GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 35 - June 2016

“I thought the GPWA was a good orga- nization and I thought it was suffering from not having the resources it need- ed to be successful,” says Corfman. “I didn’t see any reason why, if the right effort was put in, it couldn’t be more successful. An organization that’s run with a philosophy that cares about the members should, over time, succeed.” New initiatives lead to unprecedented growth Change came quickly under the new ownership. “I don’t think running an association like the GPWA is as simple as creating a forum and waiting for people to come to it,” says Corfman. “We did a number of things to try to make the GPWA an organization that provided more value to members.” In November 2006, the first edition of the GPWA Times e-mail newsletter was sent to members. One month later, the GPWA Seal of Approval program was launched. In May 2007, the first edition of the GPWA Times Magazine was published. In June 2007, the GPWA announced its Sponsor Affiliate Program Code of Conduct, a set of rules that affiliate programs would have to faithfully follow to become a GPWA sponsor and maintain that sponsorship. Beyond new programs, Corfman and his son Steven Corfman (“CityGuard” on the GPWA Forums) reached out to GPWA members who hadn’t been active or had previously been banned. “Steven reached out to me and wel- comed me back,” says Anthony Telesca (“Anthony” on the GPWA Forums), who, as an administrator of the APCW, had been banned by the previous ownership. “Casino City had a very good reputa- tion, so everyone was kind of optimistic. Steven encouraged [me and J. Todd] to post APCW videos and audit reports on the GPWA.” In fall 2008, facing outside pressures, Telesca approached Michael Corfman to see if he would be interested in acquiring the APCW as a sister site to the GPWA. The organizations came to terms on Oct. 17, 2008, and have been working together ever since. “The GPWA and the APCW go hand-in- hand,” says Telesca. “Programs that agree to the GPWA’s Code of Conduct show they value affiliates. The APCW’s audits check that commitment by confirming that affiliates get credit for their traffic. The APCW’s videos reach out to the affili- ate community and keep them informed, directing them to the GPWA Forum when they really want to get more information about what’s going on in the industry.” The GPWA has continued to support other organizations in the industry. In June 2009, the GPWA added Affiliate Guard Dog ratings to affiliate program pages. A few months later, the Affiliate Forum Alliance was formed to provide forum users with a resource when they felt they were being treated unfairly by administrators at any of the eight mem- ber forums, including the GPWA. That fall, after the formation of the Gambling Affiliates Union, the GPWA opened a dedicated forum where the union could announce plans and members could dis- cuss issues. While several of these initia- tives are now defunct, the philosophy of supporting others who looked out for the best interests of affiliates reflects the GPWA’s core beliefs. “Affiliate Guard Dog has a good product and affiliates are interested in that infor- mation, so we list the AGD rankings on the GPWA,” says Telesca. “We want to draw attention to them because they high- light what programs have the best terms. That is the same sense of community that you see in the forums where members help each other.” All along the way, the GPWA has contin- ued to grow and become an even more important resource in the Internet gam- bling affiliate community. In January 2007 — just six months into the new ownership regime — the GPWA eclipsed 4,000 reg- istered members. Today, there are more than 22,000 registeredusers.Andwhile the number of registered users is not a perfect way to measure growth, nothing tells the story of the GPWA’s growthmore than the activity on the forums. To date, there have been more than 500,000 posts on nearly 80,000 threads on the GPWA forums. Freedom of speech and the weight of the GPWA One reason the GPWA has been so suc- cessful is the free-speech philosophy that the community expects and enjoys. While it doesn’t always make for comfortable conversations, members of the GPWA are free to air their concerns, both with the organization itself and with the organiza- tion’s sponsor programs. “That’s what it was all about at the be- ginning with Cindy — we’ll let you say anything you want,” says Bard, who now leads the security/membership team for the GPWA. “Michael’s been really good about that. You’ve got a complaint? Bring it to us. You’ve got to post it in a profes- sional manner, but we won’t ban you be- cause you complained about a sponsor, no matter how much money they pay, andAnthony and I will both fight for your right to say what you feel.” There were some who told Michael Corfman soon after he acquired the GPWA that he didn’t know what he was doing. One in particular said that he Antonio Esfandiari displays the June 2010 issue of the GPWA Times Magazine . 23 The “Friend to the Village Idiot” celebrates 10 years at the helm