Except for the occasional big crooked online issue usually involving millions of dollars that makes it to the media, you wouldn't even know a regulatory body even exists for online gaming in all its different forms.

Fee agreements and rubber stamp licenses are and always were the way online gaming operated and still do.

It's 2014 and you people are actually talking as if your surprised about no response.

There might be a bunch of regulations for online gaming written some where, but you could be certain there is absolutely no regulation enforcement taking place nor has there ever been.

The only chance of not getting screwed playing online is playing at a known reputable site. (of course until they go rogue) But after that consideration you're playing at your own risk and always have been.

No online regulation and no online regulation enforcement is old and worn out news. Either most here are newbies or are living under a rock.

thats what ppl said about FT before BF and look what happened there?

FTP had also business in France with a french licence. Guess what happend when they crushed? Right, nothing.
French players didn't get their money until PS took over.

Government authorities or similar bodies are only interested to pull in money. To protect players and their deposits is not in their interest.

Sad but true.

Im still owed close to 6 figures by PIV and Muchos Poker and I have emailed the LGA multiple times. Absolutely nothing was done in the matter. Please do not consider being a LGA licensee has any remote value, and if you are still playing on Muchos Poker, get the hell out of there if you can get your money by any miracle.

UPDATE

I've been contacted by the LGA apologizing for not responding sooner to my previous 6 e-mails, and asking for some simple information (birthdate, passport, amount owed, etc..).

They also included, "For an investigation to be conducted on your behalf the above information is required to identify you, kindly forward this information to complaints@lga.org.mt by 19th March 2014. If you do not respond by 19th March 2014 the Authority will assume you do not wish to proceed with your complaint, the LGA Complaint file will be closed."

Less than 4 hours later, I received this email from info@pivgame.com:


"Dear Mr. Lefort,

We confirm that that you have a balance of €8314 in your account which has resulted from winnings on the Cake Poker Network and Mergegaming network. These Poker networks are outside the Maltese jurisdiction and consequently, do not fall within the competency or responsibility of the Lotteries and Gaming Authority of Malta. We, therefore, kindly request that you do not involve the Gaming Authority of Malta in your requests for payment and instead direct your communications to the following email: info@pivgame.com

In the meantime, we would like to assure you that PIV Game is continuously working on finding a solution to respect its obligations.

Yours sincerely,

PIV Game Ltd
Management"


I think it's pretty obvious that this thread got some traction and is causing at least some sort of motion within PIV and the LGA. I have no idea on what level these two entities interact and/or what their relationship is like, but I think it's pretty clear that we need to continue this momentum and keep pressuring the LGA. The PIV e-mail is clearly a cop-out and hopefully a futile attempt at getting me to close the LGA complaint and stop giving PIV such bad publicity. (Remember.. they have a fancy new website that seems to imply they are functioning as a poker platform in some shape or form.)

In addition to this, I'm in the process of pursuing legal action. I can't comment further on this but if and when I can, I will offer as much information as possible.

Good work, Lefort. Keep up the pressure. I assume you will respond in time to the LGA to go forward with the complaint.

While the PIV email is an obvious dodge, I think the LGA email may be a not so obvious dodge. Besides threatening to close the complaint, it looks to me like they may be working in concert with PIV, given the coincident timing with the PIV email. I would certainly email them the requested info, but also call them immediately after to confirm receipt so that they can't claim they never got it and close the case.

As to the PIV dodge, they are licensed by the LGA (under Pokerinvenice Ltd). Regardless of where you earned the money (Cake, Merge), if PIV now holds your funds, they are answerable to their regulator for the matter.

PIV only shows the LGA license on their website. Would they not also have to show the Curacao (lol) license for the other skins? It's kind of deceiving players to only show the LGA logo.

Since LGA seems to be talking to you now, maybe they can clarify if licensee's can commit fraud on non-LGA licensed poker networks while still having a licensed poker site through LGA on a different network?

It said on all PIV skins when you downloaded the poker clients of Enet, Ideal, Merge and Revolution that you were no longer under LGA. They could have shown the Curacao seal yes, but they did infact tell players that it was not under LGA license.

I love how you've been hammering at them for 6 months, sending 6 emails and making 10 phone calls to try and get a reply. Then, when they finally do respond, they say "send us a load of info within a week or the case is closed."

received this email a few days ago, i have just responded to them, but this is the first sign of contact from them regarding my case:

Dear Mr x

I am writing to acknowledge receipt of your e-mail dated 18th September and 29th November: we do apologise for not responding earlier.

· Are you a player or affiliate

· Registered Address

· Screenshot of Balance or any pending Cash outs


For an investigation to be conducted on your behalf the above information is required to identify you, kindly forward this information to complaints@lga.org.mt by 20th March 2014.

If you do not respond by 20th March 2014 the Authority will assume you do not wish to proceed with your complaint, the LGA Complaint file will be closed.

Yours truly,


Frances Blenheim

Lol@taking 5 months to reply and then asking for a response within a week.

haha well yeah they have actually taken 14 months to reply considering i emailed them 4 months after i withdrew 18 months ago but yeah i only get 1 week to reply before my money goes dead lol

I get the same message after 6 months. Do you think they acctually gonna do something with that? I heard that they susspended PIV licence in November, but I dont know nothing about present sittuation. Please, anyone who gets this mail keep updating about any progress in this case.

Even if they confirm receipt they will put you back on ignore.

I have money on Everleaf or actually Everleaf has taken my money and set up another network with different licensing.

Anyway after many months of emailing LGA I received the same request with a short deadline for info I had already sent them. They then ignored all subsequent emails. The only purpose of this request is to get as many cases off their books as they can. I imagine they will then point to the number of cases "resolved".

Any likelihood that we can pressure pokerstars to do anything? Not sure what they could really do but they have always been on the up and up and making a stink about them being licensed by a fraudulent organization might help publicize the issue at least.

They haven't replied since i emailed them back with the information i had 7 days to provide.

SHOCK

I didn't get any answer either, but I noticed one interesting thing. They closed Tempura Poker in the last days. After I get an email from them I tried to log in and this site still worked, but today there is only a picture of a dead fish. For people who don't know what Tempura Poker is, I remind that PIV, under the threat that they will delete all your bankroll, offer a transfer from Howdy Poker (in my case, for ohers they could be different sites) to Tempura Poker. On Tempura you had to make 75% of your bankroll and then, maybe they will cash out your money. I make about 50% of this and after that, they blocked my acount, explaining that this offer is not contributed with LGA legislations (LOL).

I have sent this PM today to the 30 pokerstars reps registered on 2+2:

So I obv responded and sent in a formal complaint by the deadline. Yesterday I get this email.


"Dear Carlson

As you have not replied to the above mentioned e-mail it appears the matter you raised in your complaint with Poker In Venice Ltd has since been resolved or you do not wish to proceed.

Therefore I wish to advise this complaint case is now closed.

LGA welcomes enquiries and complaints as a method of indicating areas that may require attention but we also exercise a pro-active programme of systems reviews in order to be vigilant with regard to the service provided by our licensees.

Yours sincerely,

Frances Blenheim"

Amazing how incompetent LGA seems to be. I responded that my email was sent and also forwarded it to them again. ;(

LoL at anybody who thinks that Stars should offer a perspective on having an LGA license for their .eu operations.

Pull your heads out of your asses. Why would you single out and ask explanations from one company when they basically just have gotten the LGA rubber stamp license mostly for compliance.

And lol at a person with so much experience as you, Xanadu, thinking the same thing.

grow up

PokerStars has a lot more clout in the online gambling industry, to influence the actions and direction of the LGA, than you or I. No reason not to try to get them involved, seeing as their licensing under the LGA is a de facto endorsement of the validity the LGA, regardless of their reason to seek such a license.

I don´t have any influence in iGaming btw. I´m not saying that they cannot help, but the tone of how they have to help because they need and have the rubber stamp license is funny.

Do you actively check not to use/consume anything produced in Asia because of otherwise de facto endorsing child labor? Do you kill your own food because otherwise you´re de facto endorsing bad treament of animals? etc

They don't need the rubber stamp from Malta. They got one because they want to offer tax-free gambling in the EU and saw it as a potential bridge for shared cross-border liquidity with regulated EU markets.

Rational has huge clout and is a big client to the LGA. Players absolutely have the right to ask PokerStars on their thoughts on the failures of one of its regulators.

After Full Tilt's failures, PokerStars went on record saying that wanted the French regulatory authority ARJEL to require licensees like itself to ring fence player funds. ARJEL subsequently made that change to the regulations.

So yes, they have clout, and yes players absolutely should expect licensees to go on record condoning or condemning their regulators.

Thanks for educating. It´s def interesting.

I feel I would have a different opinion if Stars only had a license from LGA.

The FTP and ARJEL thing, should one take it as they truly cared about players or as a move to shut out operators who cannot survive without going into players´ pockets?

received this back from LGA:

Dear ....

I write to you with reference to your complaint regarding Poker In Venice Limited.

The Lotteries and Gaming Authority (hereinafter the ‘Authority’) hereby informs you that all the requested and necessary documentation has been received and that such are currently being processed and shall be utilised to investigate your claim by the Authority and/or any other competent entity.

The Authority shall communicate to you the outcome of your complaint and any possible investigation once such are concluded.

Regards,

Frances Blenheim