Topic: SwitchPoker.com - Adds Bitcoin Deposits! - page 2. (Read 5104 times)

You don't even need a VPN.  When you sign up, just give you country of residence as something other than the US.  I've already won 30 Euro with a 10 BTC deposit.  The fish are large at Switchpoker.

I think it is baby steps.  Remember this isn't a "bitcoin company" which has been using Bitcoin from Day 1 and is a fatantical supporter.  This is an online gaming company who seems bitcoin as a potential competitive advantage.

I would expect (hope) that over time their Bitcoin interface improves.  I see no reason once a company becomes use to Bitcoin that they can't allow direct transfers to/from private wallet and w/ lower minimums.

It's great to see a pre-existing poker site add Bitcoin support.

I've tried this out, and the exchange rates between BTC and Euro seem pretty reasonable.
It allows you to convert between Euro and BTC at will.

I think they really need to be a bit more transparent on fees and exchange rates though - it's pretty much try it and see what you get at the moment.
I just got 1.15 BTC for 2.23 Euro  when the mtgoxEUR was 1.91

They use bitcoin247.com for the deposit/exchange service. I haven't seen much written about them here, and I can't see an entry for them in bitcoincharts but so far so good.

Also a warning.. although you can deposit as little as 3BTC  - the minimum you can withdraw is 20BTC

I don't think there's really a good excuse for that given that BTC is so easy to transfer. It's simply a tactic to make you gamble your remaining money away, and I hope that competitors will come along who allow you to withdraw your bitcents, and force switchpoker to match this policy.

Edit: It also seems to me that you could purchase BTC by Visa using this system. I haven't tried it - but I don't see why it wouldn't work. They allow up to 500Euro visa deposit.

You can use Switch Poker from the US just use a VPN.  If you think any real company is going to advertise it is open for US players in violation of the UIGEA think again.

The long arm of the DOJ is something most companies don't want to mess with.  Party Poker closed access to US players.  Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars didn't.  They did fine until the DOJ decide to seize hundreds of millions of dollars and slap them w/ multi billion dollar lawsuits as well as request US courts forfeit all assets used in or were the direct result of the crimes (in reim forfeiture).

PokerStars will likely survive ... barely.  The fact they used segregated accounts and had sufficient liquidity helped them survive that massive blow to their cashflow.  Full Tilt Poker will survive in name only with original investors wipe out (which they should be the thieving bastards). 

Thinking any well capitalized company will advertise "Open to US players in direction violation of federal law" is a pipe dream.  Hopefully in the future the UIGEA will be repealed until then there are VPN services.   

This is big news.  Someone needs to get on top of making this, but a US version.  Gambling is going to keep Bitcoin afloat if people will get on top of it quicker.   I think maybe some of these people who created these BTC gambling sites should start approaching the established big name poker sites to see if deals can be worked out.  Sell your companies to them for the greater good of Bitcoin.

Most of the business practices they shut down are illegal only in the US.  They routinely apply misguided, ignorant, insulting, unwanted, unreasonable, irrational laws to countries and businesses that do not fall under their jursidiction. They then pressure outside entities through various means to get those questionable "laws" applied to the businesses they want shut down.  

Now that I've risen to your bait, let me explain why your statement is a straw man.

You knew, or at least should have known (by the fact that I intentionally singled out FTP at the end), that my statement was applied in a much more broad sense than just to FTP.  In this specific context, you could apply to just only poker, online gambling, or even areas of interest outside of online gambling, but in either case(s) you did not and chose to apply it to FTP specifically - there's your straw man.  

That said, yes, I am absolutely appalled that we, the US, tries to apply our idiotic views on morality on other nations while we can't even get a handle on our own.  I am appalled by the religious right that seems to be in a dominant position applying their fundamental views on my as a citizen of a supposedly free country and especially on others who are NOT citizens.  At least I, as a citizen, can choose to not be a citizen of a morally bankrupt, governmentally corrupt country.  Others, in other countries, don't even have that luxury.  In the case of online poker sites, as has already been said, Lotto is legal in just about all 50 states, which is gambling in it's purest form - yet poker isn't?  

In this specific context, my problem is with the fact that the government presses these "war on X" under the guise of protecting people or morality, when in fact it's purely driven by greed of the players involved, or worse, by the religious right thinking they need to press their laughable, socially juvenile, imaginary friend views on everyone else.  In either case, don't press the laws as some upstanding push for morality or decency... admit the reasons behind doing it.  The government won't admit the reasons because the people would rebel if the law makers, lobbyests, etc... admitted openly it was purely for profit.  Instead they have to hide behind lies and facades to push their agenda.  THAT is morally bankrupt.  THAT is corrupt.  THAT is ethically bankrupt.  

They did not shut down FTP to protect Americans from anything - they shut down FTP because they were competition and they weren't getting their cut of the pie.  Just look to Lotto for your proof - the government gets a large portion of that largess, so it's "legal."

The only entity more corrupt that Full Tilt Poker in this scenario is the US govt.

1) Full Tilt Poker and other off shore sites only exist because the US govt tries to legislate morality.  Given the choice between playing at a Nevada Gaming commission licensed poker room or "some rock I never heard of " licensed (wink wink -> bag of cash) poker room the choice is clear.

2) The US govt created the financial success of companies like FTP by driving all the money offshore where they could neither regulate nor control it.

3) Even then the US govt didn't give two craps about protecting the players.  They shutdown FTP to continue the moral crusade again "sin industries".

4) If the govt cared about protecting players they would simply make online poker legal and regulated in the US.  Brick & Mortar poker rooms are required to segregate player funds and are subject to suprise audits by state gaming boards.  Ever heard of a US physical casino losing player funds or not being able to pay all chips in full.  No?  The reason why is it is more profitable to be "legit" then try to cut corners w/ state gaming board looking over your shoulder.

In essence the govt made their very problem they "solved" and at tremendous expense to both taxpayers and banks (who just pass those costs on to consumers/taxpayers).  Even worse it isn't "solved" for every FTP they killed 4 new poker rooms spring up.  Kinda like how drugs are just as available after a 30 year "war on drugs" (yet another attack on sin industries).

So sorry not going to give the utterly corrupt and hypocritical US govt a pass on this one.

Banning something doesn't help you regulate it.  It just pushes it further out of the reach of the law.

You're appalled that they would possibly try and protect american's from what are generally regarded as corrupt and illegal business and business practices, and then go on to name one company that was notably corrupt and ethically bankrupt and still say it's bad that the government could possibly want to shut them down.

They can get round this by offering BTC hedging like Silk Road does.

I totally understand, good luck in Aussieland .  Besides family and friends, the only thing keeping me from reconsidering where I live is the idea of what happens if all the intelligent people leave.  Lowering the average IQ of the nation with the largest military doesn't seem prudent.  No, I'll stick around and keep beating my head against the wall.  One day either it will crack or I will, but I refuse to give in or run away.

I totally agree... $2500 of that $300M was mine!  Actually, FTP had already stolen it by then by "freezing" my account, so I couldn't withdraw it.  Screw them.

It's so ridiculous the lengths the US government goes to to crack down on things that can't be stopped AND/OR make no difference anyway.  Lotto is a lot more gambling than poker is.  At least in poker, you have some measure of control depending on your skill level. 

Agreed but sadly they brought down $300M worth of player deposits with them.   Hopefully the POS law will eventually be repealed.  The greatest hipocracy.

Online lotto sales = legal
Online horse racing = legal
Online poker = OH NOES OH NOES ban it. 

Oh shit they moved offshore and took all that money, jobs, and tax revenue with them.   Ok BAN money transfers.  Ok they got around that.  Ok spend even MORE money investigating & prosecuting them.

Just legalize, regulate, and tax it.  That goes for plants and poker.

Do it work also on Android or is iCrap only?  i i i i, like the world is only i 

Pretty much.  Although it's purely profit motivated and not some altruistic move, it still has the same effect.  As a US citizen, I am absolutely appalled by what our nation and government does most of the time.  One of the main reasons I am permanently emigrating to Australia.  On behalf of intellectually and morally mature citizens of America, I apologize for our behavior.

But, on the flip side... Fulltilt poker was a giant, festering, money grubbing, cheating, lying sack of corporate shit and I am glad they got smashed. 

NO.  They are speaking out for freedom against an oppressive regime.

Exactly. Plausible deniability.  They can comply w/ US laws & regulations meanwhile technology being what it is (VPN proxy & Bitcoin) make it possible for Americans to circumvent any restrictions.

Of course anyone expecting them to say anything other than the "official line" on the website is naive.

I think they are hoping to avoid this awesome new logo.



http://www.fulltiltpoker.com/us/

If the DOJ can take down full tilt poker ($5B company throwing off >$200M a year in free cashflow annually) they can take down this small player if they step even a inch over the line.

US players have always been able to deposit/play using VPN.  What made it difficult was cashing out.  Bitcoin solves that.

As far as BTC-only plays.  There is no interest from the regular/grinder community.  The margins in pro-poker are very small.  Grinding out tiny profits on each hand.  If you are playing in BTC and make a 10% profit for the month and then BTC:USD value falls 70% kinda makes it impossible to make a living.  The regulars drive traffic, and that makes it so the fish can play when they want (a game is always available 24/7/365 anywhere in the world).  That is how the economics of poker work.

So basically, they're using bitcoin to dodge the "Do not use US currency for online poker sites" law that was introduced a while back. So yet again another shady internet buisness with questionable legal status is dragging bitcoins name into the mud.

I've been waiting for this. As a semi-professional poker player I've thought highly of the gambling potential of Bitcoin. This is the beginning.

Yes, I think so, too. With anonymized IP and bitcoin payments, everybody can use their site without any problems, however they probably don't announce that in this way officially :-).

Btw are there some proxies4btc?