Rumors have been circulating that PokerStars could enter the regulated New Jersey online poker market as early as October 1st. Amaya Gaming’s purchase of the world’s largest poker site has hastened their potential return to the US market and could help Stars shed the “Bad Actor” tag. But if there’s one thing that threatens to ruin all of the good that’s been done lately for Stars, it’s Americans continuing to play on their site.
As many know, PokerStars made a deal with the US Department of Justice (DoJ) on April 19th, 2011 to stop serving real-money American customers. However, some US residents have used various means (e.g. virtual private networks) to get around Stars’ geographic restrictions.
Obviously the poker site has banned anybody they’ve caught using VPNs or other means to remain in good graces with the DoJ. They’ve also confiscated net winnings from those they catch. However, none of this has been enough of a deterrent to keep certain US players from jumping in Stars’ juicy tournaments and cash games. So now, they’ve proposed a fairly new measure: take players’ entire bankrolls if they’re caught playing for real money! Keep reading to find out more on the policy regarding Americans.
TwoPlusTwo Thread motivates PokerStars to explain Policy
Earlier this month, a TwoPlusTwo poster stated their belief that Stars is “turning a blind eye” towards US players on their site and not taking action. While this prompted many to rip the original poster over starting the thread, it also convinced PokerStars’ Head of PR Michael Josem to explain the site’s policy. As you can see from the excerpt below, the policy changed earlier this year:
In addition, earlier this year, we increased the severity of our punishments because it no longer credible for the vast majority of players to claim that they didn’t know that they can’t play from the US. Our previous policy was, by default, to only confiscate net winnings (except when we were convinced the player was malicious, in which case we would confiscate their whole balance). Over recent months, by default, we have been confiscating the whole balance (except when we are convinced that the player was non-malicious and had no knowledge of this restrictions, in which case we only confiscate net winnings). We made this decision earlier this year, and it this decision has no relationship to any other recent announcements.
Decisions are still based on Facts
PokerStars will not be imposing Draconian punishments without a second thought. All cases of Americans being caught playing for real money are still subject to review. As Josem explained in the thread, decisions are based on “actual facts and evidence, not merely hearsay on the internet.”
But even with this being said, any US resident who’s playing for real money at Stars should definitely stop now for the sake of their bankroll.