Stolen from the Lounge "A Plea For Gold Only Conte

[Casino Knight]

TomCat1569 wrote: A Plea For Gold Only Contests
Posted: Today at 8:05pm
While I fully realize that this topic has been discussed at length on other threads, I just don't understand why we cannot have Gold-only tournaments for prizes. Certainly the reverse argument can be made that the paying members of this site are being discriminated against by letting everybody in the world into the "free" contests ... our membership fees are financing their prizes! Can't we work out a way to reward Gold members for their loyalty by offering them a little...................

Tom,
I believe that for them to offer Gold Member Only Contests would put them into a position of "Internet Gambling". That being the payment of a price, for a chance on a prize. We all know that its illegal to gamble on the internet.

Until the laws change, I wouldn't take the risk.
CK

[Tomcat1569]

OK. The other thread got locked immediately. Not sure why that would happen.

[Webman]

I posted an explanation when it was locked. Simply put, there isn't much point in pleading because it's not up to us.

[Tomcat1569]

I guess I should know when to quit, but I still don't understand why it should be this way despite the legal ramifications. Isn't it the people who are actually paying a fee the ones who are taking a risk/gambling that those who play for free will take their money? If I'm not mistaken, the major revenue stream for the site is Gold memberships. Don't those pay for the gift cards that are awarded to all the non-Gold contest winners? There has to be a fairer way to treat everyone here. That being said, I do enjoy the site and the cameraderie among Gold members immensely.

[OKathyO]

Tom,
At the last hearing on October 25, 2011, in the "House SubCommittee for Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, former Senator Alfonse D'Amato  is leading the charge for leagalizing internet poker.  The questions is not, "When will it be legal", but, "How to regulate internet poker".  Meaning, how can the government tax it!   This push started back in November 2006, when the government made it illegal for poker sites to accept U.S based credit cards.  Of course some of these sites figured out a way around this and we had a good 5 years before the US Government confiscated and banned the domain site(s) name...............to be fair, this push to "leagalize" internet poker is aimed at the "Texas-Hold-Em"/Omaha" players. 
 
The argument is that these type of card playing requires skill and know how.  Depending how the bill is written, I would hope video poker" would fall under this bill. (WEBMAN:  You have a lobbyist on your staff?)
 
Until there is some form of regulation, reputable US based sites such as this cannot hold contests that are not open to all.   I support the "gold" member contest idea, but until the US Goverment can get their hands on our money it can never happen. 

[Webman]

Isn't it the people who are actually paying a fee the ones who are taking a risk/gambling that those who play for free will take their money?No, that's exactly the point. You are not putting any money at risk because you would have the same opportunity if you were paying nothing.If you had to pay to play in the contests (by being a gold member), then that is indeed how it could be interpreted.This is precisely why contests are not a Gold member feature, but a feature for everyone. Gold members get other benefits along with their subscriptions. These are the benefits you pay for, not prize opportunities. Our hope is that you get your 22 cents worth every day with the many features available, and we'll continue to add more features as time goes on.I do understand the desire... I tried myself to argue the point on several occasions. It would obviously be a win-win... more gold members, exciting contests, more revenue. So it's not from a lack of want that Gold-only contests for prizes are not happening.

[BillyJoe]

On a related note, I complained to an accountant once about how unfair the US Tax Code was in its treatment of "revenue' earned with W2Gs. In spite of being able to take losses equal to your winnings, W2Gs inflate your AGI, and whack all of your other deductions, making you look rich when, in fact, you are on a fixed income, but just happen to like gaming. His response was" When did you ever think that the tax code was meant to be fair? Look at what we tax in this country - gambling, liquor, cigarettes. The tax codes try to legislate moral behavior. If you don't drink, smoke or gamble, and you have a lot of kids, you are behaving in a way that the government approves."
So, my point is, until the government figures out a way to tax the heck out of internet gambling, I, for one, enjoy a "free" site to play on. I can chose to drop my Gold membership at any time, so I don't look for any other benefits from it than the ones that I receive.  

[Tomcat1569]

Points taken. Thank you for your diplomatic reply, Webman. I've been watching the hearings on Internet gambling with obvious interest. It amazes me that Washington didn't figure out a way to tax online gaming long ago -- it's a huge revenue stream begging to be tapped.

[jm002546]

  Plus they have made it no longer convenient for non-gold to even enter.  So you are no longer competing against me.  Not that you ever were that much.  It seemed like workingfor pennies an hour on the contests. But, free was free............at one time. I probably exaggerated - less than a penny an hour.

[Tomcat1569]

Less convenient how, jm? Aren't you Gold to be posting here?