Poker Share

Poker Share has now re-launched following their acrimonious split with the Ultimate Bet poker network, which led to Poker Share temporarily forced to shut down their operation. The reason, quite simply, was that Poker Share became too popular and players were migrating from Ultimate Bet, the "star" of the network. Ultimate Bet gave the software provider an ultimatum, which basically meant the network was no longer big enough for the both of them.

Poker Share is now back and better than before. They are part of the renowned Microgaming network, so there are no worries regarding player volume and you will find a game at every stakes level. But the reason that Poker Share was such a big hit with online poker players had everything to do with their fantastic promotions, bonus offers, guaranteed tournaments where they give away a lot of extra prize money, and their incredible loyalty rewards program. And Poker Share still offers all those extra incentives, which really resonates with the players.

Poker Share has a lot of clever marketing angles, but none is better than their unique player-owner idea. Basically, when you earn rewards points at Poker Share you also earn shares in the company that are held by a Players` Trust. This Trust owns 40% of the company and if Poker Share ever lists or is sold for a fortune those loyal players will receive 40% of the proceeds. Their loyalty program stands up without this extra incentive. You earn points very quickly in my experience and can trade in those points for useful gifts and to help pay tournament fees.

If you are interested in winning a seat at a major poker tournament then this is the one online poker room where you should play your qualifiers. For the 2006 World Series Of Poker $10,000 main event online poker players at PokerShare had an amazing 1 in 16 chance of winning a seat, if they played in the Poker Share satellites. Other sites typically offer you a 1 in 50 chance or worse, and 1 in 16 is truly noteworthy. They had a limited number of players willing to enter these tournaments and then Poker Share added an extra seat (worth $13,000 in this case) to the final prize pool. Even though this promotion took place last year it`s a good example of what the site is like, and they will offer similar fantastic deals in the future.

• 100% bonus up to $300 for initial deposits
• Good selection of freeroll tournaments
• Win seats to the World Series Of Poker, and face very little competition to do so
• Own a share of the company simply by playing there frequently
• Earn loyalty points and exchange them for gifts, cash, or use them for charitable donations

Rake at PokerShare:
The rake at Poker Share is in line with industry norms. They take the standard 5% of every pot up to a maximum of $3 per pot.

Traffic:
May 2006 at peak hours - Real money ring games saw 1400 players, which was surprisingly high when you consider that they have not been back in business for a long time. Joining up with the established Microgaming network was a very smart move. Tournament traffic was even higher at 2,400 real money players and a lot of activity for the many freerolls on the site.

Game Limits and Games that you can play at PokerShare
You can play all the typical variations of Hold`Em and they do offer Omaha and stud games as well. You can play no-limit Omaha here, which a lot of other poker rooms do not offer. They also have 5-card stud for old-school poker players.

Deposits / Withdrawals:
This is one category where we would give Poker Share a below average rating. They have very limited deposit and withdrawal options and need to add additional methods in the near future. You can deposit using Visa, Mastercard and NETeller and withdraw via NETeller or Check. For most poker players this means you need a NETeller account or you`re out of luck at Poker Share. When you make a deposit there is still an annoying extra step that you have to take (why? why?) before the money is available in your poker account. It is first sent to some other Poker Share account (something to do with the Players` Trust I think) and then you have to click on "Transfer", which is not immediately evident, in order to move the money to your poker account. Since all they offer is poker, though, it seems a little illogical.

Competition:
There more competition at all levels these days because the poker room is now part of the larger Microgaming network, so when you`re playing in a satellite tournament for the WSOP you will now have to deal with a lot more opponents. The standard of play is lower than at a number of other online poker rooms, however, and the cash games are still beatable and loose.

Player Loyalty Program and Service 
The customer service has always been top-notch at PokerShare. The staff at this company are dedicated to online poker and the people that play the game. They understand that without looking after the customer and behaving with absolute integrity there would be no business to speak of, so when you have a problem they sort it out quickly and efficiently. We know them personally, so if you have a problem that isn`t resolved for some strange reason, just let us know and we`ll have a word in the right ear ;)