by Hillary LaClair, Senior Editor
March 21, 2009
Popular online poker room, PokerStars, has opened its doors to the Italian market, having launched an Italian version of the website that is now opened for real money wagers. The addition of PokerStars.it comes after the company obtained a license from the Amministrazione Autonome dej Monopoli di Stato in Italy. Players will be able to participate in real money tournaments; however, ring tables are excluded from the offering.
“PokerStars is proud to be entering a flourishing market with this new product. This is a ground breaking time for the online poker industry, and it’s very exciting that the Italian market is pioneering this move,” said Fabio Angeli Bufalini, PokerStars Italian country manager. “This is the start of a global template which could potentially be adopted in other markets internationally in the next few years.”
The tournaments now available to Italian players will hold fees of $0.50 to a maximum of Euro 100, including freeroll tournaments and satellite events. Ring tables are currently unavailable and it is not yet known if they will be added to the mix in the future.
“Players on PokerStars.it will have the opportunity to win their entry into famous international poker events – like the PokerStarts.com European Tour and the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas,” said Team PokerStars professional player, Dario Minieri. “These competitions require players to have the right mix of skill, training, concentration and luck.”
Minieri hails from Rome, Italy and was added to Team PokerStars in 2007, after he cashed out in two World Series of Poker events – including the Main Event. Prior to his time with PokerStars, Minieri finished 3rd in the European Poker Tour and won cash in the PokerStars European Tour Grand Final. Since then, he has qualified for a final table in the European Poker Tour and won a World Series of Poker bracelet in 2008.
Harrah’s Entertainment, which hosts the infamous World Series of Poker, is expected to file for bankruptcy by the end of the year, according to analysts. The company has exchanged some of its debt for $2.8 billion in lower value interest notes that would grow in the nine years.
“The company will very likely throw in the towel and reduce debt/equity restructuring later this year to streamline its balance.”
While Harrah’s has declined to comment on the issue of bankruptcy, it has not been specified whether another company will take control of the World Series of Poker tournament in the event of such a decline.
According to PokerStars, market research shows an estimated 500,000 accounts were registered in Italy during the first year of online poker being legalized, amounting to an estimated Euro 400 million in revenue. PokerScout.com, a poker room tracking website, shows that PokerStars is the most visited online poker room on the web, with 29,496 cash players. The site boasts 31,710 players during its 24 hour peak and 22,600 players as its seven day average. This number is more than double that of PokerStars’ leading rival cardroom, Full Tilt Poker.
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