Anybody who follows the online poker industry knows one thing is certain –that changes are unavoidable and what’s here today may be gone tomorrow.
Recent happenings at industry leader PokerStars are a prime example. Rake increases, the introduction of Spin & Gos, and a software upgrade are just a few new developments at the world’s top poker site. Not to mention [geolink href=”https://www.usafriendlypokersites.com/amaya-acquisition-signal-return-pokerstars-us/”]an ownership change[/geolink] over the summer in a blockbuster $4.9 billion deal.
Taken further and examining the global industry as a whole, we see that a trend has been emerging for quite some time that finds poker rooms making life better for recreational players. An entire shift is currently underway to attract casual online poker players, as opposed to the multi-tabling grinders who rarely deposit and turn profits regularly.
That trend began with Bodog/Bovada’s Recreational Poker Model implemented a few years ago, which has seemingly led to a complete change in the way that poker room operators do business. Whether the change is for the better will emit two very different responses from both online pros and the casual players who make up the player pools of poker rooms.
Changes in U.S.
The biggest changes that have affected U.S. online poker players occurred in 2006 and 2011. The former saw the UIGEA become law, chasing a number of major poker sites out of the U.S. market and making deposits at poker rooms more difficult. The latter shocked the industry when the DoJ seized the domains of the top poker rooms that still catered to U.S. players.
Another big change is currently underway that began last year when three states launched regulated online poker after their respective state legislatures approved. More changes are on the way as additional states are expected to do likewise in coming years, with estimates placing the [geolink href=”https://www.usafriendlypokersites.com/igaming-in-20-states-by-2020/”]possibility of 20 states offering legal online poker by the year 2020[/geolink].
The biggest question a majority of U.S. players are asking themselves is whether or not their state will become a regulated online poker state, and if not, will the current online poker options available still be around to service the part of the U.S. market that is not fully regulated?
Of course, nobody has a crystal ball to see how the situation will play itself out, but chances are quite good that players in the U.S. will always find reliable poker sites to play at whether or not regulation comes to their home state. The attempts by U.S. authorities to put the kibosh on the unregulated online poker market in both 2006 and 2011 slowed things down and effected change, but certainly did not stop players in the U.S. from playing by any means.
All is well in 2014
[geolink href=”https://www.usafriendlypokersites.com”]U.S. online poker sites[/geolink] are doing quite well at the moment. Players have a bunch of reliable options at the likes of Americas Cardroom, Full Flush Poker, Carbon Poker, Black Chip Poker and Bovada.The above sites are loaded with American players who like the situation as it stands now, providing safe places to play online poker. The poker rooms mentioned also have enough liquidity to allow for an adequate selection of game choices.
Though nobody has taken a poll, it’s a good bet that a large number of current U.S. players like things just fine as they are now and are hoping that regulation is prolonged as far ahead into the future as possible. The online poker industry is constantly evolving and smart players are aware that they have to be prepared for whatever changes may come, but a shift to regulation in the U.S. in the slow state-by-state fashion that is crawling along now is certainly not embraced by everyone.
