Following more than a year of speculation, the world’s largest poker site, PokerStars, has announced that it has received approval for entry into the New Jersey online poker market. The Wednesday, September 30 announcement was made on the official PokerStars Blog and was immediately covered by mainstream news outlets such as ABC News and CNBC. The licensing authorization to operate as a legal online gaming platform in the Garden State extends to Amaya Group’s two major brands, PokerStars and Full Tilt. Amaya Group Chairman and CEO David Baazov said, “We are very pleased to add New Jersey to the long list of regulated markets that have found PokerStars and Full Tilt suitable to offer real-money online gaming,” in a company press release.
When Will PokerStars New Jersey Launch?
With the regulatory hurdle finally overcome, there is now widespread speculation on when PokerStars will launch in the United States’ largest licensed online poker market. No specific date has been released, but many believe both PokerStars and Full Tilt could begin offering its services to Garden State residents as soon as October. Some industry representatives see PokerStars’ entry as a much-needed boon for what has become a struggling enterprise within the US. Actual online gaming revenues have been woefully slim since legalized online poker became available in the nation. 888 Holdings CEO Brian Mattingley, whose company will compete directly against PokerStars and Full Tilt in New Jersey, was quoted in 2014 by the Las Vegas Review Journal as being favorable to New Jersey welcoming a competing brand into the mix. “They [PokerStars] are a formidable competitor. But they would make all of us work much harder and it would expand the market. I would much rather have a small slice of a large pie, than a big piece of a small pie,” said the 888 chief.
Can PokerStars Lift the New Jersey Online Poker Market?
PokerStars is widely recognized as a public relations powerhouse that built a solid reputation among American players both before and after Black Friday in 2011. Although the site has not been available in the U.S. for more than four years, it was Stars’ acquisition of then Full Tilt Poker that many credit with making payouts to players possible. PokerStars has an impressive list of iconic personalities signed as Team Pros, including all-time live tournament money winner Daniel Negreanu, Brazilian soccer superstar Neymar Jr, and Twitch live streaming king Jason Somerville, The site also spends heavily on global and local marketing campaigns, a fact that could lead to more mainstream interest from recreational players in New Jersey.
Partnership with Resorts Casino Hotel
PokerStars’ and Full Tilt’s pending New Jersey launch will be tied to a partnership Amaya has with Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City. Despite the widespread optimism (some would say “relief”) among U.S. regulated online poker proponents, overall success will be measured by traffic and revenue. PokerStars New Jersey players will not be allowed to compete within the same pool as Rest of World (ROW) players, meaning tournament fields and cash game bases will be similar to what is currently offered on 888/WSOP NJ and PartyPoker/Borgata NJ poker sites.
For now, the United States online poker industry has a reason to celebrate. It remains to be seen how much PokerStars will be able to stimulate the licensed NJ market, but regulatory approval is a very positive step in the right direction.
P-aire 146
Obviously, I’m SOOOOOO happy. But, lets see what and how things go. I realize that it’s not going to be the PStars like PRE-black friday. I know it’s NOT going to be HUGE tourneys like the Sunday Millions ect. ect.. ect…
Being a NJ player, I dislike everything about Partypoker esp the software. WSOP/888 are cool and that’s the closest thing to Pstars that we have as far as software.
Just happy to see what happens from here into the future.