PPA President Speaks Out on Bloomberg Television

Poker Players Alliance (PPA) President Michael Bolcerek spoke with Bloomberg Television’s Kathleen Hays Tuesday about the PPA’s efforts to fight for the rights of poker players across the United States. The interview was fairly standard, with no questions that have not been answered plenty of times before, but Bolcerek represented himself and poker fans well.

Below is a transcript of the most pertinent portions of the exchange:

Kathleen Hays: What needs to be changed, what would you keep?

Michael Bolcerek: Other countries, like the United Kingdom, like Spain, like Italy have embraced regulation of what they call “remote gaming.” And what we’d like to do is see the U.S. take a small step, a baby step, in the right direction, and look toward regulation of online poker for U.S. citizens.

Hays: What about those who say that you’re just going to allow people who cannot resist the allure…I mean it’s one thing if you have to go out to a restaurant, or some kind of card parlor or casino, it’s another thing if you can just sit down in your living room at your computer and start playing away. You’re so vulnerable, then, to getting caught up. You can get addicted to this. Is that a danger?

Bolcerek: I think there are addictions to anything. One percent of gamblers are addicted to gaming. The fact is that there’s probably more than one percent that are addicted to eBay or working on their blackberry or eating French fries. And I just want to know where is the U.S. going to stop? We think regulation is in the right direction. We can put in safeguards for problem gamers or problem poker players and let’s just take an affirmative step for good public policy.

Hays: The sites that were in operation were taking U.S. money, but they’re offshore companies. And I think it makes a lot of people wonder, “What are these offshore companies, isn’t there something kind of fishy here?”

Bolcerek: The companies that have stopped so far are the ones that were traded on the London Stock Exchange, subject to market regulation. They were in regulated jurisdictions, such as Gibraltar. We’d like to see U.S. companies compete with offshore entities. We’d like names that we know and trust, like Harrah’s and like MGM, to get into the market and offer internet poker to U.S. citizens.

Hays: You have argued that this will hurt Las Vegas and their live poker industry. I find it hard to believe that anything will hurt poker and gaming in Las Vegas. They are doing very well. Why do they need this?

Bolcerek: The regulations, what they do is stop people from wagering, from basically spending their own money on a form of entertainment. There are 23 million Americans who play poker online. When you reduce that marketplace, where people have become familiar with playing poker, they’re less likely to go to a casino, and you’re less likely to get new players who just want to play for a nickel or a dime or a quarter to understand the game online and then have the confidence to a casino and play, go to a card room and play. So we think the long-term effect will be negative.

Hays: There’s poker on TV, poker has become so popular…is there just still an element that’s very prudish when it comes to playing cards for money? And by the way, how did you get interested in poker?

Bolcerek: I was actually taught the game by my grandmother. American presidents play poker, we think poker is different. It’s American tradition. It’s a game of skill and it should be looked at separately. We’re hoping that Congress will right its wrong and at least move in the right direction in the new session.

Originally published December 14, 2006