- A French study has found that 23.5% of poker players play at sites not regulated by ARJEL.
- The impact of players leaving regulated sites is much higher than the raw percentage suggests, since it is likely to be the higher volume players who are leaving.
- The French mainstream media has picked up on a different story from the study, claiming that online poker is the most “addictive” of the games legally offered in .
A study by the French Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (OFDT) and the Observatory of games (ODJ) has found that 23.5% of poker players play at sites not regulated by ARJEL. 2as3w
The study puts a frightening figure on what was previously suspected. French cash game poker has been in decline almost since regulation was introduced in 2010. Former ARJEL President Jean François Vilotte blamed the trend on high volume players “either moving out of the country or playing on illegal websites.”
The cut marketing budgets. Gray market operators avoiding such tax rates can offer attractive alternatives to French players.
The exaggerated impact the taxes have on online poker is visible in the figures for horse race betting and sports betting, the other two regulated gambling activities in . Only 8.9% of horse race bettors and 4.5% of sports bettors use “gray” market sites, according to the study.
The big two regulated sites in the French market are PokerStars . Most other major European rooms and networks have a French-regulated presence, including PartyPoker and iPoker. But smaller sites and networks without licenses that have continued to allow French players to play have proliferated, according to the study.
By humorous ments to try and encourage players to play on legitimate sites.