Duplicate Poker Network
The Duplicate Poker Network was established in 2004 and their headquarters reside in New York City, NY, United States. DuplicatePoker claims to be unique and definitely is just that. They currently only have one room on their network, Duplicate Poker, but hope to increase this once their idea catches on. Basically, they are attempting to remove the luck element of poker by taking the principles of Duplicate Bridge and combined that with the popular Texas Hold'Em. As from their website:
By increasing the element of skill and decreasing the element of chance Duplicate Poker is a form of playing poker which is predominately skill-based. As a "Games of Skill", it is legal in most U.S. jurisdictions. This is not a gambling website. Our games eliminate the "luck of the draw" element from poker. As a result, the elements of skill predominate in determining winners in Duplicate Poker games. We have taken the principles of duplicate bridge and applied them to Texas Hold'em. By eliminating this luck element and increasing the skill elements we make the poker game fair, and more mentally challenging.
Of course, any serious poker player can see some loop holes in the claim of eliminating luck. It doesn't make poker a complete skill game, there will always be luck involved. However, it gives it a new twist which requires changing your style of play. This gives advantage to the shark as fish can not adjust to anything. It can be a fun break from the usual game you play!
As said earlier, the Duplicate Poker Network accepts all players no matter on their location; even the United States. They are even located in the US, which no other online poker site is. Currently, action is a problem from them as they are new. As of February 2008, I have never seen their player count rise above 400. This is much, much smaller than other online giants. But, it is a new idea and I am interested in seeing if it catches on and if any other innovative ideas can come from it.
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