What Ails Full Tilt Poker?
Published on May 11th, 2014 6:48 pm EST
If you look up the global online poker traffic report on Pokerscout.com (link below), you will see that the top five online poker rooms in the world (by cash game traffic) look like this:1. Pokerstars (by a mile)
2. 888poker
3. iPoker
4. PartyPoker
5a. Full Tilt Poker
5b. Pokerstars.it
Shortly after their relaunch in November of 2012, Full Tilt Poker was easily the world's number two online poker room in the world behind Pokerstars. Over the past 18 months or so, however, Full Tilt Poker has steadily slipped down the ranks and is now battling the likes of Pokerstars.it and even Bodog for the #5 spot.
So what happened?
There are a number of reasons why Full Tilt Poker has likely fallen off since November of 2012, including:
1) The post-launch pop quickly faded. Full Tilt Poker's non-US customers were ecstatic to be reunited with their bankrolls and likely took a spin on Full Tilt Poker 2.0 for the sake of nostalgia. However, those warm and fuzzy feelings likely wore off quickly and many people decided to move to other sites.
2) A recreational player model with lower benefits. One of the biggest reasons behind Full Tilt Poker 1.0's success was the 27% rakeback deal that many players received. Full Tilt Poker now offers an inferior deal with less benefits, and many serious grinders have gone elsewhere.
3) The lack of nosebleed games. Sure, players like Gus Hansen and Viktor Blom are still around, but the high stakes games on Full Tilt Poker have lost a great deal of their lustre. Back in the "glory days" of the high stakes cash games (2007-2010), many casual players were lured to Full Tilt so that they could watch Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius and others battle on Full Tilt's virtual felt. Those players are still around, but it's not the same as it was back then.
4) Loss of confidence in Full Tilt Poker. Let's not forget the savaging that the Full Tilt Poker brand took after "Black Friday". It's safe to say that many players withdrew their bankrolls after the site relaunched and vowed never to return.
5) Competition. The battle to claim the #2 spot in the online poker world is intense and includes the likes of 888poker, PartyPoker and the iPoker network. What is Full Tilt Poker doing to stand out these days in terms of value?
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Can Full Tilt Poker reverse its fortunes or will it continue to be passed by other online poker rooms?
Source: Pokerscout.com
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Filed Under: Online Poker Rooms
