PokerSiteScout.Com, an internet site tracking traffic on major poker sites, is showing a serious decline across the board in the wake of last week's market changes.
In the week of January 19th, only absolute poker showed an increase in traffic (+5%) among the major poker sites, with Bodog and Full Tilt being hardest hit with traffic decreases (-18.2%). This is an early indicator that more people are taking the UIGEA enforcement seriously in the wake of the arrest of two cofounders of Neteller last week on money laundering charges.
Most poker sites accepting US players had been seeing small but steady increases in traffic after the withdrawal of Party Poker in October, with Pokerstars making the largest strides in the marketplace, but that growth hit a wall last week with Neteller's announcement that it would no longer allow transfers to and from gambling sites for US customers. Long term effects of the Neteller announcement remain to be seen, but other activities on the legal front make it seem likely that this decline is just the beginning.