Why Choose Regulated Poker Over Unregulated Poker

Written By Steve Ruddock on November 19, 2013Last Updated on September 13, 2022
Regulated vs unregulated online poker US

Regulated online poker will offer US players a host of improvements including quicker withdrawal times, enhanced oversight and transparency, along with the assurance that their money is protected and secure.

In this article, I’ll present arguments to persuade US players to embrace regulated online poker platforms and shun unregulated ones. If you’re undecided or finding it difficult to leave your current unregulated online poker room, I encourage you to continue reading.

Reason #1 — Oversight

Thanks to the legalization and regulation of online poker, US online poker players can now rely on their state regulatory bodies for accountability. These regulatory bodies, in turn, have to answer to the elected officials in their respective states.

The increased trust in live casinos in the United States regarding the safety of your money and the fairness of their games is due to the added layers of oversight. These same protections will now also apply to online casinos and poker rooms.

Playing at a licensed, regulated online poker site eliminates the need to worry about the integrity of the regulatory bodies protecting your money. You no longer have to fear that they might be merely a “fly-by-night” offshore organization set up in a distant location. These regulatory bodies often depend on the same companies they oversee for survival, with some individuals like Kahnawake’s Joe Norton even owning stakes in the poker rooms they are meant to regulate!

Reason #2 — Transparency

Regulated online poker rooms not only have more reputable and legitimate oversight, but they also provide greater transparency. Patrons can access information ranging from licensing details and company management structure to the breakdown of their rake structure. This level of disclosure is now mandated by law.

With the introduction of legitimate licensing requirements demanding transparency for online poker rooms, the possibility of unscrupulous individuals concealing their presence within a company’s infrastructure, or hiding their involvement via a shell company, has become a thing of the past.

Online poker players will not experience any more “October Surprises”.

This transparency also stops companies from utilizing player funds to cover other operational costs. Safeguards have been established that mandate regular audits and dictate how a company manages player funds.

Reason #3 — Improved Payment Processing

A regulated online poker market will bring about immediate and noticeable improvements, particularly in the speed at which withdrawals are processed and the safety of the funds in your online account.

US online poker players will no longer endure the stress of waiting for weeks or months for a check to arrive or worry about the check being printed on rubber paper. From now on, when a deposit is made at an online poker room, the value of your money will not immediately depreciate (as is the case with some unregulated sites where players sell their account balances for a fraction of their worth) and it will not be tied up for extended periods.

Besides the comfort of knowing your money is accessible, players will also benefit from a wider range of deposit and withdrawal options. Payment processors and credit cards are no longer barred from overseeing online poker transactions, given that they are licensed.

Reason #4 — Look at the track record

Should you remain unconvinced about choosing regulated online poker sites over unregulated ones, consider the historical track-record of unregulated Internet poker sites as further evidence.

  • PokerSpot, the first online poker site, deserted the poker community in 2002 under the leadership of Dutch Boyd. The poker room crashed, leaving a debt of approximately $400,000 to its players. As of today, this money remains unpaid.
  • Over several years, insiders at Ultimate Bet pilfered tens of millions of dollars from players via a cheating scheme. Despite the Department of Justice’s indictment of the site’s owners on April 15, 2011, Ultimate Bet persisted in accepting deposits. Eventually, the site went bankrupt, leaving the community with a debt that reached into the millions.
  • Just like its sister site, Ultimate Bet, with which it merged in 2010, Absolute Poker was another platform involved in an insider cheating scandal. They ultimately left players stranded, in debt of millions, when they were finally closed down.
  • US players of Full Tilt Poker are yet to receive about $150 million of their funds; funds they have been unable to access since April 15, 2011.
  • How serious is the situation at Lock Poker? The withdrawal times at Lock Poker are extremely slow and there are doubts about the company’s capacity to pay. Consequently, $100 of Lock Poker’s money is valued between $10 and $25 on the open market.

This doesn’t even begin to address the numerous instances of online poker rooms confiscating valid accounts, delaying payments to their players, or ignoring cheating.

It’s time to toss away the security blanket and demand what’s better

While change can be challenging and initially unpleasant, it is sometimes absolutely essential. This is particularly true for online poker in the US, where transitioning from an unregulated to a regulated market is undeniably necessary.

Thankfully, the shift is beginning to take place throughout the United States, with regulated online poker rooms in Nevada already operational. Furthermore, Delaware and New Jersey are on the verge of being added to the list of states with regulated online poker.

Even in places where online poker rooms are licensed, a lot of online poker players still play or contemplate playing at unregulated online poker sites. As previously mentioned, this is a significant error.

You may be drawn in by the appeal of larger player pools or enticing bonuses and promotions, but always keep in mind that there is a rationale behind the site’s seemingly too-good-to-be-true deal. More critically, there’s a reason why the site either hasn’t sought a license or has been rejected.

Indeed, you may have had positive experiences with certain unregulated online poker sites over the years, and it’s true that some of these sites have established impressive track records and respectable reputations. However, it’s important to bear in mind two factors:

1. Given that these sites are already violating a law by functioning in the US, what additional laws might they be prepared to infringe?

2. Unlicensed sites are evaluated under strict standards, and when compared with sites such as Ultimate Bet, Lock Poker, and PokerSpot, it’s not challenging to appear as a smoothly operating platform.

These unauthorized websites are banking on you ignoring their shortcomings and opting for familiarity and the status quo instead of progress.

The valedictorian of summer school

Even reputed unregulated sites aren’t without their issues, despite seeming like well-oiled machines. In the existing unregulated markets, these issues may not seem like problems, but in a regulated market, problems such as prolonged withdrawal times, unnecessary charges, and deficient security against collusion and poker bots would not be acceptable. To put it in another way, they are equivalent to the valedictorian of summer school.

Online poker players currently accept these issues as part of the process because their offshore licensing bodies lack stringent security measures and diligent oversight capabilities. However, in a regulated market, these problems are being eradicated.

In the terminology used in poker forums, regulated poker is considered superior to unregulated poker.

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Steve Ruddock

Steve is a renowned figure in the regulated U.S. online gambling sector. He contributes to various online and print mediums such as OnlinePokerReport.com, USA Today, and more, primarily covering the legal market.

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