PokerStars was once the global leader in the online poker industry. While that fact still holds true today, the ‘global’ reach isn’t quite what it used to be. Thanks to the poker site’s compliance with new regulations in the UK, PokerStars and its sister-site, Full Tilt, have both elected to withdrawal from a number of jurisdictions labeled as ‘grey markets’.
It wasn’t all that long ago that the United States was considered a grey area, before the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). But being such a lucrative market, most major operators – PokerStars and Full Tilt included – weren’t willing to back out of that jurisdiction. It wasn’t until the ominous Black Friday of Online Poker in 2011, wherein both operations, among others, were effectively shut down by the US Department of Justice, that the online poker industry really began to take notice of regional laws. PokerStars certainly doesn’t want to tread those tumultuous waters again, and to remain an active member of the UK online poker community, exiting current ‘grey markets’ is being viewed as a necessity.
PokerStars announced its intentions to no longer serve certain jurisdictions via a message in the poker client that appeared to anyone physically located in any affected territory. “Our management team regularly reviews our operation along with independent 3rd party professionals to assess the business risk and opportunities for our brand on a market-by-market basis,” the missive read. “Following our most recent review, it was determined that we would no longer offer real money games in your country.”
A complete list of the regions that PokerStars and Full Tilt no longer accept players from has not yet been provided, but known jurisdictions include the following African, Asian and Middle Eastern areas: Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Malaysia, Nigeria, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Vatican City.
There were some notable exceptions to the list of grey markets these poker sites will no longer be servicing, the most significant of which is Canada. Amaya Gaming, owner of Rational Group, which controls both PokerStars and Full Tilt, is headquartered in Canada. That may have something to do with the choice to remain operational in that North American country, despite the new UK online poker regulations. Amaya has made it clear that the company remains committed to serving Canadian online poker players and is actively seeking a route to licensure in Quebec.
Jurisdictions that receive the ‘grey market’ label are those that do not specifically prohibit online poker games, but do not license and regulate them, either. If online poker is not legal, nor expressly illegal, it generally falls into a grey area of the law. Therefore Canadian provinces that do not enforce a regulatory framework for online poker – as well as all of the other territories the operators are pulling out of (listed above) – are considered grey markets.
Fortunately for members of the PokerStars and Full Tilt online poker sites who reside in the newly departed markets, all are being given ample time to request a full withdrawal of their account balances; “at their convenience”. Additionally, players from affected regions have the option of spending accumulated FPP and/or tournament dollars (ostensibly because those rewards are not considered ‘real money’) before they close out their accounts.