[freekobe]

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I'm surprised the top pros haven't unionized themselves already. The shows profit off them with no direct benefits, while the players are forced to share their tactics with the viewing audience, presumably to their detriment. The best shows sell the personalities, not the game. Poker's ratings rival those of MLB, NFL and NBA, why shouldn't the players be recieving the same benefits?

G

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I searched pretty hard in your post to find something that was true, and I couldn't find anything.

- Poker players benefit greatly from all of the TV exposure. Internet site sponsorships wouldn't exist if TV didn't exist. Hell, you probably wouldn't have registered for this site two months ago if not for televised poker. The pros benefit from TV. Some of the prize pools are inflated. There is a lot more dead money. And they get endorsement deals they never would've gotten otherwise. I think that's a real benefit.

If by "directly," you mean they should be paid to be on TV, you fundamentally misunderstand the relationship between poker players and television.

- Poker ratings do not rival NFL ratings. Poker ratings rival the NHL and other non-relevant sports. They do not rival the top three.

Furthermore, what should the WPT give to the players? Free entries? Money? You cannot compare the WPT to MLB, NFL, or the NBA. They're incredibly different structures.

The bottom line is, and this is what 99% of the population fails to understand: tv makes poker players. poker players don't make tv.

99% of people had never heard of david williams, josh arieh, joe hachem, etc. before they were on tv. anybody could've been those guys. there are only a handful of people who are irreplaceable: brunson, ivey, lederer, negreanu, to name a few. beyond that, everyone else is just a cog in a machine.