Important Question

[nabian2]

I'm a student at UK, and I'm writing a paper about the rising trend of poker (especially hold'em since it's my personal fav) We have to discuss what will happen if the "trend" continues... but the only thing that I can think of are negative effects. But I dont want my paper to be negative! Poker gurus... help!

[Stork]

If I were you, I would PM Al Schoonmaker and see if he'd be willing to send you his article, "Is Poker Socially Useful?". He also has part II of that article up in the Magazine section right now, if you go to the oldest issue you can.

[pryor15]

it makes it much easier for pros to make a living, being as there are so many more games available, so that's a positive.

[gambool]

Like you I am stuck to think of the positives, unless you are part of the <1% of players that get a good income from poker.

Maybe an angle you could look into, being from the UK, is how the poker boom is a reverse trend of what has happened in UK. Compare the worldwide boom with what has happened in UK casinos. If it wasn't for the internet, poker would still very much be unknown over here. The number of casinos spreading poker has probably shrunk over the last 10 years or so, largely due to restrictions placed by the gaming act. Its just not profitable for them (for many reasons). The only growth has probaby been in private games, of with there seem more and more around.

If the upward poker trend continues, will it influence the gaming act in the future? Will the UK be left behind? Is the UK casino industry missing out on the boom?

[jkkkk]

well i think the plans for super casino's and the like are quite important, it reflects a big demand for higher stakes and different gambling games that isn't being met.

[SenecaJim]

[ QUOTE ]
Like you I am stuck to think of the positives, unless you are part of the <1% of players that get a good income from poker.

Maybe an angle you could look into, being from the UK, is how the poker boom is a reverse trend of what has happened in UK. Compare the worldwide boom with what has happened in UK casinos. If it wasn't for the internet, poker would still very much be unknown over here. The number of casinos spreading poker has probably shrunk over the last 10 years or so, largely due to restrictions placed by the gaming act. Its just not profitable for them (for many reasons). The only growth has probaby been in private games, of with there seem more and more around.

If the upward poker trend continues, will it influence the gaming act in the future? Will the UK be left behind? Is the UK casino industry missing out on the boom?

[/ QUOTE ]


I believe he means UK as in University of Kentucky /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[jtr]

JKKKK, I nominate you as poker ombudsman. Go hassle the government to let UK casinos spread reasonable poker games, please. It would make many UK players (and visitors) very happy indeed.

[nabian2]

lol Thanks, SenecaJim, I do mean University of Kentucky, the info on United Kindgom does a bit help though. Thanks you all so much!

[gambool]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm a student at UK

[/ QUOTE ]
Doh! I read that as "..In UK". My bad /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[Zetack]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm a student at UK, and I'm writing a paper about the rising trend of poker (especially hold'em since it's my personal fav) We have to discuss what will happen if the "trend" continues... but the only thing that I can think of are negative effects. But I dont want my paper to be negative! Poker gurus... help!

[/ QUOTE ]

Really? Odd, I struggle to think of negative effects. I suppose the possibilty of more problem gamblers...

--Zetack

[jkkkk]

[ QUOTE ]
JKKKK, I nominate you as poker ombudsman. Go hassle the government to let UK casinos spread reasonable poker games, please. It would make many UK players (and visitors) very happy indeed.

[/ QUOTE ]

hah, i think all the plans have been put on hold anyway until after the election.

what exactly do you mean by reasonable?

theres reasonable cash(PL) and MTT games down at the westcliff casino /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Bluffoon]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm a student at UK, and I'm writing a paper about the rising trend of poker (especially hold'em since it's my personal fav) We have to discuss what will happen if the "trend" continues... but the only thing that I can think of are negative effects. But I dont want my paper to be negative! Poker gurus... help!

[/ QUOTE ]

The trend will continue as long as the amount of new candidate players are greater than the amount of players leaving the game. A percentage of all the participants will become regular, a percentage will be semi-regular participants and a percentage will never play again. The percentage of new players in the game will continue to increase faster than players leave the game until the market has been saturated. At that point the amount of participants will peak and decline until an equilibrium point is reached where the amount of new players entering the game will roughly equal (with appropriate fluctuations) the amount of players leaving on a regular basis.

All relatively basic supply/demand economic theory. (of which I know barely enough to be generally correct but not precise)

I look at poker as an entertainment market. It serves the same function as say, movies or sports. It's utility is in the value of diversion to general public. The demand for entertainment in the form of poker has not yet realized its potential. When it does the capacity of poker to entertain will have been reached and it will be performing it's intended function in society efficiently.

I hope my disjointed ramblings have been helpful. Good luck with your project.

[Greg J]

Yeah that is a good article. It makes a solid argument that I disagree with. I am under no delusions that poker is socially useful, and I think his useful things are actually bad for society, but I am a whiney liberal bitch. Oh well.

[Stork]

I also have mixed feelings on the article, but I think agree or disagree, it should be a valuable resource for the OP.