In a desperate attempt to get in line with iPoker’s impending policy changes, VC Poker has banned several dominant players from its cash games. Some of the site’s more accomplished winners have been notified via email that their money will no longer buy them a seat outside of tournament play.
Normally, I’d provide some sort of in-depth analysis of this situation, but I think their message pretty much speaks for itself. The email reads as follows:
“If you are not already aware iPoker will be implementing a new policy in the New Year which will categorize players depending upon certain criteria. The new policy will also impose penalties upon card rooms that in essence, have a high proportion of winning players in relation to losing players.
“Regrettably therefore, we are being forced to restrict a number of accounts in order to comply with the new policy and to avoid penalization by iPoker and it grieves me to inform you that we have no option for the time being other than to restrict the cash game stakes at which you can play on Victor Chandler Poker.
“We sincerely regret having to take this action and hope that the policy will change in the future so that you may once again enjoy playing cash games at Victor Chandler Poker. In the meantime, please accept our apologies for any inconvenience that this action will cause but know that you can still play in our tournaments and on any other of the Victor Chandler suite of products.”
So, what’s happening here is this: If you’ve made more withdrawals than deposits, you’re probably on VC’s watch list. iPoker has decided to put their focus back into attracting casual players who, since they are usually losing payers, bring more revenue to the company. Poker rooms on their network who have more winners than losers will be penalized.
This, of course, will mean the end of rakeback. While the company has not officially sanctioned the practice, it continued to exist in many “under the table” skins on the network. This came at a cost to all of iPoker’s other clients who played rakeback-free.
Other notable gaming sites such as Party Poker and Poker Stars have found ways to reward customer loyalty without awarding rakeback. So, while this may at first seem like a desperate move by VC, it is one that will probably strengthen their network in the long run.