This years trip to the 2006 CAC Amsterdam was very fruitful.  As it has been said many times before, conventions like this are more for the networking opportunities versus the actual exhibits and discussions.  In this trip report I will outline some of the business that took place as well as the entertainment. 

 

I will start with a few notable group discussions and then below that  I will outline some of the meetings I had.  I should have the photo gallery up very shortly as well.

 

As would be expected this seemed to be in almost every conversation that was taking place at the CAC.  Rakeback has become such a controversial issue in the industry and one that is going to continue being brought up at these conventions.  I attended the rakeback discussion that was led by the owners of RakeTheRake.com and RakeRebate.net.  The discussion was moderated by Dominique, who most you have seen on just about every gambling forum except for PAW. Anyhow, the discussion basically was rakeback affiliates arguing why they deserve a niche in the marketplace and how they want to see it regulated.  Many were complaining that rakeback providers keep raising their percentages and that their margins are struggling.  Apparently they don’t believe in free markets because these big guys actually want to see it regulated where there would only be a small amount of affiliates able to offer rakeback, and I’m being dead serious.  In essence what it sounded like to me is that they want to join forces and fix the prices cutting out any new rakeback affiliates from getting into the market.

 

Of course the non rakeback affiliates were even more steamed by hearing this ridiculous plan.  The discussion and arguments got even better when Vikrant from PartyGaming gave his two cents.  It was literally a Kodak moment, Vikrant made some points that were right on.  For starters he explained that a poker affiliate’s job is to introduce new players to the market and to the card rooms, then receive a commission for his or her efforts.  He went on to point out that rakeback affiliates do not do this.  They simply poach players from the card rooms themselves or even worse existing affiliates.  The analogy he used is that rakeback affiliates are like pickpockets either stealing players from the room itself or from other affiliates.  The complaint from non rakeback affiliates was that we do all the work getting players to the room and writing content or teaching strategy only to lose these players eventually to rakeback affiliates.

 

Although I don’t do rakeback I did speak at this session and brought up the point that it is not necessarily affiliates that are driving rakeback.  It is the players, 2 years ago there was no such thing as a 300-600 game online or the massive amounts of 10-20NL games taking place.  Rightfully so, players are raking a lot more money and are learning they can get some of it back.  Why wouldn’t they be trying to get some back?

 

I hold the same position as I always have though.  Affiliates should not be managing rakebacks and incentives.  This should be done by VIP departments and the card rooms themselves.  I do think that rakeback is like a cancer in the poker affiliate world right now.  There will never be any regulation on rakeback and because of greed there will always be under the table deals made.  At some point your going have a bunch of rakeback affiliates competing for <1% revenues.  No thanks, I’ll stick with my 30%+ revenues and lose a few big players here and there.

 

 

This is a topic that came up in the “Beer Session” and has been a pretty heated issue over the past months.  I have not publicly stated this before and I don’t intend to stir any waves but I have always thought that CAP “Decertifying” Party after this was complete and utter bullshit, and so was the all the press surrounding it.  First of all it needs to be known that being a certified partner at CAP is no different than being a sponsor at PAW.  They fleeced affiliates with this “Decertification” B.S. earlier in the year with Paradise as well.  Being a Certified Program or a PAW Sponsor simply put means that programs are paying to advertise on our sites and gain exposure in the two largest gambling webmaster communities on the internet. 

 

Now back to the topic at hand.  I was in the know when this "buyout" took place and is also why it pissed me off to see all the negative press surrounding the acquisition.  This is big business folks and mergers and consolidation are inevitable.  There is no such thing as a “player for life”, maybe for the life of the existing program, but if the program is acquired or sold it is up to the new owners if the affiliates will be acquired as well, not the seller. 

 

PartyPartners explained things perfectly at the discussion. PartyGaming aquired the domain and website EmpirePoker.com and the existing player database as well as business assets.  This was what was bought, nothing more and nothing less.  The affiliates and affiliate program for EmpirePoker.com was owner by Empire Online Ltd.  This was not part of the acquisition.  Even if Party wanted to honor the affiliate agreements, they didn’t have access to the database.  Why would Empire Online Ltd give this information away just to keep affiliates happy?  Remember after the sale, Tradal and Empire Online Ltd was aggressively working the database to get Empire affiliates promoting the NoblePoker brand as well as their other brands.

 

When you understand the real story, it should be obvious that if anyone is at fault here it is Empire and not Party.  Once again even if Party wanted to bring on the Empire affiliates, they didn’t have access to the information.  One of the panelists and moderators brought up that affiliates “own” 25% of the player if they referred them……….also one of the dumbest things I heard at the conference.  Nobody owns players, period.

 

Imagine the mess of overlap if Party indeed did acquire the affiliates.  I can’t even imagine how one would begin to manage this.  Bottom line is that this IS big business and deals like this are going to continue to happen.  If you can’t handle the thought of losing revenue in situations like this, then you need to be on a 100% CPA plan.  The T&C’s of any program are null and void if they are acquired by a new company unless it is expressly written in the acquisition documents.  “Player for life” is as silly as the term “Lifetime Guarantee”.  Likewise "decertifying" a program in a respected industry community without knowing the whole story is in bad taste.

 

 

Before I go into more business and outline my meetings I thought a little overview of Amsterdam and the nightlife would be appropriate.  For starters the place is unlike any city you have ever been to in the States.  I am thoroughly convinced that the cities economy revolves around sex and marijuana.  The coffee shops and red light district are what makes Amsterdam the place that it is.

 

Aside from conducting a lot of business I had the chance to party with Cal from pocketfives.com and the owner of RakeBreak.com.  We had a pretty wild time and actually somehow Cal and I ended up taking a 15 minute cab ride 3 blocks at 3:00 A.M.  I think it’s fair to say that we were intoxicated and got rolled by the cabbie for 20 Euros……Oops.

 

We also partied with Gustav from pokerrom.com and the guys from BetonBet.com.  These dudes are seriously crazy.

 

The CAC 2006 Party Animal award has got to go to none other than the crew from AbsolutePoker.com.  Shenaz and Fred were ultimate troopers and tore it up with us till the wee hours of the morning.  Luckily we got to sleep in, unfortunately the AM’s did not.

 

Then the second night rolled around and Stephen, Cal, Max, myself, and Beanie’s crew all had dinner.  We got to hear the story about how Beanie donked out of the 2004 WSOP with QQ.  And of course, there was more rakeback debate at dinner.  I thought poor Stephen was going to put in ear plugs.

 

We then hooked up with Satya from PokerShare and the Absolute folks. Immediately we headed for the red light district.  Max is the funniest person you will ever meet and oh by the way, you eat steak wrong Max.  It is somewhat a blur but I recall Max and Beanie making a wager that involved 20-1 and 30-1 odds for $1000.  I think I considered getting in on the action but my better judgment kept me from doing it, even though I am 100% certain that Beanie is going to lose both bets in 12 months.  After all, how is a rakeback affiliate going to become the largest Party affiliate in the world………doh!!!!

 

There’s probably several other stories and people I partied with but these are the ones that stand out.  If you don’t go next year for the networking, go just for the partying.  You can’t go wrong in Amsterdam.  Below is an outline of all the meetings I had while at the Amsterdam CAC 2006.

 

 

PokerShare is back and in my opinion represents the greatest affiliate opportunity for us in the next 6 months.  For those of you that have been around a few years, if you asked me whom one ofthe greatest affiliate managers I have ever worked with was, the answer would difficult however Satya would be at the top of the list.  Guess what? My old friend from Party is back and even more exciting he is leading up the PokerShare affiliate program.  For anyone who had the opportunity to work with Satya at Party, then you know he is one of the best.  After speaking in great detail on the past, present, and future of PokerShare with both Satya and the poker room manager max Wright I have 100% confidence in their game plan moving forward. If I were gambling man, I would bet all my chips on the success of the PokerShare program.

 

All I can say is that once launched this program is moving to the very top position in my promotions.  The concept of PokerShare and the business plan I was privy to seeing in my opinion is brilliant.  PokerShare also has plans to float on the London exchange within a year’s time.  Because 40% of the poker rooms ownership is actually held by the players in a trust, the more share points your players have earned the richer they will become when PokerShare floats.  In terms of retention and player value, this is going to take things to an entirely new level.  Before PokerShare was defrauded by Excapsa they were literally poised to become market leaders and were growing exponentially every single day.  Now that the truth is out and people realized what transpired, all indications show that PokerShare is going to pick up where it left off. 

 

I am also pleased to announce that I negotiated a deal with PokerShare.com to bring them into PAW as a Platinum Sponsored Program.  With this designation they will be offering initial percentages and deals for PAW members that are greater than just the standard affiliate program.  Stay Tuned for more information on this in the coming days.  Trust me though; you do not want to miss out on getting in on this opportunity from the beginning. 

 

 

In reality there was really no reason to have a “set” meeting with Paradise or Stephen as he is known throughout the industry as being one of the best affiliate managers out there.  It would not surprise me to see Stephen as the CEO of Paradise or another big card room someday, because honestly he is that good.   Any business or negotiating I do with Paradise can be taken care of during business hours over Skype or email with Paradise.  With that said though, having the chance to actually meet Stephen and get to know him a little better was a great opportunity and strengthened the reasons I think so highly of him.  In respect to Paradise’s plans moving forward, they will continue to be a market leader and have promotions that trump almost any other card room out there.  Their customer service and responsiveness to affiliates will remain first class as would be expected.  I also heard a little rumor that bonus codes may now be available for Super Affiliates who can send significant business to Paradise.  

 

Party Poker

One of my first meetings on Sunday morning was with my friends over at PartyPartners.  I met with Vikrant, Rohit, Sanjay, and Hemant.  We discussed several aspects of both my own PartyPoker business as well as the direction of PartyPartners moving forward.  One of the takeaways I got from meeting with them is that the management of PartyPartners is going to increase the level of communication between affiliates and affiliate managers.  Although the AM’s are not actively posting in our forums, they are all reading them and following them.  There are valid reasons why they do not post however it needs to be known that they do monitor our community quite closely.  With that said the best way for affiliates to get responses from Party is to directly email their affiliate managers.  Or you can go through me and I will make sure your query gets taken care of.

 

Another takeaway I got is that Party is going to have a major focus on “the big picture” and driving more affiliates to the other brands such as PartyCasino and PartyBingo.  It goes without saying that Blackjack has proven to be a very nice addition to PartyPoker’s bottom line.  In regards to the way we get paid on the total net gaming, there may be an option in the future for affiliates to choose the model of risk vs. reward.  The problem from an operational standpoint is that it is great for affiliates when their players lose at Blackjack, but when a player has a big win, they will have negative carryover and may just drop the promotion of PartyPoker all together as they don’t want to work against Blackjack wins for several months.  This is the reason the blackjack revenue model is the way it is right now.  From an affiliate retention standpoint, I agree with PartyPartners on this decision.  Overall for me personally it was a great meeting and a good opportunity to get a feel for where Party is going in the coming months and years.

 

Absolute Poker

What can I say about Shenaz, Giann, and Fred.  These guys are awesome.  To be quite honest I have never really promoted Absolute very much, however after meeting with them I have no doubt that I will be sending them players in the coming months.  Many of you may remember Shenaz from her days at Bodog.  Like some of other AM’s she has always had a sterling reputation in the industry.  After meeting with her it is clear that she is committed to helping us grow our businesses and showing new affiliates the benefits of Absolute.  I have a buddy that plays full-time and he swears by Absolute’s software.  The impression that I get from talking with both players, affiliates, and now Shenaz is that Absolute Poker has one of the best retention rates out there.  Hence the reason they are going to be moved into the portfolio of products I will be promoting. 

 

Absolute is a great brand and has one of the better affiliate departments out there in terms of responsiveness and taking care of affiliates needs.  I encourage all of you to get in touch with Shenaz and bring Absolute into your promotions for two reasons.  Number one because I believe the conversions and retention are amongst the best in the industry.  Number two because the affiliate management team led by Giann Peroni is first class.  Our PAW representative Shenaz is one of the best AM’s in the market……….and besides that she knows how to party……always a plus.

 

PKR.com

I had the pleasure to meet with Margaret the affiliate manager at PKR.com.  I also got to see some previews of the software and game action.  All I can say is WOW!  This is truly going to be the equivalent of PS2 graphics within an online poker client.  We spoke in great depth about the StacksPoker self destruction.  Quite honestly Stacks and PKR are 2 totally different animals.  To this day there is still speculation as to what happened with Stacks, but be assured they were NOT acquired by PKR.com.  Although after seeing the PKR software, I can tell you that it is not even comparable to anything you have ever seen before.

 

Beta testing on this exciting new platform is just around the corner.  Like many affiliates I am skeptical about new rooms and 3D rooms because of speed, integrity, and conversions to rmp’s.  Although after seeing the software I do think there is a niche and a market for players that are looking for a more graphically enhanced poker experience.

 

Nonetheless I am sure Margaret from PKR.com will be joining our community and will be around to answer all of our questions as the launch of PKR.com gets closer.

 

PokerRoom.com & PokerAffiliate.com

I had the chance to meet with Carly, Gustav, and Edward from PokerAffiliate.com.  They are all first class and truly want to see affiliates succeed in the marketplace.  Some of the initiatives moving forward will be to help affiliates greater enhance their income by introducing players to more traditional casino games.  With the launch of CasinoRoom.com, there is a great opportunity for existing  poker affiliates to maximize their players action by being the first to introduce them to CasinoRoom.com and other gambling venues.

 

As would be expected, the managers at PokerAffiliate.com are also planning some fantastic affiliate promotions in the coming months.  PokerAffiliate.com has always been THE leader when it comes to affiliate incentives and promotions and they will maintain this reputation.

 

 

What can I say about Greg from CelebPoker.com.  Greg is a long time friend and fellow poker promoter.  We chatted a bit about the future plans for Celeb and what they have moving forward.  I also have to add that Greg gave one of the best lectures of the convention.  He spoke on integrating online satellites into your promotions and websites.  This would seem fitting as Celeb has been focusing on offering great tournaments lately.  Greg said that their Ladies WSOP promo's have been driving hundreds of new female players to the site daily.  Likewise Celebs poker league has been a huge success.  Greg also said that they are looking at ways to improve the back end affiliate reporting system to make it much more user friendly.  All in all having some inside experience with Boss Media rooms myself I can say that Greg and the team at CelebPoker.com know how to do promotions that will drive great conversions for affiliates.  America revolves around an infatuation with celebrities, and CelebPoker.com has done a fabulous job exploiting this.

 

FullTiltPoker.com

And last but not least, I did have the chance to speak with both Jessica and Warren at FullTiltPoker.com.  We discussed in detail many of the issues facing affiliates as well as the frustrations affiliates currently have with the FullTilt affiliate program.  The explanation for high processing fees and bonus fees is that FullTiltPoker charges the same as every other room however they openly disclose to affiliates the exact player data and the exact numbers…………..Don’t shoot the messenger, I am just reporting back.

 

Genuinely both Warren and Jessica are great affiliate managers but the impression I got was that many of these fees and charges are beyond their control.  I did invite them both to become members at PAW and promised we would take it easy on them if they join.  At the end of the day it is what it is regarding fees.  Even the biggest affiliates are not getting any breaks on these.  Sure you can negotiate a higher MGR% or CPA% , but the fees are not going tobe changed any time soon.  The way I see it is that they ARE one of the best converting poker sites in the market and we are lucky to even have a MGR% option. 

 

They could have just taken the PokerStars route and offered a standard CPA with no tracking or regards for affiliates……….at least they are trying.  I do agree though that FullTilt is losing out on massive amounts of affiliate revenue by having the bottom line for each affiliate come in between 7% - 15% at month end each reporting month.

 

Kudos to FullTiltPoker however for finally launching a VERY NICE reporting system and affiliate area.  You can now see comprehensive data in excel format on daily or monthly player sign-ups and rake.  Defiantly a major improvement from the quick stats and the monthly reports.