he knew 100% he couldn't get their money off. What's the point of playing poker and winning money if you can't claim that money at some point? The sane people wouldn't want to continue playing and they're doing the insane a favour by banning them.

Plus there's the chance of some leniency or leeway if they show they're cooperating with the DoJ.

Lastly, remember that the USA is just one country and in the case of both Stars and Tilt more than half their business comes from the rest of the world. How much damage does it do to their reputation if the rest of the world sees them screwing US players by letting them continue to play?

Sorry but there's no universe in which it makes sense for them to allow US players to keep playing.

these are valid points although i think that i would have continued to play on there and if necessary, move to canada to get out my funds out at a later date although im sure there would still have been ways to get that money off(someone could make a HUGE business out of it....make an acct named USPLAYERCASHOUT or something and make a website; people transfer u the cashout amt via pokerstars and u send them the money through your own means for a good fee. underground payment processor anyone?

i think they did more damage by banning US players; the panicked this caused alone had to send the sites reeling i saw post after post after thread after thread of EUROS/Non-USA players attempting to cash out their bankrolls before anything else went down.

u think it really would have been WORSE if they had let us keep playing a la CEREUS? how are they doing right now?

 

[HipHopStoner]

This is all bonkers.. I believe canadian play was not affected at all. Either way I got my net back and am ready to rock.

 

[pfb8888]

has anyone receive a check from ps that didn t bounced??pls help

i have never had any problems with pokerstars checks...more than 20 cashed easily.

 

[NineLions]

has anyone receive a check from ps that didn t bounced??pls help

I've never had one bounce.

But if you requested it just prior to April 15 and you're in the US, the processing company may have been shut down. Contact PS support.

 

[curly]

I wanted to leave my funds in my account, but found out last night that they are forcing me to cash out, so much for holding out for hopes of coming back to play there again whenever things get sorted out.

 

[jaymfc]

I think they've assumed, correctly IMO, that only a complete drooling moron would want to continue playing on a site that he knew 100% he couldn't get their money off.

I represent that remark millions of us are moving to other pokersites with no clue on how these much smaller sites can do legally what the great pokerstars and fulltilt poker couldn't do for us without cheating . and thats taking our deposits and paying our withdrawals .

but I thought of a couple other more important reasons for me

winning poker players = 6%
break even players = 3%
complete drooling morons with no chance of withdrawing = 91%

I didn't know they even had withdrawals till I read all this crap

Oh yeah. Ive been wanting to ask.
Since this happened and our transfers were blocked, no one has gotten their rakeback payment for that week.
Where does that $ go?

in someone Else's pocket usually , they may be out of business naw but I though we did get it . were we blocked early Fri. ? if I worried about mine I might get flamed along with the 93c guy , thats about what mine was but hope everyone gets what they are owed regardless of the amount .

 

[LarkMarlow]

has anyone receive a check from ps that didn t bounced??pls help

Check this thread out: Pokerstars US Cashouts Now Available

 

[Blazingfelts]

I am very disappointed in this decision it shows the misguided efforts of our government that they are focused on something like this rather than the economy, wars, budgets, my broke ass, or our freedom

 

[OzExorcist]

these are valid points although i think that i would have continued to play on there and if necessary, move to canada to get out my funds out at a later date although im sure there would still have been ways to get that money off(someone could make a HUGE business out of it....make an acct named USPLAYERCASHOUT or something and make a website; people transfer u the cashout amt via pokerstars and u send them the money through your own means for a good fee. underground payment processor anyone?

i think they did more damage by banning US players; the panicked this caused alone had to send the sites reeling i saw post after post after thread after thread of EUROS/Non-USA players attempting to cash out their bankrolls before anything else went down.

u think it really would have been WORSE if they had let us keep playing a la CEREUS? how are they doing right now?

They banned player transfers as well for this very reason, so your scheme above wouldn't have worked. Continuing to play then moving to Canada to cash out might have, but I doubt many people would go to those lengths.

As to how much damage they've done to themselves, first I think it's too early to say in terms of their business with the rest of the world. Second you're forgetting that you have to weigh that damage up against the potential leniency or leeway they may get from the DoJ by being cooperative.

I represent that remark millions of us are moving to other pokersites with no clue on how these much smaller sites can do legally what the great pokerstars and fulltilt poker couldn't do for us without cheating . and thats taking our deposits and paying our withdrawals .

Moving to other poker sites is a different thing though - sure I wouldn't risk it personally either but (at least for the time being) they have working deposit and withdrawl systems. I'm talking about cases like Cereus, or if Full Tilt and Stars had continued to let US players play despite the fact that they had no means of letting people withdraw - that is insane in my book.

 

[dj11]

It would have been nice, and maybe even legal, for the sites to just be up front about it with american players, continue to let them play, and just not allow cashouts until there is some resolution.

I would have continued playing until I either went bust or had some huge br. At which time things would be different.

 

[Charade You Are]

It would have been nice, and maybe even legal, for the sites to just be up front about it with american players, continue to let them play, and just not allow cashouts until there is some resolution.

I would have continued playing until I either went bust or had some huge br. At which time things would be different.

I'm sure they feel like the DOJ has them by the balls. For any deal, they would have to stop us from playing.