- PokerStars is revamping its rewards program, introducing two new tiers and increasing rewards across most tiers.
- The new program emphasizes high-volume play and offers predictable, transparent progression through the tiers.
- PokerStars’ Power Path qualification system will now offer daily rewards for players in the lower tiers.
- Rewards will no longer be in the form of StarsCoins or Tournament Dollars, but directly as cash.
PokerStars is making radical changes to its rewards program from Monday, January 22. The new PokerStars Rewards will roll out in several markets, including the global dot-com market and segregated Spanish market.
The new rewards program, announced earlier in the week, adopts a more traditional approach to player incentives, placing a strong emphasis on rewarding high-volume play. Notably, two new tiers, Select and Select+, reminiscent of the Supernova and Supernova Elite programs from over a decade ago, will be introduced.
There is also an increase in generosity across nearly all reward tiers. Under the revamped system, the maximum level of rewards on the base program will go up from 25% to 40%. However, the minimum requirement to earn a Chest will also see an increase.
The operator is touting it as a “fairer and more transparent rewards program.” Every player will now have precise knowledge about their rewards based on their play, and the progression through the tiers, from Blue to Black, will be predictable and transparent, devoid of personalization.
PokerStars’ hugely popular qualification system, Power Path, which launched last year, gets a big push. Players in the lower two tiers, Bronze and Blue, will now receive a 50-cent Power Path ticket every day, regardless of their spending amount. The operator says that every player will now receive something — a notable shift from the current system where almost half of the players go unrewarded.
While PokerStars admits that not every player will receive more rakeback, it says that 93% of players will find themselves in a more advantageous position as a result of these changes.
“We have worked hard to listen to our players concerns and address them by providing a more transparent and easy to understand rewards system,” Chris Straghalis, Director of Online Poker Experience at PokerStars, told pokerfuse.
The new loyalty program not only addresses key concerns players had with the existing setup, but also ensures consistent rewards for all players, regardless of their profiles.
First, the controversial weekly challenges, known for offering an additional rakeback of up to 40%, will be discontinued. In its place, two new tiers, Select and Select+, catering to high-profile players, will be introduced, presenting an opportunity for up to 60% rakeback (slightly down from the current top 65% rakeback).
