This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

I have been told by the admins that this forum will close on June 30th. The amount of questionable threads and spammy posts have led to this. So what happens now?

1. Rakeback posts will need to go in the sponsored rakeback forums. I assume that Rake the Rake and 2+2 will also allow them in the Internet Bonus forums. This is up to 2+2 and RTR.

2. I will still mod Internet Bonuses.

3. If you are an affiliate you will no longer be allowed to post using your commercial handle (xyxrakeback.com etc.) after this forum closes unless you are a mod of the sponsored forums.

4. You will no longer be allowed to post any kind of commercial signatures in your post after this forum closes.

5. When this forum closes any active thread will be moved to an appropriate forum. Old threads will likely be archived for a short time in this forum but it will only be read only. After that the threads may be moved but also may be deleted. If there is anything you want to save from this forum I would go ahead and save it now.

6. If you feel a thread you start might stay active after June 30th I would consider posting it in one of the sponsored forums. This way if there is a delay in moving the thread after this forum is locked your discussion can continue.

7. This was not my decision but I have known this has been coming for a while. It has been brought up before.

8. If you have any questions or comments feel free to post them in this thread. I will try my best to get questions answered.

9. If you ever have any questions or problems with rakeback providers after this forum closes feel free to PM me.

10. Thanks for posting in A/R for it's entire run.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Whoa, sad [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Sad news.

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1. Rakeback posts will need to go in the sponsored rakeback forums. I assume that Rake the Rake and 2+2 will also allow them in the Internet Bonus forums. This is up to 2+2 and RTR.

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This seems a sensible place, and I think the forum name should be changed to "Internet Bonuses & Rakeback".

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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This seems a sensible place, and I think the forum name should be changed to "Internet Bonuses & Rakeback".

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No need to make it a "rakeback" forum there, otherwise why close this forum?


There are still 2 forums at the very end that have rakeback threads.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Sad, I've obtained a lot of valuable info from here.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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This seems a sensible place, and I think the forum name should be changed to "Internet Bonuses & Rakeback".

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No need to make it a "rakeback" forum there, otherwise why close this forum?


There are still 2 forums at the very end that have rakeback threads.

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That is for all of you involved to figure out. It has been suggested on several occasions that this and IB should be merged. Obviously that creates a conflict and might defeat the purpose of closing this forum. I'm only speculating. I was asked if I wanted to announce this and I said sure and suggested the end of the month to give a week notice. That is the extent of my involvement.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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This seems a sensible place, and I think the forum name should be changed to "Internet Bonuses & Rakeback".

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No need to make it a "rakeback" forum there, otherwise why close this forum?


There are still 2 forums at the very end that have rakeback threads.

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Good points. I guess the thing that I find difficult is that there are 2 of them. Which forum does one pose general RB questions in? I can foresee some confusion and cross-posting.

Meh...I'm not going to get too twisted up over it. I'll just add the sponsored forums to my reading routine, and let others sort it out. I used to read the sponsored forums on a regular basis, especially since I have RB with sponsors on both...I'll just get back in that habit again. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

It might be nice to see the two forums moved up where A/R is now. I think they get lost down where they are, and since IB is also sponsored, it would be consistent.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

wow, tough to see this forum go as i, and i'm sure others, have learned a lot from reading A/R...

PA, thx for all the hard work u put into this to help people understand and get rakeback, appreciated...

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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wow, tough to see this forum go as i, and i'm sure others, have learned a lot from reading A/R...

PA, thx for all the hard work u put into this to help people understand and get rakeback, appreciated...

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Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

[img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img] I kind of liked this place..

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Without this kind of forum, I am not sure I would still play poker...and win money.
So tx

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Closing. Yeah it is too bad but not suprising. I have received two great rb offers thru this forum with twoplustwo sponsored sites which may not of happened without this forum. Also threads like the party situation were quite helpful.
Its obviously the rakeback sites/advertisers at twoplustwo
are responsible for having this informative and helpful forum shutdown. They are already making buckets of money from players and they obviously want more. So their solution is to limit player communication and get overly protective of their interests. To me, this is bad business. Without the players they make nothing. I liken it to the way professional sports operates in North America. Decisions are consistently made to benefit owners and players and to hell with the fans who line their pockets.
IMO this type of action is of no benefit to the players who make the poker world go around. I also think its a dumb move by the affilates to have a forum like this closed. They are starting to behave more and more like the poker sites by finding new ways to reduce players' communication, alternatives, and freedoms. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Who exactly is pushing this to be closed and why though? I dont get it?

If you are talking about merging the bonus forum and this, then this forum is basically still alive.

Also, there are 2 forums that offer rakeback here that are sponsored.

So I dont understand the motive

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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So I dont understand the motive

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The motive is to take away an unbiased forum that everyone has access to and limit the player's choices so the flow of information will be controlled by a limited few rakeback sites.

If you are a rakeback site paying a lot of money for a forum you should be pleased.

If you are a person who wants unbiased rakeback/affiliate information and feedback you won't find it at 2 + 2 after this forum closes.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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The motive is to take away an unbiased forum that everyone has access to and limit the player's choices so the flow of information will be controlled by a limited few rakeback sites.



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For the record, we have 50% of the sponsored rakeback forums, and I certainly don't want to see this forum closed.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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The motive is to take away an unbiased forum that everyone has access to and limit the player's choices so the flow of information will be controlled by a limited few rakeback sites.



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For the record, we have 50% of the sponsored rakeback forums, and I certainly don't want to see this forum closed.

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Well then maybe twoplustwo should elicit feedback from players and rakeback sponsered sites before making these carte-blanche decisions. They obviously don't give a flying f*** what players think. They are starting to remind me of some of the poker sites with their lack of constructive communication and complete disregard for players and all the grassroots people who make their site go around.
Oh but don't forget you can get 5 books worth 100 bucks. So maybe I stand corrected. lol.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

In just 11 short months I can reopen a rakeback directory and forum [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] . Seriously, I don't know whose idea it was, it has come up over and over again. I don't see much if anything get deleted from the sponsored rakeback forums. Notice how there are threads about Party and Bodog rakeback there? I doubt there is a conspiracy here. I do know though that if I owned a forum here I would not be happy to see this forum as it would hurt the traffic and volume in the forum I was paying well for.

Also keep in mind that it is likely this would still be discussed in IB, if so then I'm still mod so nothing will change really. We'll have to see what the new rules will be.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

admins, it's not only disappointing that this forum is being closed down, but it's prolly counterproductive...i, like many others, came to this forum having no clue what RB even was, let alone going about picking an affiliate and signing up properly...

too many people will get scammed and/or be setup with horrible affiliates if we can't have an unbiased forum to help people make smart decisions...also, this is a good place to let people communicate about the different affiliates and see different opinions...

i have a feeling some of this RB traffic will go into IB, but won't a mod have to move it to the sponsered forums??

while i've seen some of the sponsered affiliates and don't really think they're out to scam anyone at all, it's not a good idea to have such people in charge of something this important...

i guess it's too late for any changes to be made and i'm just ranting aimlessly to the admins, but hopefully too many people don't get into trouble as a result...but it prolly will happen anyway...

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

I agree with that point though. If there is no RB forum, then the mods should move rakeback talk into the sponsored forums.

Either there's a rakeback forum, or there's not.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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Who exactly is pushing this to be closed and why though?

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I believe Pokeraddict answered both your questions in the OP:

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I have been told by the admins that this forum will close on June 30th. The amount of questionable threads and spammy posts have led to this.

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It's really as simple as that. 2+2 management has never been comfortable with rakeback discussion. This forum was created by a paying sponsor who has long since withdrawn. Money is the only reason they ever allowed this in the first place. If PA hadn't stepped in and agreed to mod I'm sure it would have been closed long ago.

Please don't blame this on the major rakeback affiliates because they have little influence and are actually among the victims. This forum has been instrumental in both growing the rakeback customer base and directing the business toward the major reputable firms. Without it many new players will either not have rakeback at all or will be sucked in by scamsters.

Of course the primary enemies of rakeback are most of the rooms and their non-rakeback affiliates. They are the ones who complain about what goes on here. For example do you really think PartyPoker is happy about what goes on in this forum? We can only guess what their affiliate manager has been saying since 2+2 joined their program.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Is there any problem with one of the sponsored forums being shifted up to the familiar place and having existing threads moved to it? I'm sure they wouldn't mind [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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Is there any problem with one or both of the sponsored forums being shifted up to the familiar place and having existing threads moved to it? I'm sure they wouldn't mind [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

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Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

No problems here, we'd be for something like that

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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If PA hadn't stepped in and agreed to mod I'm sure it would have been closed long ago.

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I'm almost certain this forum would have closed after the sponsor was lost. I guess it bought 9 months or so. Having two sponsored forums will create a problem though if these discussions are not allowed in IB. Which sponsored forums gets the threads? From an objective standpoint it would be every other one but really how would that work? From the sponsor's point of view since they are a part of both IB and the sponsored forum I would think they would want them moved there (this is just an opinion, I have not talked to RTR since this broke).

I can do one of two things. I can invite Mat here to answer questions or you could post them in ATF.

Stellarwind makes a great point. With 2+2 being an affiliate for Party now it makes this forum a tough sell. For example not allowing Party rakeback threads was an obvious call, but what about the "best offer for Party threads" or other obvious step arounds. At what point is it crossing the line? Also I'm sure Party hated the two threads about their chargebacks for duplicate accounts, I couldn't delete them though. Those type threads are exactly what this forum is about.

I don't have all the answers for members of this forum, I can only give my opinion and pass questions on. I only modded this forum because it was guaranteed to close if I didn't. After what happened to RRR after I sold it I felt this was a way I could try and make it up to the affiliates and players. I don't really have any involvement in most of 2+2 beyond the zoo, IB and this forum.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

You have valid points. I believe it would be unfair to us if the IB forum had Rakeback threads on it.

Given that 2+2 strongly promotes party poker, I think a perma party ban on all rakeback threads is perfectly acceptable as well.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

I took it upon myself to start a thread in ATF:

A/R forum closing

It would be nice to get some discussion going there.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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I have been told by the admins that this forum will close on June 30th. The amount of questionable threads and spammy posts have led to this.

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Very sad!

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This forum was created by a paying sponsor who has long since withdrawn.

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I don't believe this to be an accurate description of what happened when this forum went from sponsored to unsponsored.

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This forum has been instrumental in both growing the rakeback customer base and directing the business toward the major reputable firms. Without it many new players will either not have rakeback at all or will be sucked in by scamsters.

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This is of course the primary reason why this forum should exist.


Worth noting, posting traffic in A/R is up this month.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Nothing is set in stone. We will be discussing the issues raised here.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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You have valid points. I believe it would be unfair to us if the IB forum had Rakeback threads on it.

Given that 2+2 strongly promotes party poker, I think a perma party ban on all rakeback threads is perfectly acceptable as well.

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All party rakeback threads should be deleted in every forum, sponsored or not. Same goes for any other site which does not allow rakeback.

Sponsors not addressing this will lose their forums.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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This forum was created by a paying sponsor who has long since withdrawn.

I don't believe this to be an accurate description of what happened when this forum went from sponsored to unsponsored.



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I'm trying to be PC. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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All party rakeback threads should be deleted in every forum, sponsored or not. Same goes for any other site which does not allow rakeback.

Sponsors not addressing this will lose their forums.

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The sponsored rakeback forums have had threads running about Bodog rakeback, Party rakeback etc. since their incepetion.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

The Party rakeback threads were deleted (today maybe?).

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

I'm pm'd Mat with the concerns that have both been posted in this thread and pm'd to me. The following was his response:

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We'll see what happens. One of the possibilities is to make it sponsored again. We'd let sites bid for that. Various things are being discussed, but I have no definite answer for you.

Just tell people that we are looking at different options and that the users needs actually are not just being ignored. You can also tell them that the June 30 closing date is simply the earliest date that some change may occur. It won't necessarily end on that day.



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For those affiliates out there considering sponsoring the forum I will make this offer public and has already been mentioned to Mat. If you wish to sponsor the forum I will offer to continue modding it if you wish. Of course that is entirely up to a sponsor. One of the biggest complaints when the forum was sponsored before was that the forum was biased. Although it never affected me I could see where affiliates could say that. If you wish for me to continue modding it then that should take care of that complaint but there is no obligation to take me up on the offer.

My only compensation would be that the first round of drinks are on you if we should ever meet up. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

^^i can't speak for the affiliates, but i think we can agree that PA has done a good job of following the rules and guiding the forum in the right direction...hopefully the affiliates realize that if ain't broke, don't fix it...

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

I agree. PA has done a good job here and we need a good "general" rakeback information forum.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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For those affiliates out there considering sponsoring the forum I will make this offer public and has already been mentioned to Mat. If you wish to sponsor the forum I will offer to continue modding it if you wish.

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I hope someone takes you up on this offer Pokeraddict..you've always done an excellent job modding this forum..objective, knowledgeable and pandered to no one. I think if this forum is closed or merged it's a disservice to players on 2+2.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

We would love to have pokeraddict mod the forum if there is a merger of forums or we are able to sponsor it. We shall see

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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I agree. PA has done a good job here and we need a good "general" rakeback information forum.

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Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

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I'm pm'd Mat with the concerns that have both been posted in this thread and pm'd to me. The following was his response:

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We'll see what happens. One of the possibilities is to make it sponsored again. We'd let sites bid for that. Various things are being discussed, but I have no definite answer for you.

Just tell people that we are looking at different options and that the users needs actually are not just being ignored. You can also tell them that the June 30 closing date is simply the earliest date that some change may occur. It won't necessarily end on that day.



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For those affiliates out there considering sponsoring the forum I will make this offer public and has already been mentioned to Mat. If you wish to sponsor the forum I will offer to continue modding it if you wish. Of course that is entirely up to a sponsor. One of the biggest complaints when the forum was sponsored before was that the forum was biased. Although it never affected me I could see where affiliates could say that. If you wish for me to continue modding it then that should take care of that complaint but there is no obligation to take me up on the offer.

My only compensation would be that the first round of drinks are on you if we should ever meet up. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

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Based on this and Matt's post, and rakereduction offering their help to keep this forum going why did you say in today's deleted post it is closing. It seems to me the stars are aligning to keep this helpful and interesting forum open. And btw you do a great job moderating. ty.

Re: This Forum Will Close June 30th
 

Thx O Twist, I have no new info about what will happen with this forum. As soon as I do (or if) I will post it. AFAIK it is still closing.