The Deadpool

[gaboonviper]

Lets start a three section poker Deadpool due to all the crazy legislation and rapid changes taking place in the poker world. By this I mean lets guess: 1. which pokersite will be the next to leave the U.S., 2. which pokersite will be the first to be directly attacked by the U.S. government, and 3. which poker magazine will be the first to fold. Here are my picks. 1. If Mansion has not already totally pulled out then that is my first choice, they have already stopped accepting deposits from the U.S. Bodog is a strong second since about a month ago they announced they are pulling all advertising from U.S. markets--the writing is on the wall. 2. I think Full Tilt will be the first to be directly attacked by our government. They are by far the most visible sponsoring the Pro Am Poker Equalizer, Poker After Dark and they do a ton of tv advertising. They also sponsor a great number if highly visible top poker pros. In short they are OUT THERE right in front of everyone--everyday. For more reasons why see my post: Learn, Chat & Jail with the Pros. 3. I think All In will fall first. Their poker content could not have been doing very well since recently they have turned half the magazine into a blackjack magazine. Bluff is next but could go before All In depending on which magazine has more money behind it. Cardplayer will probably be the only one to survive, but they will be hurt due to far less advertising and a lot of overextension. Those are my picks for the Deadpool-- what are yours?

[grizy]

us

[JayA]

This is just depressing to even think about picking...

[Petomane]

I loved you post Learn, Chat & Go To Jail with the the Pro's. However I think it's pointless to speculate at this time - we need to deal with facts.

The government is interested in sportsbooks - poker is collateral damage. Why do you think they cracked down 2 weeks before the Superbowl?

One thing is a fact - the government has snuffed the entire poker industry in one fell swoop. Big online sites became an integral part of the poker landscape by fueling billions into it. It's not only poker magazines, but TV tournaments, poker cruises, the WSOP that will become devasted. Thousands of people associated with the poker industry will lose their jobs.

Why did the Professional Poker Tour fail? Because it was dull. If they're not playing for big money, it ain't exciting, not even for the players. The TV public loves to see an online qualifier go up against the big boys. Chris Moneymaker created a myth.

Surely, there has to be people inside the DoJ who play poker themselves. Is Bush a poker player? Arresting Doyle Brunson or any famous player would create a stink.

None of this is news on TV or the newspapers - just brief mentions of illegal gambling. I haven't seen anyone of note defend online poker so far. The Iraq war is far bigger news, as well it should be. We are a niche industry and all of this is happening under the radar.

[KurtSF]

1. Mansion if you're counting it, Stars if your not.
2. None. Only sportsbooks and online casinos will be directly attacked. Poker sites will just be collateral damage.
3. All in.

[gonebroke2]

1. Pokerstars - they have the best chance out of the remaining US friendly sites to survive without American players.
2. Full Tilt Poker - They have a ton of Americans on the payroll. The CEO (Mr. Bitar) of Tiltware Inc is living in America and I would peg him as being the next target.
3. Bluff Magazine

[Petomane]

Oh, I forgot, 2+2 - this very website - will see a huge drop in traffic and a huge drop in book orders.

If online poker indeed becomes unavailable to American players - and sadly it's looking this way - I'll have no reason to visit it on a daily basis and to keep it as my home page. I might drop in once a week for hopeful developments.

I live in Vegas and I have no intention of playing at any B&M. I used to play live and I found it unacceptably slow and dull - bored witless I was. Online poker ignited my interest and multi-tabling even more. PokerTracker really helped analyze and tweak my game and helped me understand that the rake (not to mention the tipping) in low stakes games will eat you up in B&Ms.

I also think it important for online players to boycott corporate casinos at this time. We don't want to give them the satisfaction of seeing a huge influx. We want to send the message - yes, there's 23 million ONLINE players, but we're not scrambling to casinos, thank you very much. You want our business, you provide the online venue.

[JayA]

[ QUOTE ]
Oh, I forgot, 2+2 - this very website - will see a huge drop in traffic and a huge drop in book orders.

If online poker indeed becomes unavailable to American players - and sadly it's looking this way - I'll have no reason to visit it on a daily basis and to keep it as my home page. I might drop in once a week for hopeful developments.

I live in Vegas and I have no intention of playing at any B&M. I used to play live and I found it unacceptably slow and dull - bored witless I was. Online poker ignited my interest and multi-tabling even more. PokerTracker really helped analyze and tweak my game and helped me understand that the rake (not to mention the tipping) in low stakes games will eat you up in B&Ms.

I also think it important for online players to boycott corporate casinos at this time. We don't want to give them the satisfaction of seeing a huge influx. We want to send the message - yes, there's 23 million ONLINE players, but we're not scrambling to casinos, thank you very much. You want our business, you provide the online venue.

[/ QUOTE ]

Good post.