Full Tilt has recently blocked data mining and tracking sites like SharkScope and PokerTableRatings from being able to access player hand histories etc.
Now sites want to prove respectability, security and trust, expect more blocking of tools giving unfair advantage … Not before time IMHO.
Somewhat ironically PokerTableRatings (PTR) has hit back suggesting its die-hard supporters wishing to use PTR should consider signing up at other poker rooms and avoiding Full Tilt.
Full Tilt is probably the nittiest and therefore tightest site online with a high percentage of very nitty players, multi-tabling rakeback grinders and basically proportionately the lowest number of easy to beat fish online.
These ultra tight aggressive, ABC textbook, nitty “know-it-all” players are exactly the sorts that would most likely use the full potential of PTR and sharkscope to get the low-down on their opposition and its plain to see that of all the sites percentage wise Full Tilt is most in need of an injection of fish.
I think its safe to say that most of the sites T&C’s which players agree to abide put data mining and tracking sites into at best a grey area and many outright ban their use but until recently sites haven’t done terribly much to cut-off their access to the raw HH data etc.
I think most will increasingly outright ban their use and crucially block their ability to mine the data.
Its definitely giving players in the know an advantage that 90% of fish and recreational players simply don’t have or know about. This makes the already easy pickings just that bit too easy.
I’ve said this before because the RNG’s are NOT rigged (contrary to all those poker is rigged threads) its important for sites to maintain a healthy ecosystem by other means using their marketing budgets to attract and reward new, depositing and recreational players while keeping and retaining a good mix of players not just pandering to the already winning sharks appeals for an event bigger slice of the cake.
Use of data mining tools and rakeback in its current form is bad long term generally both for the fish and recreational majority and ultimately the savvy and winning players who think they gain from using these tools.
It doesn’t seem like it but really giving additional rewards to the 10% net winning players and not looking after the 90% recreational majority is counter-productive to all. Net winning players live off the long term flow of more fish, not selective rakeback so its better for all to reward depositing players and generally shearing the sheep and not killing the sheep outright.
As they say – Don’t tap the glass … it scares the fish
Hilariously one of our forum members suggested that poker books should also be banned as they give advantage to players prepared to read although I think this may be taking things too far … what next forums and poker strategy sites ???
I think its fairly safe to say that reading strategy forums and articles will remain a safe and solid way for all poker players to improve their games if they choose to put in the effort …
And really that is what this clamp down is all about – The fact that with little actual effort or self education, practise or sheer hard work a savvy player can buy the knowledge without having really earn’t it.
I’ll admit it like many others I’ve had a look at other players PTR ratings and my own (NOT while playing poker BTW). Its kind of cool to see your own graphs, question the numbers and figure out your winning spell was over 3 years ago before they started tracking the numbers where you are now flashing as an ubber fish.
The easy access stats and overviews of yourself and other players enable you to look up players after you’ve got your a** beat up and find out if you just got pwnd or if they just got lucky … I get it I really do
But ultimately these sites do offer too much advantage to those savvy players who will check those overviews live “in game” or worse buy 2+ million hand histories for peanuts and use them to have far far too much knowledge of how their opponent plays.
Hats off to the guys who built these sites really because they are cool – but they’re simply too cool for the healthy future of online poker.
Winning players need to win on their wits, their experience and crucially on their own …
They will beat the fish who are in the majority soon enough without killer apps
otherwise ultimately the killer apps could just kill off online poker.
