LiveAce is now up and running in 32 states

The problem with the online poker regulations in the United States is one that has attracted a lot of attention over the years. Some states have recently went through the process needed to legalize online poker within state borders but many consider this action to be a short term solution that doesn’t cover a large part of the population.

LiveAce looks to change the way online poker is seen and played in the United States with a revolutionary concept that allows players to enjoy the game legally. It just went live in 31 states and in the District of Columbia, and it is an online subscription poker site that offers real money ring games. There are no tournaments available, at least not yet, and players use chips at the tables, with the option to bid for cash in a unique auction system.

Getting started

At first sight, the concept is fairly simple and online poker players should have no difficulty understating how LiceAce works. Players are given regular chips and they can use them to buy-in at the ring game tables. The most popular are the No-Limit Texas hold’em tables that start from as little as 1/2 blinds and go all the way up to 25/50. Players that want to join a table need to enter with a set amount of chips, known as the buy-in, which is 120 for the low stakes and 100 big blinds for the bigger stakes (2/4 tables have a buy-in of 400 chips, for example).

The chips you win at the tables are turned into “live chips” and you can use them to bid for real money in the auction system. For example, let’s say that you just sign up and use the free chips to earn 300 live chips. You decide to take part in the $500 daily auction and make a 200 chips bid for $50. It is important to point out that you don’t have to bid for the entire amount on the auction and you can just choose how much you want to get. When the auction closes, if you were one of the high bidders and you won the amount from the auction, the real money will be instantly transferred to a secure cash out account. If your bid wasn’t enough, the live points will be wired back. The money can then be used to cash out via different banking methods or to buy more chips.

[geocode id=1]

The site is browser-based, which means that it can be played without having to download anything and also runs on mobile devices that have the needed operating systems. The graphics are pretty good and there is also the option to upgrade to a premium membership to get certain benefits.

Will it catch on?

After seeing what the site has to offer and how it operates, only one question remains for online poker players in the United States – will it catch on? Since poker needs a large customer base to guarantee that tables are available at all stakes and at different hours, the number of players that join LiveAce is very important.

The fact that it is available in 32 states gives it a pretty big advantage if compared to the sites expected to go live in Nevada or New Jersey. The auction system seems pretty simple to use but it is based on other players since the winning bids are determined by the rate of chips to real money. This can mean that 200 chips are worth $50 one day and $15 the next.

If we are to talk about online poker in the United States, we should also mention the real money online poker rooms that still accept American players and do so without forcing them to jump through hoops. Carbon Poker is the leading card room that fits this description.