Mac News and Rumors for December 28th

 

Our rumors from the last few weeks were once again confirmed when PokerStars announced changes to its VIP system.  All that remains is for Full Tilt Poker to outline its new buy-in structure and VIP system.  For now, check out our latest slate of news, notes, and rumors.

Apple Tablet Rumors Red Hot

Reports from the New York Times suggest that Apple boss Steve Jobs is extremely happy with the new Apple Tablet computer.  The rumor goes on to say that Apple might introduce the device as soon as January and that much of the technology for it has been adapted from the iPhone.  There aren’t any other details to share, but as soon as more news breaks, we’ll be sure to report it.  A separate report from the Financial Times reports that Apple has scheduled a special media event for January 26th in San Francisco.  The topic for this event is currently unknown.

New iPhone Rumors Surface

Well, it’s only been a few months, so we suppose it’s time that Apple told us that the new iPhone 3G S was completely obsolete.  Rumors from DigiTimes say that there are orders secured by Apple for a five-megapixel camera for a new next-generation iPhone.  The company that is supplying Apple with the cameras reportedly got an order for 40 to 45 million sensors for 2010, with the phone reportedly set to launch in the second half of the year.

PokerStars New VIP Club Details

As long rumored here on MacPoker.com, the world’s largest online poker site, PokerStars, announced changes to its VIP system.  The new program starts on January 1st and, with the new Stellar Rewards system, players will receive a cash reward every time they hit yearly VIP Player Point (VPP) levels, starting at just 750.  If you add up all of the yearly VPP awards available, the total comes to $1,000 if players reach 90,000 VPPs.

bwin (Ongame Network) and Party Gaming Merger Possible

If the rumors pan out, a merger between bwin and Party Gaming (owners of PartyPoker) would vault the new network ahead of iPoker.  What that means is that the new bwin-PartyPoker entity would become the third largest poker network behind Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars.  If you were to add the sum of the two networks, according to site traffic site PokerScout.com, the seven-day average would leap to 7,950 real money ring game players, which is far ahead of the iPoker Network’s 5,200 figure.  Of course, you have to take into account player overlap.

Isildur1 May Protest $4 million Loss to Brian Hastings

Many were shocked to see high-stakes player Isildur1 lose $4 million to Brian Hastings on Full Tilt Poker.  Even more were shocked to read, according to various poker media outlets, that Hastings broke the site’s Terms of Service.  Hastings admitted in an interview that he obtained hand histories on Isildur1 and used them to break down his game and find weaknesses.  This is expressly against the Terms of Service of Full Tilt Poker and a formal complaint may be in the works.  Full Tilt Poker has had no official statement regarding the matter.

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