Correspondence chess community

[Valer Eugen Demian]

For those who do not know by now, the official body responsible for ANY form of correspondence chess in this country is CCCA! By any form of correspondence chess I include the 3 most popular forms: postal, email and server/ internet chess.

The governors are voting now on a motion allowing CFC to rate internet games. Considering there exists a written partnership between CFC and CCCA for years and I have been acting as the CCCA governor for at least 4 years in a row, I consider this motion out of order and breaking this partnership.

Regardless of these facts the governors continue to vote in favour of it, even after my explanations and request to eliminate it. I have advised the CCCA Executives of this development and with this message I also advise all chess lovers from across the country who have played one form or another at any given time.

Please make your voice heard! Do not let lack of knowledge or indiference break a partnership based on a win-win situation. CCCA has never done anything unilaterally to hurt CFC and does not deserve this kind of treatment.

[Halldor P. Palsson]

The CFC ran active tournaments on the ICC server 2003-2005 time period without any comments from the CCCA.

I really fail to see an issue here. These are proposed games with TDs at both ends played in real time - team events between clubs at different locations are the most likely application. I hope some activity will happen but I do not think this will amount to much and none of it is at the expense of events run by the CCCA.

I think claims of exclusive jurisdiction by CCCA based on the transmission of moves between two locations in real time over the internet are simply not well founded.

[Sam.Sharpe]

As long as the games are real-time and run at CFC ratable time controls, I do not see an issue with this.

[Paul Leblanc]

Valer, can you provide me with the contact information of the President of the CCCA and a copy of the agreement? We passed the motion to give strict guidelines about rating internet events because there have been a few internet events sent in for CFC rating. I'd like to work with CCCA.

[Valer Eugen Demian]

... with your points of view. Imagine beginning May 1st CCCA will decide unilaterally to rate (and charge fees) for OTB games between their members; how would CFC feel about it?

If CFC has ran tournaments on ICC in the past that is too bad. It just shows in my personal opinion a "cut throat" type of running the business and not at all a partnership.

Sam, internet games are internet games. Of course the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. I am very disappointed this is the reaction of the chess community to my concern. It shows disrespect toward me as a chess person and toward CCCA as an official organization. Sam should know better since he played correspondence in the past...

How do you find justice to comment on governors participation in general when you simply dismiss points like this one? Are there "governors" (important) and "governors" (who cares)?...

[Ed Zator]

... with your points of view. Imagine beginning May 1st CCCA will decide unilaterally to rate (and charge fees) for OTB games between their members; how would CFC feel about it?

...except that NO organization, let alone the CCCA, has sole jurisdiction over chess played on the Internet!

That is because the Internet is an entirely public medium.

However, EVERY chess organization, CCCA included, is free to use this public medium for its own purposes.

The CFC wants to make sure that any Internet games it rates are proctored,
and within regulations for conducting CFC rated tournaments.

That is none of the CCCA's business. End of story.

[Paul Leblanc]

You shoot first and then want to ask questions later; nice...

Valer, I don't see it that way. I said at this meeting that I had opened a discussion about this at the January meeting. If you go back to the record of the January meeting you will see that I asked for comments about rating internet games in my Rating Auditor report and you did not say anything.

However, I did not hesitate to tell you as soon as you made me aware of the CCCA that I will investigate the CCCA and correspond with the head of the CCCA to reach an amicable agreement.

[Kerry Liles]

You shoot first and then want to ask questions later; nice...

Valer, I don't see it that way. I said at this meeting that I had opened a discussion about this at the January meeting. If you go back to the record of the January meeting you will see that I asked for comments about rating internet games in my Rating Auditor report and you did not say anything.

However, I did not hesitate to tell you as soon as you made me aware of the CCCA that I will investigate the CCCA and correspond with the head of the CCCA to reach an amicable agreement.

Best of luck Paul. Given the apparent position of the CCCA that they (and they alone!) are the keepers of all chess that is played NOTB, I don't see much wiggle room.

I find it preposterous that the CCCA could even dream that it could have a reasonable claim to internet chess (by that I mean a game played via the internet using standard time controls for OTB play with proper supervision at both ends).

I sometimes play a game with a friend via Blackberry BBM (with time controls set at "whenever you get around to moving") - is THAT something the CCCA also claims to have in its jurisdiction?

[Vladimir Drkulec]

I find it preposterous that the CCCA could even dream that it could have a reasonable claim to internet chess (by that I mean a game played via the internet using standard time controls for OTB play with proper supervision at both ends).

I don't think that the CCCA has registered its opinion. So far we have one individual's opinion.

[Kerry Liles]

I don't think that the CCCA has registered its opinion. So far we have one individual's opinion.

That is a good point (and thanks for making it clear). That "one individual's opinion" does come from someone on the CCCA executive though? (the Secretary).

I also note this on the CCCA website:

The CCCA is an affiliate of the Chess Federation of Canada (CFC). An annual affiliation fee will be paid to the CFC. This fee shall be set by the Executive of the CCCA from time to time.