back to article Final insult for Full Tilt as Channel Islands kill its licence

The Channel Islands have revoked the gambling licence of Full Tilt Poker, the online gambling firm US prosecutors have accused of being a global Ponzi scheme. Alderney Gambling Control Commission (AGCC), which initially suspended the licence when the FBI closed the site down in the US, said in a statement today: It emerged …

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  1. heyrick Silver badge

    Maybe I'm missing something here...

    ...but how can you be *certain* that an on-line poker is genuine, and not just set up to game you out of your cash? Is there a video feed of your opponents? I only played poker, once, and lost shamefully (!), but one thing I did become aware of is that the game is perhaps more psychology than basic skill. Hence the expression "poker face". Thus, I never really understood how these various online poker sites could work...

    1. Ralthor
      Headmaster

      Trust

      You basically have to trust the site that you are playing with. As an inherently sceptical individual I therefore limit my online forays to the VERY low stakes and the free. Which makes sense as I have no illusions as to my skill at the game. I just like playing.

    2. t_lark

      Re: Maybe I'm missing something here...

      Um, thats why you lost. Skilled poker players are make informed decisions based on the probability of hand improvement ("outs"). Online poker playing is about calculating your risk better than the other players, and taking the long term average rewards. Even face to face tournaments are only weak modulations of the mathematics. Poker is a genuinely boring stats game (fold 9 in 10 hands for example).

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      I think the one thing you can be certain of is that any online gambling site is designed to separate you from your money, it's just a matter of degrees.

    4. Graham Marsden

      "how can you be *certain* that an on-line poker is genuine?"

      There's an old saying: If you sit down at a poker table and you can't spot the sucker, it's you!

    5. Chad H.

      The end user can't be sure.

      Regulators can check that the sum of all player balances = total deposits/bonuses - total rake as it's not like a casino where new money is entered by the house. Player accounts can be checked to ensure no match between staff and players.

  2. Jason Duke
    Holmes

    More FTP News...

    Full Tilt Poker, or rather its assets, have effectively been sold, to Group Bernard Tapie.

    Pokerstrategy broke the news and have been a very reliable source and used by FTP to issue press releases during the ongoing AGCC and DoJ actions.

    https://twitter.com/#!/JasonD/status/119794713783058433

  3. Arnie
    Coat

    Scamming ******

    Really, a poker site run by poker pro's, seriously now did anyone actually think it was legit? Just check out 2+2 those monkey's will side bet on paint drying. FTP a microcosm of the banks perhaps?

  4. big_Jim
    Unhappy

    Liability

    So are the morons at the AGCC, who failed to regulate these conmen, going be liable for the money to the ripped off punters?

    What do you mean No?

    1. Robert Carnegie Silver badge

      What may have actually happened

      Maybe:

      The U.S. government decided that FTP was providing online gambling in the U.S. in a way that would be illegal.

      The U.S. government froze and seized FTP's bank accounts, probably using at!nti-terrorist legislation and treaties.

      The U.S. government forbade FTP to tell its local Channel Island regulator that the U.S. had taken away its money.

      The U.S. government proceeds to denounce and, if eventually necessary, prosecute FTP for gambling, for not having that money because the U.S. government confiscated it, for ponzi, fonzie, and papperami, and for being prosecuted while not actually operating in the U.S. Prosecution seems redundant since the U.S. has already taken their money anyway.

      Are you sure it isn't like that? I'm having to presume some disingenuousness and dishonesty and possible downright corruption in the U.S. government and justice system, but, hey, duh.

      Betting is for suckers. Betting against the U.S. government - particularly so.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "morons ... who failed to regulate these conmen, going be liable for the money to the ripped off punters?"

    When has any so-called regulator actually been held liable for being incompetent?

    The one good thing about so called "light touch" regulation is that you don't waste any money on paying the regulators. Other than that, the companies are largely free to ignore the regulators whichever philosophy/colour is in charge.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Doh

    Well thats what you get for running a Ponzi scheme guys, I have no sympathy at all.

    Whats worse is that they were advertising for jobs a while ago.. !

    AC/DC 6EQUJ5

    1. Robert Carnegie Silver badge

      You're taking the U.S. government's word for it

      about the Ponzi scheme thing.

      They always trashtalk someone that they take down. And, well, Ponzi has an especially bad name since Bernie Madoff got caught, although really it always stinks. So smear some of that on your victim, sure.

      The company has no money is because Obama took it from them. I guess he's holding all the aces.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Meh

    "scheme to rob players"

    Doesn't that pretty much describe all gambling?

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Crooks

    How can anyone expect a gambling organisation not to be crooked?

  9. Will 28

    I really need to get in on this criminal thing

    They seem to make loads of money, get caught rarely, and keep the cash. I mean, how much of this hundreds of millions will actually be reclaimed? I'd settle for a cool 10 mil (easily going to fall through the gaps here), no-one's getting caught, it's seems crime really does pay!

  10. Winkypop Silver badge
    Coat

    Overall, gambling is a losing proposition

    My tip to punters:

    Keep your money in your pocket.

  11. UkForest

    As a player at Full Tilt I've got to say I'm gutted... They had a really nice application and very easy to use. Their "Rush Poker" system was innovative and a joy to play.

    Whilst it's obvious now that they're doggy as hell, I never had a problem withdrawing funds (not that it happened often!)

  12. artwest

    Given a reasonable number of players you have to be really stupid or really greedy to need to be dishonest to make a mint from running an online poker site.

    A cut of the winnings from every hand goes to the operator, so there is a steady income with no risk and comparatively low expenses. Of course Full Tilt did run an enormous amount of TV ads and hired big name players - which can't come cheap - so maybe that was their problem.

  13. Angus Wood
    Meh

    Correction

    You say;

    >... violating the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, which stops illicit gambling outfits from accepting payments.

    The UIGEA doesn't make distinctions between illicit or legitimate gambling sites, it is simply a blanket ban on payment processing for non-USA-domiciled betting. It also has the dodgy distinction of being an act which became law without anyone apart from the sponsor reading the text.

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Re : More FTP News...

    "Full Tilt Poker, or rather its assets, have effectively been sold, to Group Bernard Tapie."

    Is that the same Bernard Tapie that got 500 million euros French government money from his pal Christine Lagarde that's now the head of the IMF ?

    In a deal that kept him from bankruptcy ?

    To mis-paraphrase a good old Yorkshire saying : where there's brass - there's muck.

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