As I have mentioned before, I came into the 'gambling industry' via the poker side of things.
In the online poker world, it is ABSOLUTELY considered cheating if any player registers for the same tournament with multiple accounts, even if each is from a different skin.
What's the difference between two people working together and exchanging information and a player having two entries in the same tournament.
The difference is precisely this: In poker, two people working together can let one another know which cards they are holding, creating an advantage over other players at the table. This can be done simply by players seated at the same "table" in an online poker tournament via telephone. In MG tournaments, there is no opportunity to gain a similar advantage.
Is this still not a form of collusion?
Unless there is a definition of
collusion that I am unaware of, one that does
not require the participation of at least two or more parties who are in agreement with one another for the purpose of defrauding another party or parties, in a word,
no.
A tournament is a tournament. Poker, slots, hockey, tiddly-winks, etc.
Does the player NOT have an unfair advantage by claiming two (or more) seats?
A player
would have an unfair advantage if the same opportunity for multiple seats were not available to every
other player. However, this is not the case as such a limitation no longer exists for MG tournament entrants.
I realize that the fault with this is entirely Microgaming's. Their changes have allowed this to occur, but it is still unfair.
I believe a final decision and resolution to this matter needs to be determined.
If this is going to be allowed, then it needs to be stated publicly (including the reasons why it is NOT considered cheating) so that all players can be aware that they may enter the same tournament from different skins.
Personally, I believe that it should NOT be allowed and should be stated as such.
Whatever it is, it can be done at MG as of only recently, by design, by MG.
When MG changed their tournament software to start prompting players to establish a new playername at every MG site where they had not previously entered a tournament, as opposed to greeting each player by a single, long established, playername, no matter which MG site he was logged into, what do
you figure they thought would happen? Do you think they were surprised that players were rushing around to all the MG sites they could think of where they hadn't entered a tourney before? Wouldn't you think, by now, that someone at MG would have noticed the big surge in tournament players registering for tournaments? Or at least a post or two of yours, given the volumes you've written?
And don't hold your breath for any public statement on the matter from MG. As long as they're watching their tournament revenues go up, they're going to maintain their "poker face", I'll wager.