Once the CEO of Amaya Gaming, David Baazov, was charged with insider trading, the online poker world began to speculate about PokerStars and what would happen with the brand in the United States. PokerStars is owned and operated by Amaya and the charges that Baazov faces surely will not bode well for the brand.
PokerStars was going live in New Jersey and many felt the news would hurt the launch but that is not the case. Players have actually visited PokerStars in droves, earning the company $600,000 in two weeks’ time and allowing the brand to take the top spot in regards to the traffic numbers within the state.
Then speculation began to swirl around PokerStars and the state of California. For some time, PokerStars has been teamed up with several tribal groups and card rooms to be ready if online poker legislation is passed within the state. PokerStars, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, the United Auburn Indian Community, and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, Bicycle Casino, Commerce Casino and the Hawaiian Gardens Casino are all part of what is being called the PokerStars Coalition. Speculation soon began that this coalition would not last after the charges against Baazov were announced.
The coalition was created in order to work together if online poker legislation was passed but also to try and keep bad actor clauses from being included in any legislation. Now, while the charges against Baazov are concerning, the Coalition are still working together. They actually sent a letter recently to Assemblyman Adam Gray in support of his online poker legislation.
AB 2863 is going to get a hearing with the California Assembly Governmental Organization Committee on the 20th of April and the PokerStars Coalition want to show Gray their support. The letter was signed by everyone listed above as part of the Coalition except for the United Auburn Indian Community who have yet to announce any reasons why the letter was not signed.
In the letter, the Coalition writes in support of the legislation by Gray, as it would protect consumers, create jobs in the state and strengthen the economy of the state by legalizing and regulating online poker within the state. The Coalition stated they are proud to support the bill which would create a marketplace that is competitive and vibrant while providing quality protections with oversight and regulation of the license holders and providers of service.
The letter continued by stating:
While showing their support, the Coalition did state a concern in their letter. The Coalition stated that the bill had provisions that were restricting the ability to use a customer database and this will only stunt the growth of online poker gaming and the revenues that are able to be earned in the state.
For now, residents of California will have to wait and see how the hearing fares and if legislators will be willing to see the bill move forward. One never knows what will happen and the fact that many tribes, card rooms and legislators, plus the race tracks, cannot seem to agree on how the activity should take place will most likely continue to hinder any legislation moving forward.