When a company gets so big and powerful that they think customers will gladly sign away their privacy in such a potentially broad manner with no offer of prior compensation is the definition of arrogance imo.

Online poker is built on the option to stay under the radar if one chooses. My kids go to private school and I don't want their teachers knowing that I play online poker. Does anyone at Pokerstars understand why I take this position?

Steve,

Is the real reason for this change to dissuade ppl from Multi-Accounting this tournament? (i.e. av0id another thev0id situation)

Even if it isn't Stars, should definitely cite the integrity of the game, etc. as the primary reason for this clause instead of just this is how we are choosing to promote it if you don't like it don't play.

How so? seems to me like this would encourage people who don't want the attention to use another account. Maybe I could even get on team online under my new name appleyjer.

I could easily be confused by this, but... come FT time someone has to be the name/face of the account. If I put in 6 accounts, it would be pretty hard to be the name and face of account #5 being as I'm already linked to my actual account.

I am just trying to find a reason for Stars to implement this type of policy for this one tournament, basically out of thin air. And obviously the reasons they give are hard to believe (at best).

If the big concern is a lack of anonymity after winning a lot of money (for whatever reason), surely offering financial compensation is the last thing that will persuade the doubters to register? If you're passing up the opportunity to play for $2m or whatever it is, how would a $20k package be an adequate solution to the problem?

WCOOP ME 2015 will probably have a live day 2 in a dodgy city with all players given their payouts in cash on the day.

definitely playing WCOOP ME in 2015 if this is the case.

Well above stakes I usually play, but the lack of acknowledgement of what this could do to player safety is very concerning.

In some countries if you out players names and faces it would be the same as they have testified against the mafia. Are you going to provide them with security? It may seem a bit paranoid, but things have happened with famous poker players even in countries with low crime rate.
The most absurd part is that I really see one positive effect of this, but it was never mentioned by the stars rep in this thread.

After Black Friday I was really glad that Stars continued to play things cool and to care about their costumers, although they had no competition. Now with re-entries, PSKO rake and this, I don't see a bright future for online poker.

I probably won't play it but not because of a boycott. However I think it is arrogant of pokerstars to decide to in effect change the rules of online poker. If it is for one tournament or 1000 it does not make it right. Obviously owning
fulltilt also stars has a stranglehold on online poker. So pretty much you guys are doing what you want. I think in this spot pokerstars are being bullies. As for saying it is for just one tournament obviously if it works out well then it will become more than one tournament. Pokerstars has a monopoly so can be as arrogant as they like and no matter what anyone says they won't change their mind. Welcome to globalization

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-gl...ation_movement

seems worth mentioning that players who have the "allow registration without showing buyin dialogue" option checked will not even see this message so a decent number of satelite winners have already qualified and agreed to these stupid conditions without having been given the opportunity to even read them.

Stars can't possibly think they'll be able to enforce this if the winner (or any player whose identity they decide to out to the world) is unwilling to cooperate.

Well said. your quote is good. The players ALL provide the prizepool, pokerstars does not add ONE PENNY to it and takes fees for providing the service. So who the **** are they to say you will have been well rewarded. That is down to the players buying in. Every person who enters contributes to the overall winners prize, surely a player who buys in has more rights to the winners publicity than pokerstars. Pure vulturism

They can't use 1 year because it will be problem for them to promote that exact winner after that time. You know.. after 5 years they make an ad and/or blog post and there are the names and stories of the last 5 winners. It should be problem.

You want to make the WCOOP ME bigger but how much bigger you can get? You already have the biggest online MTT out there and be happy about it. If nothing changes for the upcoming years WCOOP ME will still be on top. Don't be greedy. You can't make and promote Pokerstars WCOOP Main Event with lets say $20 million for the winner. There is a limit and it's just not going to happen. So it's about making this MTT bigger but it seems like its for getting new promotional materials for free.

We live in a world where everyone is abusing people's privacy and other people are fighting against it. It's simple - Don't abuse people's privacy!

Also I agree with most of the users here who post their concerns and have the right to do so.

That would suck. #nubz

Gio,

I concur that a specified 1 year on the rights is difficult but there is further wording that goes into these statements. I was suggesting they get to market the hell out of that person who wins or those people with make the FT for fair compensation in return for the opportunity to use these people as promotional equipment. After 1 year this compensation stops but they still control the rights to say, one specific image (similar to a team pro avatar) and to use their name coupled with their S/N in perpetuity regarding WCOOP promotions only.

Such as: John "Pokergod8329702938" Smith Winner of WCOOP 2014 *insert avatar image here* <---done in 2020

Saying they control it and can give it to 3rd parties without your consent is going a long way.

I understand that when you have a pop up message you aren't going to give a 5 page legal agreement there, very very few people read a full T&C/ToS statement anymore. Stars could also send a formal email to their client base containing an explanation of why the change has been made and what the legal ramifications are.

Pretty much this. Don't see how this can be overlooked.

As someone who values my anonymity online, I would have to think long and hard before I would agree to these terms and conditions, especially so in the case of a tournament where I would really want to remain anonymous.

This is a good point that also concerns me.

[QUOTE=raidalot;43585590]Steve,

I can see the objectives you're trying to achieve. Of course you're acting in the interests of Pokerstars, not "Poker" (yes, the two are different!) but to some degree player and site interests overlap so that's fine. However, you're going about it in the wrong way. Please consider:

(1) Some players will be pleased with publicity if they ft the event, others will be very uncomfortable (whether for personal, tax, safety or whatever other reasons). The reasonable approach is simply to ask the winners for their permission after the event. Perhaps even offer an incentive at that time if you're particularly keen.

(2) As far as I'm aware no other poker/sportsbook/gaming site has ever published players' real names. Even major lotteries give winners the choice to remain anonymous (after, not before, they win!).

(3) For many people the size of the win would be transformative for their lives and they need time to fully consider the implications of going public. That can't be done properly via a pop up message when regging for the event especially when, lets face it, most people don't read those anyway (and many will assume its just the standard ft replay message).

(4) Pokerstars has always refused to out cheaters on its site, to publish even their screennames, on the basis that its regulator/EU privacy laws prevent it. However, here you seem happy to do so. Please explain why you see it as reasonable and within your authority to do it here but not to have a similar permission from players when they join the site which allows you to publish their sn if they're DQ'd for cheating.

(5) WCOOP main is "the" online poker event of the year, the closest online equivalent to the WSOP ME. Saying players can simply choose not to play if they don't like our terms feels a bit like abuse of monopoly.[/QUOTE

This, very well said. I'm also sure that if they're able to go with it for this particular tournament, they will obviously do the same for other Big online series and huge tournament in the future, that is scary.

Agree +1 a player should not have to be forced to have their name out their if they win an online poker tournament.

Johannes Strassmann is missing in Slovenia. Now it's not 100% sure this has anything to do with poker but I'd estimate the chances are actually pretty high. The threat people speak of is not just some illusory thing, it's definitely a real possibility especially in a lot of the countries that the majority of players these days are from.

I guess it's better for me if regs choose to sit this one out bc of the conditions but it honestly seems pretty dumb on Stars' part (shrug)

+1 I thought of this thread when reading that story.

yeah and there already have been several cases where people were targeted because of their poker results being public. home invasions/robberies/attempted kidnappings/laptops being stolen/hacking etc.

I suspect this is part of the reason they cracked down on tracking sites like PTR.

+1 to this

+1

Let's be serious. If you're grinding MTTc you were never going to amount to anything anyway.

My soul is one thing im willing to sell for a milly.