Poker - Skill or Chance ?

I have always wondered if in poker – skill or chance matter. In December 2008, the eastern division of the Danish High Court ruled that poker is a game of chance. There have been similar rulings elsewhere wherein poker has been defined by law to be a game of pure luck, where the player has very little chance to influence the gaming. Even the scientific fraternity has also challenged the long-held notion that poker is a game of luck, where instruction and strategy are immaterial - by showing that the card game is based on pure skill.

In 2008, Michael DeDonno, a doctoral student from Case Western Reserve University, had 41 college students play eight games, totaling 200 hands, of Texas Hold'em, a computerized simulation of 10-player Hold'em poker. Overall most of the students had little experience playing poker. Half of the students in the first group were given charts that ranked the two-card combinations from best to the worst and also learned that professional poker players typically play about 15 percent of the hands dealt them. The other group was given background on the history of poker with no strategies. The findings were that students given some strategies and basic online poker rules to make decisions did better than those without the strategies.

To statistically verify the results from the first study, DeDonno conducted a second study, but had students play 720 hands. Again the group was divided into those provided with strategies and those with just a history of playing poker. While all students improved their playing with practice over the large number of hands, the group given strategies continued to do better than those without the added information. With this he was able to prove that skill wins out in playing poker.

Personally speaking I question the very idea of poker being a game of luck alone. It may take a couple of hours to learn a game such as Texas Hold'em in theory. Hand rankings and game play is pretty much standard save a few variations on rules and regulations. However it takes a lifetime of playing to really master it. Poker – Skill or chance looks to be a continuing debate for me. The existence of professional players proves that chance is not the determining factor, skill and dedication is. In the game of cricket any and I really mean any idiot who can swing a bat has a chance of hitting the ball but only a few can use the bat as a professional can. Also one would not find countless poker strategy books or web pages devoted purely to poker strategies.

A poker game is not won merely by the strength of your hand. A poker player needs to consider a lot of indicators - tells, pot odds, probabilities . before deciding on a move. A brilliant player could even make a statistically incorrect play in-order to fool the opponents into thinking that he has a stronger hand.

So, Poker -Skill or Chance ? ….the debate goes on.

Online Gaming Legislation

Though various Legal bodies around the world have tried to keep an open mind about online gaming legislation it will be a matter of time before it is fully and willingly accepted. The legality of online gaming is still debated upon with each country expressing their respective views on this sensitive topic.

On 28th June 2000 the Australian Government introduced its own online gaming legislation as the Interactive Gambling Bill which made it illegal for any foreign and interactive gambling service providers to offer their product to Australian residents. It also makes it illegal for any Australian based online casino to offer its product to Australian residents. However, it does allow Australian licensed online sports books, race betting and lottery sites to offer their product to Australian and international customers.

In the European Union views are different as all EU Member States are bound to observe the provisions set out in the European Communities Treaty. It therefore makes it illegal for a Member State to prohibit residents from accessing a service provided by operators from other Member State, where that same service is able to be provided by local operators. A Member State with accepts locally licensed online gambling operations (e.g. state lottery etc) in its online gaming legislation cannot try to block foreign providers of the same service.

In April 2009, 10 Member States, including France and Germany have been the subject of European Commission infringement proceedings.  The French Government had planned in March 2009 to enact proposed laws that will regulate and tax internet gambling. 

UK's position is set out in the enacted Gambling Act 2005, the directives of which came into effect on September 2007.  The new Act provides a single, all encompassing piece of law to cover all forms of gambling in the United Kingdom. Key provisions of the act relevant to internet gambling termed as "Remote Gambling" in the Act, include casinos, sports betting, poker rooms and any other form of real money wagering online. It states that any operator of a Remote Gambling Service who has any piece of Remote Gambling Equipment (e.g. servers) located in the UK must obtain a license from the UK Gambling Commission. Also operators of Remote gambling services from outside the UK are free to offer their product to UK residents provided they are complying with the licensing requirements of the jurisdiction in which the service is hosted. Nothing in the online gaming legislation makes it illegal, or seeks to prevent, British residents gambling on the internet in their own homes. Remote gambling operators from EEA (European Economic Area) countries and Gibraltar can advertise within Great Britain. In addition, operators from within jurisdictions granted white listing status can also advertise within the UK.

The SAFE Port act has online gaming legislation as part of its sections. Another significant act is the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). The SAFE Port Act signed by George W. Bush in Oct 2006 primarily introduced to protect the Security of the United States’ Sea Ports contains a Title VIII - Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, Sections 802 and 803 which amends the federal criminal code to prohibit persons engaged in the business of betting or wagering from knowingly accepting credit, or the proceeds of credit, electronic fund transfers, checks, drafts, or similar financial instruments or the proceeds of any other financial transaction in connection with unlawful Internet gambling, this prohibition is defined by this Act as a "restricted transaction" and Imposes a fine and/ prison term of up to five years for violations. Section 803 Calls upon the U.S. government, in deliberations with foreign governments, to encourage cooperation by foreign governments in identifying whether internet gambling operations are being used for money laundering, corruption, or other crimes, advance policies that promote international cooperation in enforcing this Act, and encourages the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering to study the extent to which Internet gambling operations are being used for money laundering purposes.

Similarly numerous countries have either formulated their own online gaming legislation or adopted policies of other countries. Whichever way we choose to look at it online gaming is here to stay it’s just a mater of whether we choose to accept or reject it.