by Renee Israel
The Alderney Gambling Control Commission announced that it has initiated a
review of the totality of the procedures it followed and the actions that it
took in the Full Tilt Poker case. Full Tilt Poker has had several cases against
it such as class action lawsuits, federal suits and licensing issues with the
Alderney Gambling Control Commission. Now, with news of a possible deal with
Tapie, the UK poker community is left confused as to whether this site is a good
place to wager at and the AGCC review should help clear that.
These procedures and actions culminated earlier this year in the revoking of
licenses belonging to FTP. After the events of Black Friday, poker sites like
Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars have lost their foothold in the US market.
However, unlike the other poker sites, Full Tilt Poker lost its reputation in
the international poker community on account of it being unable to pay back its
players both in the US and the UK.
While reiterating that the Commission reacted promptly and correctly to the
possibility of irregularities in FTP's operations, the Commission's Executive
Director André Wilsenach said that the enquiry was an attempt to address various
questions that were naturally raised by third parties in the wake of the license
revocations.
AGCC'S Review Will Be Strong Assessment of Full Tilt
The review, which will be headed by Peter Dean, former Chairman of the
British Gambling Commission, is a result of an internal assessment done by the
AGCC. The Commission believes that the review would serve the best interests of
players, license holders and of the AGCC itself. It is confident that the review
would place on record that the commission's actions were appropriate and fair at
all times.
Wilsenach who revealed that the final report would be made public said that
the review is being conducted "in order to provide full transparency".
Peter Dean's mandate is to conduct a complete review of AGCC's actions and
particularly to determine if these actions were appropriate, timely and fair. He
has time till March 2012 to submit his findings.
In June 2010, subsequent to the U.S. Department of Justice's action on Full
Tilt Poker, the AGCC had suspended the license of FTP and three months later had
revoked it. At that time the AGCC had accused FTP of misleading the Commission
regarding its operational integrity. Other alleged violations of regulations
included false reporting and unauthorized providing of credit.
It is as yet unclear how this review will impact the prospects of players who
have not yet been paid money credited into their accounts by FTP and who are
hoping for a legal solution to their claims.
