I can see the this thread is badly moderated and it has probably outplayed its use since I am posting this on page 5079. Still I want to make a statement in here. There is no use in name-calling, like "rigtard", as it would be easy for me to call someone a gambling-addict, blind, in denial etc. in return, but that does not make our points valid in here.
For starters, iPoker is one of the largest distributors of poker-software in the world and they did not pass tests that were done by "Online Poker Watchdog":
http://www.ispokerrigged.com/
Still they pass the tests of the companies that are hired by them self.
Further more, the "law" can do NOTHING about online-poker. They are located in areas of the world were no one can touch them. Even if they had to shut down, so what. Start a new company and just go at it again. Selling access to a computer-website can be done from a basement. Its not that difficult.
Take "Cake Entertainment N.V." that delivers poker-software for ComeOn!, among others. They do not even pay out the winnings to the players. What does ComeOn! do about this? Well, they simply alter their "terms and conditions" and let people keep playing anyway, even if it means that bough ComeOn! and Cake is stealing money, not just the rake, right out of peoples pockets. Just look at condition 2.39 wich they have hidden under the bonus-section:
"2.39 Currently ComeOn is unable to accept withdrawals deriving from poker winnings until Cake Entertainment N.V. settles such winnings to Come On Curacao N.V. Poker winnings which are equal or less than the total amount that the player has deposited during the last 30 days from the day the withdrawal request has been made shall however be accepted. Poker winnings which exceed the total amount that the player has deposited during the last 30 days from the day the withdrawal request has been made shall be subject to Cake Entertainment N.V. settling funds to Come On Curacao N.V. and hence shall be cancelled until further notice. If you have any questions please contact our customer support, support(at)comeon.com."
https://www.comeon.com/terms/
This has gone on for over a year and "the law" or the players has done nothing about it. This poker-site and their software-distributor is stealing money from players every day. Don't you wonder how that is possible?
Yes, there are too many bad beats online. The strange thing though is not the bad beat them self. Its that fact that thousands of players tell the same story of winning in the beginning when signing up at a new place. After a little while they suddenly start to lose endlessly. It seems like they get people hooked and give new players the same treatment. Do players out there suddenly lose all of their skill and luck over night? Probably not. There is something else in play here, and "bad beats" do not cover it. Even professional players can tell that this is nonsense:
http://www.onlinepoker.net/poker-new...op-winner/6801
Understand that the cards can be fixed in any way you want. Its a software-program. There is no end to the possibilities, and they got the best programmers in the world. Do you think that there are too many people involved for this to be done? The fact is that the online-sites we players sign up for are not the ones that actually create the software or handle the payments. They are just the facade. They know very little of the integrity of the software they pull in costumers to use. In fact, they know nothing about it.
It is obvious that the software "babysit" certain players. Which players? Well, I figure that the largest stacks in tournaments win about 8 out of 10 hands, often in the most ridiculous way. They can mostly call with ANYTHING and they will win. The Ipoker-test proved this to be the case. Why would they do this? To simply end tournaments quicker. More rake. For every minute a tournament lasts longer, these companies miss out on their turnover. Rake is how they make their money, and they make tons of it.
Ending tournaments quicker will have a major impact on their turnover. Call one of the largest stacks when you are the chip-underdog online and I will promise you that you mostly do not stand a chance. I have seen so much nonsense in tournaments that my eyes hurt, and there is no end to how is just "works out" for the largest stacks over and over. I also know this because I have also been the largest stack endless times and, oh boy, am I "lucky" on almost every single hand I call. I win 80% no matter what I call with as long as I call the smallest stacks. Rigged? Well, its a bit obvious for me to say otherwise.
Seeing how this online-nonsense is "integrity-controlled" by incompetent online-companies, they will never get busted. Consequences for breaking the law is, on the other hand, not a threat to these people either. They swim in money. Large companies break the law EVERY day worldwide and because of their wealth and lawyers, they slip away from the law without any problem. They know all the tricks in the book. "The law"... please. What laws? In which country?
Making the poker-site attractive to new and old players is done by making poker what poker is for most players, namely gambling. The more action and the more large pots they can give the players, the more the addicts will keep playing. Do you think any good poker-players sign up for "hyper turbo"-tournaments where 90% of the hands are all in-bingo? No. Still, they make a fortune on these tournaments. Addicts love them and they have nothing to do with skill. Its a bingo-lottery.
You have to understand this, it's not the pro's that keep these sites alive, its the addicts. There are millions more of them then those who know the game. These "fishes" will not question the integrity as long as they get the gambling-experience they want. Playing "slow" and realistic poker will not give them that. They need the rigged software/online/computer-version of poker to get their kicks, and they do. That is why online poker is like a casino. Leave odds and skills at the door, and throw your money on the table. The rest is up to the "gods of luck", which in this case is the poker-software.
I do not think that this is rigged in favor of anyone else than the owner of the software. Whatever makes them more money, they will do. End tournaments quick and make action around the cash-game tables where the addict play every day. That's how you get paid in this industry. Which addict bets and which addict wins is not important. The only thing that matters to these criminals is that players win/lose fast and bet often. Rake, rake, rake... I guess we can all agree on that.
Now, how can a claim of rigging be proven? I do not think it can. Looking at the hands that are dealt each player is useless. The cards you start with is not important online. Its the community-cards that matter and they decide if your cards are worth anything. 7-2 unsuited can make a lovely house. It can even make a winning flush, and online this seems so easy its a joke. So, showing my hand history from the countless poker-sites I have played will probably not help. No one will sit and analyze my over 100.000 hands and see how they are played out against other hands. My many screen-shots can easily be discarded as "variance".
The fact is that most hands that are needed to sum up my claim, are not even mine. You mostly see how this nonsense play out for other players also. You simply need to PLAY and experience online poker to suddenly realize that this is pure garbage and not random at all. Then you start to test out your suspicion over time and many will then get more certain that this is nonsense.
The software can give out any two cards it wants to the players and these can be "integrity-controlled" statistically, but the community-cards is how they give the game action and speed. These five cards is what controls the whole game, not the two cards on each players hand. I have no doubt that uncovering the scam that I am almost certain that online-poker is, has to be done through looking at the table-cards. For this to happen, you have to see inside the software and no player will ever get in that position.
Try to ask the site you are registered at HOW they control the game and what tests they do to see that this is truly random. They will not answer. The fact is that they do not even know. They just stick the "integrity controlled"-sticker on their web-page and sell the poker-software forward to you. And who does these tests? Companies that are hired by the same software-distributor that signs their paycheck. Trustworthy!
One person wrote online: "Try the free Facebook-poker and you will see what a RNG (Random Number Generator) really should look like". He has a strong and valid point. So, we have to decide for our self if this is rigged or not. As someone who has played in real life for 20 years and online for 5 years, I am certain this is pure garbage, so call me a "rigtard". I will just call you a blind addict in return and there we go...
Last edited by LiamH; 04-25-2015 at 09:20 AM.