Affiliate programs - senseless?

[rerazor]

I don't understand why sites utilize affiliate programs. I mean how many people are TRULY signed up through them? I'm guessing a very large percentage are people seeking rakebacks and actually look for the affiliates rather than vice versa. It kind of irritates me that I have to pay this middleman whatever percentage he gets as opposed to it all coming back to me, the player. I'd like to see a site offer rakebacks based on time played.

Surely a site like Partypoker will come to their senses and realize these affiliate programs are costing them a lot of money. They're so big and well known why do they need them.

[emonrad87]

Rather than whine about paying too much rake, you should be glad that you get any rakeback at all. Becuase if you're right and sites don't really need to use affiliate programs (although i'm POSITIVE that they are +EV for the sites, or else they WOULD NOT do them), they could just end them and you would get nothing back.

Why are all these people posting all these whiny "online rake is too high" and "i hate giving all my money away to these people" posts recently? If you don't like the rake or whatever, don't play there. They're just trying to make money - if you don't like that I'd advise a communist country where NO ONE makes anything and has to stand in line for toilet paper.

[rerazor]

First off i'm not whining about anything, I'm asking why the sites offer the programs. Second, the established sites are making hundreds of millions of dollars off an essentially captive audience, there isn't the freedom to advertise a new site. If the market were open to new participants hell *I'd* start a new site offering half the rake.

That whole comminist country thing is just stupid, I mean really.


[ QUOTE ]
Why are all these people posting all these whiny "online rake is too high" and "i hate giving all my money away to these people" posts recently? If you don't like the rake or whatever, don't play there. They're just trying to make money - if you don't like that I'd advise a communist country where NO ONE makes anything and has to stand in line for toilet paper.

[/ QUOTE ]

[Sandstone]

The established sites are still trying to get customers from other established sites. Even the various Party skins are essentially at war with themselves.

I mean, there's a reason I don't play at PokerStars, and it's not because of Party's great customer support.

[rerazor]

Right, I'm the same way, I don't play Stars cause I don't get a rakeback. What I'd like to know really is how many customers affilates get aren't on a rakeback program, cause those are probably the fresh customers the sites really want. I'm guessing its a small percentage. The rest of us are basically just going through middlemen who are taking a cut for virtually no work.



"The established sites are still trying to get customers from other established sites. Even the various Party skins are essentially at war with themselves.

I mean, there's a reason I don't play at PokerStars, and it's not because of Party's great customer support. "

[Inthacup]

I think you'd be very surprised by how small the percentage is of poker players who actually know what a rakeback is.

I guarentee you this: If having affiliates wasn't beneficial to poker sites, they wouldn't have them.


Cup

[BradleyT]

Hmmmm, this is a very tough one. Let's assume you're party poker.

I send you someone who generates $100 a month in rake. You send me $30.

Would you like me to send you 1,000,000 people?

[emonrad87]

[ QUOTE ]

What I'd like to know really is how many customers affilates get aren't on a rakeback program, cause those are probably the fresh customers the sites really want.

[/ QUOTE ]


Actually, the sites couldnt care less whether the person is a "fresh" customer or one that transferred from another site to get the best rakeback deal. The site still gets the same amount of rake from an established player as a "fresh" one (actually probably more because a player looking for rakeback will be a solid player 99% of the time), and pays the affiliate the same. What the affiliate does with the money doesnt matter. The sites make the same amount.