iPoker Network to Change Rake Calculation in March

Beginning March 1st, the iPoker Network will be shifting its rake collection method from the former dealt distribution to the new weighted rate. These changes will mark a significant alteration to the way rake has historically been collected on the iPoker Network and will be similar in nature to the formula recently implemented by PokerStars. In accordance with the new rules, iPoker Network VIP Points will be awarded on a much different standard than before.

The way the new rake collection rate, and VIP reward rate, will be implemented depends heavily on the amount a player actually contributes to a pot. This means that players will no longer receive an equal number of VIPs just for being dealt into a hand.

With the old method, a player who folded his hand pre-flop would be awarded the same number of VIP Points as two players who showed down in the same hand.

With the new rate, the players who contribute the most to an individual pot will receive the most VIP points, while those who do not contribute will receive fewer or no VIP Points at all.

The change goes away from the conventional method of rewarding players who compete at the virtual online tables. In previous years, many poker sites preferred quantity to quality when it came to rake-contributing customers. In other words, as long as there were new players coming into the game and contributing, many sites were happy to give an equal number of VIP rewards to players regardless of how much they actually contributed to pots.

This meant that ultra-tight players and ultra-loose players previously received the same number of VIP rewards provided they were dealt into the same number of hands at the same time. The new VIP reward rate will give preference to players who contribute more to individual pots, while super-tight players will no longer collect the same VIP rewards as their looser, more-aggressive colleagues.

Some players will be thrilled with these changes, while others will loathe them. More aggressive players who were previously "giving away" many of their VIP benefits to opponents who rarely entered pots will now enjoy a much larger share of the overall cut, while the tighter players will be forced to contribute more to pots if they are still interested in maintaining their VIP level.

It should be noted that these changes will affect all players who compete on the iPoker Network, regardless of whether they play on Titan Poker, William Hill, Poker770, Bet365, Mansion Poker, or another iPoker Network skin.

Some online poker players who customarily take to the online forums to discuss changes in VIP distribution such as this one have opined that super-tight players may leave the iPoker Network altogether. This may or may not be an unintended consequence of the new rake rules, but it could also represent a shift in the attitude of online poker rooms, as they’re sending a clear message to players that they will no longer receive the same VIP benefits if they are not contributing as much rake as others.

The bottom line for the iPoker Network is that players who pay more in rake will correspondingly be rewarded more VIP points. From that perspective, it can be argued that iPoker will reward players based directly on the amount of revenue they put into the site.

If you have an opinion on this issue, which could continue to affect online poker players worldwide as more networks look to implement their own version of the rake update, feel free to leave a comment below.