The site will be switching to the weighted contribution system for awarding VIP Player Points (VPPs) in 2012.
Unlike the old system, which simply split VPPs equally to every player in a hand the weighted contribution rewards players with lower VIP statuses more and players with higher VIP status less.
According to PokerStars the change was to make the distribution of VIP Club benefits more balanced and less top heavy toward serious grinders and SuperNova+ VIPs.
The change has a fair amount of critics in the online poker community, however, with many claiming it hurts loyal players and makes it harder to achieve SuperNova status.
Sit & Goes and Multi-Table Tournaments will not be affected by the change and players will still earn 5.5 VPPs for every $1 they contribute in tournament entry fees.
The originally proposed changes to the VIP program, that were announced yesterday, were even more controversial with a switch from incremental rake to true percentage rake.
The new method used round half to even rounding, or unbiased rounding as it’s sometimes called, to calculate rake instead of the old incremental system.
Players would have paid more rake in some situations so PokerStars lowered some of the rake percentages and caps to make up for it.
Thanks to an outcry from the community, PokerStars decided today not to change rake and instead maintain the old incremental model.
Interestingly PokerStars also took the time to mention they would be launching a “fast moving ring games product” sometime in the first quarter, which sounds a lot like Rush Poker or something similar.
For more information about the changes to PokerStars VIP program check the online poker company’s website here.
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