Following up on a preliminary announcement in September last year, online gambling group Betfair has announced arrangements for its move to Playtech's 6 million player-strong iPoker network.
In a statement last year Betfair announced plans to launch a Playtech-powered offering on the iPoker network in the Spanish & Italian markets.
On Monday both companies confirmed the upcoming launch of New Betfair Poker on the iPoker network, a site which will run in parallel with the existing Classic Betfair Poker, which will for now at least continue to operate on the Ongame network, recently acquired by Amaya Gaming.
A company spokesman said the arrangement will give players "a varied, feature rich poker playing experience on the two leading poker networks."
New Betfair Poker will offer customers enhanced tournament options, more tables to play on & more recreational players to play against, the spokesman added. It will also include the increasingly popular Speed Poker feature, offering players a more efficient & exciting poker experience with less waiting time between hands.
New Betfair Poker will also feature new & unique promotions & a rewarding loyalty scheme, with lucrative sign up bonuses offered to new customers.
"The iPoker network, owned by Playtech, currently has six million customers & is the fourth largest poker platform in terms of active players," a Playtech statement boasted. "Betfair's relationship with iPoker already extends to its casino & other gaming products."
Commenting on the deal, Sam Hobcraft, Betfair's director of gaming said: "Our intention has always been to offer our customers a rewarding & varied poker experience. Launching New Betfair Poker on Playtech's platform will help us to continue to achieve this goal. It's a world-class product, offering unique & innovative features. This, coupled with Betfair Poker's renowned community & loyalty offerings will help us better retain our existing player base & attract a new audience to Betfair Poker."
Roei Gavish, head of Playtech's iPoker said, "Our network continues to see positive development from both a liquidity & technological standpoint, which not only benefits a large operator like Betfair but also secures Playtech's leadership in the Poker B2B market."
The Playtech statement reveals that the move to Playtech will take place on January 21, & will lead to an exclusive network arrangement starting July 2013. New activations, according to the announcement, will be able to play on iPoker only.
The changes will further boost iPoker player liquidity, coming on the heels of its successful operator tiering system last year, & the migration of Everest Poker players, which grew traffic by a reported 15 percent.
Betfair will enter on iPoker's top operator tier as its eighth member, joining major companies like William Hill, bet365, Titan, Paddy Power & Winner Poker (see previous reports). The tier is designed & structured to attract the recreational player, with defined minimum performance requirements imposed on its skins.
8/1/2013, 9:45 pm