Stars Update

[chicagoY]

Thanks for the update. Excellent information.

[sbj99]

ZB-

Considering you've talked with some of the decision makers at stars I was wondering if you could give us some color on party's decision. I'm sure this has been a topic of conversation among the big guys at all the other companies.

I understand that a public company has an incentive to make a timely announcement, but they could have just as easily made a statement explaining that they need to analyze the effect of the new law before any final decisions are made. That is what I expected from them.

[IndyFish]

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ZBT,

Why aren't any of those people posting this type of message here instead of passing the info on to you?

[/ QUOTE ]

Hello xxxxxxxx,

Thank you for your email.

We appreciate and share your concerns about the bill which passed in
the US Congress today regarding the funding of internet gaming, as an
attachment to a Port Security bill.

PokerStars' management and legal team are examining the bill at this
time. Until we understand the potential impact of the bill, we cannot
comment on how it will impact our players or PokerStars. Please note
that the bill includes a 270-day window for enforcement procedures to
be established, so we do not expect to see any immediate changes in
the ability to transfer funds to and from PokerStars.

Also please remember that your money is safe on PokerStars. All
player funds are in a segregated account at the Royal Bank of Scotland.

As always, we thank you for playing on PokerStars.

Regards,

Kate
PokerStars Support Team

Got this from PS on Sunday, Oct 4th. Not sure if this form letter has been posted anywhere (I haven't seen it), but it's consistent with the statements in this thread.

Thanks for the updates ZBT. Your post is almost as good as PS Support! [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[suzzer99]

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I'm not saying I know they won't pull out the day the bill is signed. But I think people need to get a grip that PS's silence could be for a lot of complicated reasons. Possibly even more complicated than the average 20-year old poker shutin with zero real world business experience can come up with in idle specualtion.

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You've got this so backwards. It's those of us that have been around the corporate world for a long time that can see what is going on here.

As for this idea that some are saying that Party and everyone else rushed into a decision and Stars is the only one smart enough to take their time, that's ridiculous. Everybody has had months to consult with lawyers and develop contingency plans if this type of legislation goes through. Stars is merely the only one taking their time to *announce* their decision, and don't believe any corporate BS that is communicated through third parties.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well since you're so sure as to what PS is doing. How about you give me 3-1 odds they don't pull out. I'll put up $1k. Or does your conviction waver a little here? Remember - I'm not the one I'm saying I'm sure of anything. You are.

[ncboiler]

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ZBT,

Why aren't any of those people posting this type of message here instead of passing the info on to you?

[/ QUOTE ]

Lee did.

Nobody just seems to want to wait, like he asked us to.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think people realize the complexity of the dicision. Especially for a place like PS. I think Party's decision to cut US players when the bill is signed was easier because they have stockholders/market regulations that make the dicision for them. PS is private yet would like to stay legit in the eyes of US law and it's unclear how this bill would affect that status.

[ZBTHorton]

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I'm not saying I know they won't pull out the day the bill is signed. But I think people need to get a grip that PS's silence could be for a lot of complicated reasons. Possibly even more complicated than the average 20-year old poker shutin with zero real world business experience can come up with in idle specualtion.

[/ QUOTE ]

You've got this so backwards. It's those of us that have been around the corporate world for a long time that can see what is going on here.

As for this idea that some are saying that Party and everyone else rushed into a decision and Stars is the only one smart enough to take their time, that's ridiculous. Everybody has had months to consult with lawyers and develop contingency plans if this type of legislation goes through. Stars is merely the only one taking their time to *announce* their decision, and don't believe any corporate BS that is communicated through third parties.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well since you're so sure as to what PS is doing. How about you give me 3-1 odds they don't pull out. I'll put up $1k. Or does your conviction waver a little here? Remember - I'm not the one I'm saying I'm sure of anything. You are.

[/ QUOTE ]

I will also take that bet with him.

[ZBTHorton]

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ZB-

Considering you've talked with some of the decision makers at stars I was wondering if you could give us some color on party's decision. I'm sure this has been a topic of conversation among the big guys at all the other companies.

I understand that a public company has an incentive to make a timely announcement, but they could have just as easily made a statement explaining that they need to analyze the effect of the new law before any final decisions are made. That is what I expected from them.

[/ QUOTE ]

To be perfectly honest, as soon as that news came in, my concern immediately turned to "are you shutting down too?" and not "why did they do that?".

So I don't have much info on that front. My guess would be most of the things talked about here.

[JackCase]

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You've got this so backwards. It's those of us that have been around the corporate world for a long time that can see what is going on here.

[/ QUOTE ]

I suspect that I have been around the corporate world a bit longer than you have (including being a founding member of a company that later went public), and I afraid that it is you who have got it backwards.

Just looking at the two big frogs in the pond, Party is a public company while Stars is privately held. They operate in two different corporate environments. They face entirely different constraints and have different options open to them. Party's decision appears to have been drive as much by non-US considerations and obligations as by the US law.

Stars, as a private company, has greater freedom and more options.

[ QUOTE ]
As for this idea that some are saying that Party and everyone else rushed into a decision and Stars is the only one smart enough to take their time, that's ridiculous. Everybody has had months to consult with lawyers and develop contingency plans if this type of legislation goes through. Stars is merely the only one taking their time to *announce* their decision, and don't believe any corporate BS that is communicated through third parties.

[/ QUOTE ]

No one could prepare for this change with any certainty. Virtually no one saw the actual language of the bill until after it was passed. The banking regulations have yet to be discussed, let alone determined. And by waiting to act, Stars has positional advantage in the marketplace. It has the button.

Initial indications were that Stars was going to follow Party and pull out of the US market. I believe that they are rethinking this, and every day that goes by makes it more likely that they will stay, at least until they can see and analyse the banking regulations. To use a poker analogy, they are not slow-rolling. They are doing the math.

[OasisG]

good posts ZBT and sniper. Made me very happy.

[Ali shmali]

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As for this idea that some are saying that Party and everyone else rushed into a decision and Stars is the only one smart enough to take their time, that's ridiculous. Everybody has had months to consult with lawyers and develop contingency plans if this type of legislation goes through.

[/ QUOTE ]

Party, stars, and all the other companies had access to this bill prior to the 30th of September!! Dam, what did they use? a time machine, or a real expensive psychic?. I want one of those.