The owners of Planet Poker have decided to call it a day, citing the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act as their reason for closing the virtual doors of a pioneer in online poker. From March 31 a site which claims to be the first to offer poker online will cease to offer real money games.
In a notice on the site this week, management advised players:
“Planet Poker, the longest running and most trusted Internet cardroom, will be suspending real money operations effective 31 March 2007. Management sincerely regrets making this decision but it has become impossible for a small cardroom to properly service their customers due to the changes caused by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in the U.S.
“Planet Poker, as part of the United Poker Network, will continue to support “play for fun” poker for existing Planet Poker players with the other participants in the United Poker Network.
“Planet Poker customers can rest assured that their funds are safe and secure as they have been for the past 9 years. Customers will receive a variety of emails, announcements and transfer offers providing information on how to cashout.”
Describing itself as “a small cardroom” is seen by many industry observers as being the root cause of Planet’s departure from the real money scene. Many believe that the operation failed to exploit its pioneering advantage by expanding as the poker phenomenon was taking off, and that it could have cornered a substantial chunk of the business that is today held by later but more savvy arrivals such as PokerStars and Party Poker.
Other early starters that have not done well in more recent times include Delta Poker and Paradise Poker, the latter recently merged into the Boss Media network by owners Sportingbet.
Planet Poker’s customers should note the following information given by management:
a. Effective 23 March 2007, Planet Poker will cease accepting real money deposits. Players may continue to play at the real money games through to 31 March.
b. Planet has made arrangements with another cardroom to enable players to transfer their balances and continue playing online poker. Details can be found by clicking the TRANSFER NOW button in the Planet Poker Lobby. There will be no charge for the transfer of funds.
c. Should players choose to cashout, the regular cashout options remain available through P$e-Cash. Planet will endeavour to cashout funds as quickly as possible but due to restrictions imposed by processors, it may take up to four weeks for players to receive their funds through their preferred method.
d. Players that wish to convert their funds to free play token chips to continue playing at the free play whales tables and tournaments may do so.
e. On the 31st of March, Planet Poker will take down all real money games. Players using the Planet Poker game client will be able to continue to play free games and free tournaments. Players will be still be able transfer their funds to another cardroom until 10 April 2007 and to access P$e Cash to request a cashout until 30 April 2007.
f. After 30 April 2007, access to P$e-Cash will be removed and players will be required to contact the management via email to initiate a cashout.
g. Starting on 1 May 2007, on the first of each month, a $10 per month account service fee will be applied to accounts that still contain real money. It is noted that this service fee can be avoided completely if players take action by 30 April 2007 to transfer their funds to another cardoom, convert their real money to free play chips or initiate a cashout.
The company appears to want to retain players’ interest, perhaps indicating an optimistic view of the future. The notice concludes with the following words:
“Planet Poker will be expanding the fun play game and tournament structures and encourages you to come back often.
“We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all our players for their patronage and loyalty over the past nine years of operations. As on-line poker enters a new era, we wish you all the best of luck. We hope to return to real money operations when the U.S. government declares online poker legal and players from around the planet can play the game they love in the comfort of their own home without fear of financial or legal challenge.”