Since the advent of online poker, there have been many methods employed to have them turn a profit. There were “no rake” rooms, which in theory would make money from advertising to its players, but they failed massively as few wanted to advertise with online poker rooms. The traditional “rake” system saw the rooms take fees for tournaments or a piece of each pot (usually around 10%) in a cash game and those have flourished since online poker’s invention. Now there is a new way of going about making money, but is it an online poker groundbreaker or is it the next great online poker scandal waiting to happen?
Jao Poker has been around for a few months now, but it has been under constant scrutiny since it has turned the lights on. Jao Poker has been the focus of several diatribes from poker player/investigator Todd Witteles and his site, Poker Fraud Alert, who makes several allegations of questionable dealings. In looking at them, players can make their decisions as to whether they want to play on the site.
First, there is no indication of who the owner of the company might be. Their website doesn’t have any documentation of ownership (usually at the bottom of the page, a company’s business ownership is stated, such as PokerStars’ page, and there are other things forthcoming as you’ll see). The “spokesman” of the company is allegedly a man named Tam Nguyen, who usually reacts to questions regarding the operation of the company with a litany of curses and castigations of the person inquiring. This isn’t the way an owner would, in normal cases, react to having his company examined.
Not displaying the ownership is problematic, but not having a way for players to contact the site is deplorable. In examining the site, there is NO way for a player to contact anything resembling Customer Support. Any reputable site would have a 24/7/365 staff to handle problems for players on the site.
Something else that is expected with online gaming and poker rooms is an area that answers the questions of players, normally under a tab called “Frequently Asked Questions” or FAQ. Jao Poker’s FAQ section is comical not only in the questions asked but also in its length. There are TWO questions in the FAQ for Jao Poker, with one question explaining what Jao means and the other question discussing their web app. Once again, any legitimate site has a lengthy FAQ section to assist their players with any of the questions they might have (and if you don’t have a Customer Service department, the FAQ section might be your way to help your players).
Then there is the case of the actual accrual of player and how the site makes money. Players first must sign up with a “code” from another player who is already on the site. That “code” allows the player who gave you the information to make money off your play – minus a bit for Jao Poker, of course. This goes on for each player that comes into the operation and, if you don’t recognize what it is, it is the basis for most multi-level marketing programs (MLM), including many that have been called “Ponzi schemes.”
This isn’t the end of the difficulties with Jao Poker. In visiting their website, there is absolutely no information about how the site’s Random Number Generator (RNG) – the complex mathematical computation that determines the action of the cards in play randomly – generates its information. There is no testing of the site by any organization, let alone one that has a reputable past. Once again, in PokerStars’ case, an entire section of their website is dedicated to information about their RNG and its certification.
Poker players – especially those in the States of America – have had a difficult time over the years with less-than-reputable sites that have left the scene, usually with a great deal of money from their former customers. In some cases, such as the “Black Friday” indictments, the players were eventually made whole. In others, like the Lock Poker closure, millions of dollars were taken from the players. When you’re looking for an online poker site, you want to be able to trust it. It is up to the individual player, after examining the examples above, if Jao Poker would fall on the side of being reputable or is another “fly by night” scheme that will eventually bite players in the backside again.
