French Protest Increased Rake by Sitting Out

Poker players in France aren’t taking new laws there sitting down. Ok, they are sitting down, but they aren’t being quiet about it.

Recent changes to poker laws in France have added additional fees for the poker proprietors, and those companies are passing the fees along to the players, leaving many angry and frustrated because the fees, they say, cut well into their profits.

The French government is collecting a 2 percent tax on all tournaments, re-buys, and cash games. The taxing will be across the board, even on hands that fold. The poker companies say they can’t absorb this cost themselves, so are passing the fees along to the players as an extra rake.

Players at PokerStars and other sites are in protest mode. Many players argue that having to pay the extra 2 percent rake puts poker playing as a luxury rather than a fun, harmless hobby. They say that the extra rake might mean that the number of hands available will drop by as much as 25 percent.

So, in a kind of tea party fashion, French players are sitting out games while still occupying seats. These modified “sit ins” are orchestrated when players log into their accounts and occupy seats. They don’t buy in, however, instead choosing to sit out hands. The hope is that the French government (along with the poker sites that can lobby the government) will see the problem and lift the rake, or at least decrease it.