I Heard A Rumour

The--Don

Not a submission to @Duesenberg music league but a bonafide rumour about the future for Sky Poker.

I'm actually surprised that the suits haven't been more open about this because as far as I can tell, it's pretty much an open secret among SPT live players.

Sometime in late Spring/Early Summer, players may need to download an iPoker client to play their current favourite games.

Will be interesting to see if the rewards program can compete with established skins and the casual players enjoy late registration periods that last longer than the 7@7 and Midex combined.

For me the USP of Sky Poker was always not having to battle bots, Eastern European's using RTA, Brazilian stables colluding at MTT end game stage etc.

It was always worth putting up with rubbish rewards, software from the dark ages and empty promises about things improving for decent game quality but not for much longer if the rumour mill is to be believed.

I haven't been around much on Sky for ages, mostly because there are just far better options these days since cash game traffic dropped off a cliff but I'll be sad if it gets absorbed into a network that still deals with Russia and all the shenanigans that go on in Russian stables.

RIP Sky Poker 2003-2025

Dozza

It was a good little hobby whilst it lasted, but time to move onto pastures new if this rumour is true. Games will become malicious if Don's outlook becomes a reality. I don't do malicious.

Dozza

The--Don said:

For me the USP of Sky Poker was always not having to battle bots, Eastern European's using RTA, Brazilian stables colluding at MTT end game stage etc.

I may be tempted to stay if Neymar plays on the new site.

Doubleme

I mean I heard many rumours at one point I heard they were planing on merging Sky with Pokerstars. i dont know the sources for this info or where the people at the players at the SPT are getting info that Sky hasnt put out there themselves. I am not saying this is incorrect info at all it may be correct but short of sky staff openly telling players this info I do wonder how they could find this out.

I have also heard a lot of rumours from different sources about alleged Russian bots on the Ipoker network, again not saying thats true just rumours I have read about from various sources.

If all this info is true it means Sky Poker would go from a site that is relatively stable profit to a site where profit is much harder to make and variance is a lot higher.

I guess time will tell but without sources or evidence one can only treat this as rumours.

Bean81

Sky is owned by Flutter, which includes Betfair, Paddy and Stars. The first two use ipoker, while Stars still offers the best, most secure software on the market. It seems inevitable that the Sky pool will be thrown into one of those networks at some point (and most likely ipoker). Combined with sunsetting the software, I think we all know it's coming at some point.

I'll be sad when it happens, given the community that's been built and maintained by Tikay over tye years and Sky offering some of the softest games online at the weekend. I don't see myself playing on ipoker again. They have struggled with bots over the years and the software isn't good enough to make up for it. The Stars Group tried their best to kill off Stars after ripping off all of the regs and has never recovered.

TheEdge949

I really feel that poker is now a dying beast. Whilst Covid created a mini boom online it effectively killed live poker for me as both Genting and Grosvenor installed roulette consoles in the poker rooms.

Since Covid though online numbers are dwindling and options to play are becoming fewer and fewer especially as pure poker sites develop slots and sportsbooks at pokers expense.

I used poker co pilot for a while on several "big sites" and the number of players with 250 +continuous hours of play was incredible. These were all either based in Brazil or Russia.

I hardly play anymore, not for any other reason than the funs gone out of the game, too many people are playing micro stakes like it's the main event and getting aggro when their £1 buy in gets taken by a loose call.

FWIW I think that online poker will be a thing of the past in the next 10 years which is a shame. From the early days on Pokah and Paradise through the Halcyon days of Full Tilt and Stars and the Plethora of sites, good, bad and downright dodgy, online poker has provided some brilliant times, great banter and ocassionally a few quid.

However I feel that it's now in it's Autumn, all that was good is slowly decaying and the cruel, harsh winter stands on the horizon ready to deliver the coup de grace.

Sky Poker for it's part has been great. U.K. facing and preventing tactical software gave it a feel all of it's own and the community and the forum certainly the best I've experienced. I would love it to survive, but in the overall picture it's merely a tiny part of a huge business and that usually doesn't bode well.

Anyway, enough of my rambling. You never know, we could experience another Moneymaker effect and a whole renaissance but it seems unlikely.

Maybe television could create a new generation of fans and players. Late Night Poker, Poker Premier League, Ladbrokes Poker Million etc. were instrumental in creating public interest and making the game accessible.

Poker R.I.P.

spearsy136

@Tikay10 any update on these rumours?

spearsy136

Don't mind it being on ipoker client. Just the reg periods are terrible. Tourneys last around 8 hrs. Fingers crossed it doesn't change to much.

PKRPar

The software needs updating so hopefully just ipoker software but sky poker mtts.

spearsy136

Which would be great news. Better software but same tourneys.

SCOTFOX

Plenty of rumours and opinions, but no sources named or facts verified.

My £1 is on that nothing changes and this is pure scare mongering and we see a few more winter's before Sky poker folds.

waller02

SCOTFOX said:

Plenty of rumours and opinions, but no sources named or facts verified.

My £1 is on that nothing changes and this is pure scare mongering and we see a few more winter's before Sky poker folds.

Why has nobody come out and said that then? The silence speaks volumes.

Doubleme

Yeah I think if this was just rumours without substance then some sky staff would have appeared to debunk it as such.

I do not then conclude that this definitely happening it may be there are talks of this happening and its a possibility however likely or slim and sky staff cant comment on it for the time being. However the lack of comment does imply that there is at least a chance or discussion of this happening.

if Sky could keep their games isolated from the Ipoker network eg dons and tournies etc stay sky poker only but also offer games on the ipoker network as well this would be the best of all worlds but I think that is unlikely to happen.

I have heard there are a lot of bots on the Ipoker network and thus it is very hard to win, which is a scary idea, however I have no knowledge of how hard or easy the games on the Ipoker network are as I have not played there in at least 6 years maybe even longer then a decade ago. They were fairly beatable when I did play there though...

anyone who has more recent experience of the Ipoker network how beatable/tough are the games there?

Glenelg

Doubleme said:

have not played there in at least 6 years maybe even longer then a decade ago. They were fairly beatable when I did play there though...
?

Begs the question..why did you stop?

Doubleme

Glenelg said:

Doubleme said:

have not played there in at least 6 years maybe even longer then a decade ago. They were fairly beatable when I did play there though...
?

Begs the question..why did you stop?

I mean I have found most sites I have played on fairly beatable there is only one exception to this but i cant play on every single site.

NIVVYDOH

I moved from stars to Ipoker in 2015 for smaller fields. Certainly beatable then. Around 2 to 3 years ago the MTT's felt like they were becoming more difficult to beat. It may be just because I got worse lol. However, it did seem even at low stakes that players would play very well. Particlularly pre flop all in ranges and short stack play - areas that bots would have a massive edge. I have no proof of bots but with almost 9 years on Ipoker, I certainly became suspicious towards the end and quit them.

NIVVYDOH

Also agree with the tournament structures being too long with much longer time to act and timebanks. You need to commit up to 10 hours in the bigger field events. Also HUD software is allowed. The differences between Ipoker and SKY are stark.

kapowblamz

Some ipoker skins have exclusive games for that skin. That might be some remote kind of positive for people who still want to play together.

I am guessing that nothing official has been announced because it takes time to negotiate the terms of rather large vehicles like Sky Poker moving to ipoker. You also have to deal with how SPT will look going forward, if it does, and if and how any exclusive promotions will be done.

It's unlikely the suits will want to serve a half baked loaf in regard to clarification. When it's all clear I'm sure something concrete will be announced.

kapowblamz

There's also a chance that a believable and viable idea like this would gain traction if someone just said it flippantly, and it then became a bonafide rumour with no factual basis.

MISTY4ME

kapowblamz said:

There's also a chance that a believable and viable idea like this would gain traction if someone just said it flippantly, and it then became a bonafide rumour with no factual basis.

Having been at SPT Brighton...... and thoroughly enjoyed it, and seeing everyone again .....I was told that these rumours were true, and going to happen....... eventually !!!

So @HAYSIE will get his wish and be able to rejoin EUROPE

........it will at least give us some decent software at last.

......and hopeful GOOD NEWS was that the SPT's were going to continue, so looking forward to the next one

kapowblamz

@MISTY4ME

Ok, it sounds like it's happening.

Hopefully SPTs continue then, and no jobs are lost. These are the only important things for me. I'd guess there's no more SPT Vegas tho.