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Americans Will Be Banned From Playing At Party Poker
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Author: Marc Weinberg
October 5 - The United States government will soon sign an act into law (it is expected to happen some time this month) that will prohibit Americans from playing online poker at various poker rooms, including Party Poker, Pacific Poker, and InterPoker.
It is amazing to me how few US-based poker players are aware of what is about to happen. Party Poker has categorically stated that as soon as President Bush signs the Act into law they will be forced to ban American players from real money games. You will be allowed to withdraw all your money, but cannot make any further deposits, and no new real-money accounts can be opened.
The online poker ban for American players will also be implemented at Pacific Poker, which is part of the publicly traded 888 group, and at all Cryptologic poker rooms (InterPoker and SunPoker are the two most notable rooms in the group).
This means that the world's largest online poker room, which is primarily made up (at least 60% of all players) of US players will prohibit Americans from playing there. It will come as a huge shock to many online poker players, and a lot of the other big poker rooms are expected to follow suit shortly. A golden age for poker could be about to come to an abrupt end.
Many of the other top online poker rooms have yet to make a decision as to whether they will allow Americans to continue playing poker there - these include Poker Stars, PokerRoom, and Titan Poker.
A few poker rooms have made positive statements that suggest they intend to keep their tables open to US residents. These include Full Tilt Poker and Ultimate Bet. Absolute Poker and Bodog Poker have been adamant regarding their intention to allow Americans to keep playing for real money.
The publicly listed poker operators have little choice but to adhere to the change in policy from the US government. They have investors to consider as well as legal obligations based on their status as publicly traded companies. The privately held rooms like Poker Stars are in a very interesting position. They can corner the market but simultaneously break the law - it would mean that every employee of those companies faces criminal charges if they ever set foot on USA soil.
It is important to note that this Act does not criminalize the players who wish to play online poker. It makes the operators of those rooms responsible, and criminalizes their actions of allowing Americans to play for real money. So if you want to keep on playing online poker, and you don't live in a state where doing so is a crime according to state law (Washington State for example), then you simply need to find an internet poker site that is willing to run the risk of accepting you.
It is a sad and sorry day for poker, and the ramifications of this bill will be felt across the USA - when people realize what has happened they will almost certainly be outraged, but by then it will be far too late to do anything about it.
If you are American and hold a real-money account at any online poker room we advise you to contact customer service for that company and ask them whether or not you may still play there for money.
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> WPT Lawsuit Causing A Rift In The Poker World
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> No-Limit Holdem Cash Game Tactics
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