The events on that bleak day of Black Friday 2011 have resulted to many online gambling players to lose trust over the services rendered by these entertainment companies. Black Friday was the name given to the event which led to the removal of licenses of three huge poker sites due to violations of the law which was not released to the public.
To avoid that same fate to happen again toward loyal players, this 2012 the top priority of the online poker room operators would be to protect their customers. The Black Friday resulted to losses in the side of the players as funds belonging to the customers were frozen and up to this day the players had not received their money back.
PokerStars, one of the big poker companies that got tangled up with Black Friday initiated the plans to protect their customers. They had created the so-called PokerStars Protection Plan which intended to put funds held by the company’s French players under the watchful eye of the firm IFG Group that rendered international financial services. The scheme would work this way: A Financial Services Authority-regulated fund manager would ensure that the online poker company would have enough funds to repay all the money owed to players at any given time.
PokerStars and other leading internet poker operators had agreed upon to, “Secure player accounts and the integrity of the industry because these are fundamental to our success in the future.” PokerStars even promised that these newly regulated markets will follow shortly, such as in Italy Spain and Belgium in lieu of the Protection Plan they had created for players across the continent.
The poker companies affected by the Black Friday, those that had witnessed that event as well as the industry observers believed that the protection of the players was the right thing to do. Many believed that the others would also follow suit with a protection plan, with similar methods much like the one PokerStars built. It was also perceived that in the future national licensing authorities like the Nevada Gaming Commission and the Alderney Gambling Control Commission would most likely insist that an online gambling company applying for a license must have the same protection plan where the full amount of customer’s funds be put in a fully segregated, independently managed accounts. This would prevent the Black Friday aftermath where many players had their money frozen in their accounts, unable to be withdrawn.
Many new markets in Europe had sprouted since the news from the DOJ allowing internet gambling and this had expanded opportunities for the online poker and gambling business. A source said, “Now is certainly an optimal time to launch initiatives like this that will protect player funds. Not only does it give greater security to players, but it encourages mutual trust between players and operators as well.”
[Source: Online Casino Reports]
