Skillbet announced that they will alter their business plan effective immediately. The company announced that they have ceased all marketing efforts and terminated their prop player program. This was done after a concerned player started a thread at Two Plus Two that seems to prove that props were auto folding in the skill competitions.
The prop program is not the only part of the Skillbet business under fire. Players have accused a site founder, Paul Behrman, of producing a bot program in the past that was used at real money tables on Full Tilt Poker. He also produced software known as the Holy Grail of Poker. The software is an artificial intelligence program that helps players replay previous hands for optimum performance in future situations.
Skillbet Forum Shills
Skillbet threads at the Two Plus Two poker forum were infested with shills touting the product. Several of these accounts were called out by posters. The shills were investigated and banned by admins of the forum. Some of these same accounts have been accused of touting the Holy Grail of Poker threads in the Two Plus Two software forum.
Skillbet History
Skillbet joined the online poker scene in 2012. The site offered a No Limit Texas Hold’em format that was offered in 28 states under laws that apply to skill games. Skillbet was not offered outside of the US at first, but Canada was later added. The rest of the world was added in 2013. The site eventually dropped several states. Only 25 states are currently accepted at Skillbet.
Much like the failed Duplicate Poker business model, Skillbet never caught on with online poker players. Deposits were easier to make at Skillbet than standard US facing sites, but players were still not convinced that the model of playing a game with bots was as fun or legitimate as the real game, regardless of Skillbet’s legal opinion and ease of banking.
Excellent Opinion of Skillbet’s Future
Flushdraw.com posted an editorial about Skillbet that paints a very bleak future for the company. Much like Duplicate Poker, which promoted a product they claimed was revolutionary and legal but ultimately failed, Skillbet seems to be at a similar crossroad. Duplicate Poker players were never paid in full.
There is no reason to doubt Skillbet’s claim that all player deposits are held in segregated accounts. Players have not reported slow payments or any other issues. Regardless, it appears that the end of Skillbet in its current format is here. The question now is whether the company can find its place in the highly competitive social media market.
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