Online poker players in the United Kingdom have been aware for months now that there could be some major changes to their internet gaming accessibility. The majority of poker sites that accept UK players are licensed outside of the region, mostly in tax havens like Gibraltar. As of October 1st, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) will require those operators to carry a UK license if they wish to continue accepting local players. But what many didn’t realize was that they would lose access to some very popular features; namely the ability to customize their settings for automatic re-buys and chip top-ups during play.
According to the UKGC’s regulations, auto re-buys and top-ups are not permitted at online poker sites licensed in the United Kingdom. That tidbit of information didn’t come to the surface until it was mentioned by PokerStars in an email addressing the impending launch of PokerStars UK. On October 1st, all players logging into the poker site from the region will be redirected to the new website, presumably PokerStars.co.uk, and prompted to download and install the region-specific software, which will not include those popular in-play features.
In response to this generally new found knowledge, players have banded together in an effort to get the UK’s online gambling regulations altered. A brief petition has been authored by Richard Richardson, who explained the situation in a post on the Two Plus Forums and is accepting suggested revisions in preparation for submission to Jenny Williams, Commissioner and Chief Executive of the Gambling Commission. The petition requests that the UKGC:
Please allow poker sites regulated by the UK for the first time to continue
– automated rebuys in rebuy tournaments
– automatic top up of cash game table stakes
According to section 14 of the Remote Technical Standard (RTS 14), “Gambling products must not actively encourage customers to chase their losses, increase their stake or increase the amount they have decided to gamble, or continue to gamble after they have indicated that they wish to stop.” As a direct example of that rule, RTS 14 states, “the amount of funds taken into a product should not be topped up without the customer choosing to do so on each occasion, e.g. when a customer buys-in at a poker table they should have to choose to purchase more chips to play at the table – automatic re-buys should not be provided”.
Online poker players are arguing that omitting the automatic re-buy and top-up features will directly and negatively impact their strategy on the virtual felt. Richardson said it would leave them at a “significant disadvantage”, especially when “compared to the non UK players who do not face this complication.”
At a cash game, the automatic top-up feature will keep a player’s stack size at the same standard level anytime their chip stack falls below the original buy-in rate. Thus they are able to make larger wagers when the situation calls for it, while also being able to play multiple tables without the interruption of having to manually top up their chip stack.
Online gaming advocate Martin Shapiro, who contributes to the Two Plus Two forums as “PokerXanadu”, chimed in on the situation with a few tips for the petition. He suggested that the appeal specifically state, “Auto top-ups in poker cash games are a method [for players] to maintain a level wagering fund for optimum game strategy, and not in themselves auto-wagering within the game.”