pokerstars should be added to the approved poker rooms list

[ace4suited]

Pokerstars is simply the best site out there.

WHY?
1) they have THE best customer support out there. They are quick to answer questions and have very good accuracy ratings.

2)They take issues such as collusion, racist language etc seriously. If something is referred to them it is investigated and if they take action they will let you know.

3) they do all sorts of good gestures. Say if you are in a tourney and face severe connection problems. Even though its no fault at their end they will sometimes send you some cash for perceived loss of earnings

4) their refunds policy when collusion is detected IS fair. Some sites like party will seize money but will not refund exclusively those who were in the tournaments etc conserned. Much of the money will go into money added tournaments. So rather than giving the seized money to those that they played agaisnt it gets used to help fund their promotions - thats nice. Stars has it right on the money and puts its customers first.

5) they have banking integrety. The money is held by a third party (RBoS i think). This means that they cannot invest players funds in other activities and even if there was a major collapse of the online gaming market everyone would still be able to get their funds from poker stars

6) in terms of their marketing it seems reasonably ethical to me. No false statements etc and I have not noticed them using spam.

All of the recommended poker rooms seem to be connected to casino counterparts. Full Tilt is probably also worth inclusion as would be poker.com.

 

[liquidsoap]

I agree, I just cashed out $1100 from them this weekend!
Always have and always will be my favorite pokersite.
But I do have to say I have seen a lot of bad beats on there, more then any other site.

 

[ace4suited]

they have loads of loose players liquid and that goes a long way to accounting for the bad beats. Loose players mean more confrontations and the more confrontations there are the more bad beats will follow.

 

[pokeraddict]

Casinomeister only lists sites that do not accept U.S. players. I do however completely agree with you. Poker Stars is #1 in so many categories. Not just number of players but for all of the items you mention above. I am a Stars customer for life.

 

[The Dude]

Casinomeister only lists sites that do not accept U.S. players. I do however completely agree with you. Poker Stars is #1 in so many categories. Not just number of players but for all of the items you mention above. I am a Stars customer for life.

Actually this has been modified to listing the same casinos as before, but I don't serve banners or promotional materials to US based players. It's an ongoing thing that fluctuates with the legal wind.

 

[pokeraddict]

Actually this has been modified to listing the same casinos as before, but I don't serve banners or promotional materials to US based players. It's an ongoing thing that fluctuates with the legal wind.

Whoops, I need to pay better attention then.

 

[REOdeathwagon]

Pokerstars is simply the best site out there.

WHY?
1) they have THE best customer support out there. They are quick to answer questions and have very good accuracy ratings.

2)They take issues such as collusion, racist language etc seriously. If something is referred to them it is investigated and if they take action they will let you know.

3) they do all sorts of good gestures. Say if you are in a tourney and face severe connection problems. Even though its no fault at their end they will sometimes send you some cash for perceived loss of earnings

4) their refunds policy when collusion is detected IS fair. Some sites like party will seize money but will not refund exclusively those who were in the tournaments etc conserned. Much of the money will go into money added tournaments. So rather than giving the seized money to those that they played agaisnt it gets used to help fund their promotions - thats nice. Stars has it right on the money and puts its customers first.

If PokerStars is not on the list, then the the list is toilet paper.

If PokerStars is not first on the list, then the list is suspect.

I would suspect the author of the list is more interested in affilliate fee$, than true rankings of poker sites. IMHO.

The customer service at Stars, has always been heads and shoulders above the rest. My emails have always been answered within a few minutes. And not answered with a cookie cutter response either. A real response, typed by a real person.

 

[bpb]

Actually this has been modified to listing the same casinos as before, but I don't serve banners or promotional materials to US based players. It's an ongoing thing that fluctuates with the legal wind.

That explains why they aren't on the list right now.

It doesn't explain why they haven't been on the list for the past 2+ years.

 

[The Dude]

If PokerStars is not on the list, then the the list is toilet paper.

If PokerStars is not first on the list, then the list is suspect.

I would suspect the author of the list is more interested in affilliate fee$, than true rankings of poker sites. IMHO...

Maybe if you actually read what it takes to get listed here at Casinomeister, you wouldn't be making comments that make you look like an ass. As stated on the site, I meet in person with the operators before being listed at Casinomeister. Affiliate$$ is not an issue since I normally don't participate in Aff deals.

PokerStars has not shown an interest to being listed here - no one from their poker room has ever contacted me.

 

[ace4suited]

Poker stars provide excellent support to players but their interest in supporting affiliates is less. I do not see this neccisarily as a bad thing. Site like Titan poker need to do all they can to get players and if that means cozying up with affiliates they will do it. I have contacted stars as an affilaite and sometimes got no response or the response has been slow (i have not brought them many players though)

So it does not surprise me that poker stars were not terribly responsive CM but there is a difference between responsive and responsible.

As far as I am aware they treat affilates fairly (i.e. pay them promptly and properly) and they are always quick and prompt in dealing with customer queries.

The fact that they are not willing to engage with CM would not to me make them a site that shouldnt be recommended as their treatment of customers is exemplary. I still feel that even though they might not meet criteria that you have set they deserve a place on the list.

Still it is your list CM and I dont want to twist your arm about the issue and you are of course free to set the rules and requirements as you wish.

 

[The Dude]

Don't get me wrong - it's not that they have been unresponsive, I've never had to contact them/they haven't needed to contact me.

If you feel they should be on the list, that's great. I'll be in London in January and they'll probably be there as well. It's a good chance we can meet.

 

[REOdeathwagon]

Maybe if you actually read what it takes to get listed here at Casinomeister, you wouldn't be making comments that make you look like an ass. As stated on the site, I meet in person with the operators before being listed at Casinomeister. Affiliate$$ is not an issue since I normally don't participate in Aff deals.

CM, after I posted "my opinion" I did look @ the requirements for getting listed on your forum. And I meant to get back to the PC and edit my post.
And to clarify the exact point that you had mentioned. This was before your post. Unfortunately, I got called into work, and this did not get done.
Becuase upon thinking about it, I knew it may be taken as disrespectful, which was absolutely not my intention.

As for affilliate deals, In the past when I signed up for casinoes through your banners, I assumed that you received revenue for my sign up, in some form. That was my intention anyway, because I felt that you deserved compensation for the services that you provide the community.

Don't get me wrong - it's not that they have been unresponsive, I've never had to contact them/they haven't needed to contact me.

Probably a good sign that a site with a very significant amount of the online poker traffic is dealing their customers a fair game.
If Stars customer service is as good as everybody says it is, they are handling issues in house. The way it should be. Therefore no PAB's, no reason to contact them, CM's life is easier.

 

[REOdeathwagon]

The fact that they are not willing to engage with CM would not to me make them a site that shouldnt be recommended as their treatment of customers is exemplary. I still feel that even though they might not meet criteria that you have set they deserve a place on the list.

Agreed with Ace4suited

For at least these reasons:
1 - Customer Service
2 - Tournaments
3 - Game Selection
4 - Player Base
5 - History / Length of service

 

[REOdeathwagon]

Maybe if you actually read what it takes to get listed here at Casinomeister, you wouldn't be making comments that make you look like an ass. As stated on the site, I meet in person with the operators before being listed at Casinomeister. Affiliate$$ is not an issue since I normally don't participate in Aff deals.

PokerStars has not shown an interest to being listed here - no one from their poker room has ever contacted me.

Maybe it's a positive thing that Stars is using their resources hiring quality CSRs to answer customer inqueries faster with true resolution. Than to send an agent / rep. to shmooze itself onto a list. Eventually all that "shmoozing" would just lead to a higher rake, to maintain the bottom line.

One more thing, then I'm gone. Casinomiester, you seem to dislike bonuses because the majority of PAB's in the past were bonus related, not a big issue with Stars, they seem to be so strong in the other areas of service, that they do not need to offer many bonuses, to maintain a strong player base.

Jeez, I now feel as if I'm a schill for PokerStars, I'm not. Just loyal to what I feel is good for the gambling dollar, The Casinomeister Forums, and PokerStars.

 

[spearmaster]

I think people need to understand that Casinomeister is already extremely busy dealing with the advertisers he has, plus moderating the forums, plus plenty of other things.

The Accredited list here is NOT an exhaustive list of good and/or safe places to play. Getting on this list means Casinomeister agrees. Not being on this list does NOT in any way mean that an operation is shady or dishonest - there are a number of operations I can think of that are honest and good and do not appear on this list.

Should Pokerstars be on this list? If they want to be, they probably can be - but their absence from the list does NOT mean that they are not a good place to play.

 

[REOdeathwagon]

I think people need to understand that Casinomeister is already extremely busy dealing with the advertisers he has, plus moderating the forums, plus plenty of other things.

The Accredited list here is NOT an exhaustive list of good and/or safe places to play. Getting on this list means Casinomeister agrees. Not being on this list does NOT in any way mean that an operation is shady or dishonest - there are a number of operations I can think of that are honest and good and do not appear on this list.

Should Pokerstars be on this list? If they want to be, they probably can be - but their absence from the list does NOT mean that they are not a good place to play.

Very well put spearmaster, made me think about it in a different way. Thank you for your insight.