PCA Set to Begin on January 5th

Published on January 3rd, 2012 3:38 pm EST

2011 was the most chaotic year in the online poker industry since the UIGEA was passed into law in the fall of 2006. 2012 is set to be another interesting year, with Full Tilt Poker and the recent DoJ opinion re: the Wire Act likely being the catalysts for a number of major new developments.

Here is what is making news in the first week of January:

1. The latest on Full Tilt Poker.

Pokernews.com recently posted an interview with GBT (Groupe Bernard Tapie) lawyer Behnam Dayanim.

Dayanim clarified where GBT is currently at in the process of acquiring Full Tilt Poker, saying that GBT/FTP and the DoJ are currently “negotiating and memorializing a definitive agreement” that “essentially sets out all of the details surrounding the terms of the letter agreement.”

Once this agreement has been finalized, Full Tilt Poker’s assets will be forfeited to the DoJ, which will then turn around and sell them to Groupe Bernard Tapie.

Dayanim also said in the article that GBT was planning on seeking a license from both the AGCC (Alderney Gaming Commission) and the KGC (Kahnawake Gaming Commission).

Once GBT has acquired the Full Tilt Poker assets, I would expect to hear from them regarding the proposed re-opening date of Full Tilt Poker, and I would also expect to hear from the DoJ regarding the proposed repayment of US account balances.

Source: Pokernews.com

2. Online Poker Traffic Update.

Pokerscout.com just released their most recent “Weekly Online Poker Traffic Update”.

In their weekly updates, Pokerscout.com also provides a look at the year-over-year changes in terms of overall traffic to the major *.com sites and networks.

According to Pokerscout, three of the biggest winners over the past year have been:

Merge Gaming Network, +90%
888poker, +86%
Bodog, +57%

The biggest losers are easy to figure out:

Full Tilt Poker, -100%
Cereus, -99%

Entraction Network (-51%) and the International Poker Network (-42%) have both taken significant hits over the past year as well.

According to Pokerscout, Pokerstars.com has seen their traffic drop 15% over the past year. This is actually a huge win for the company given the fact that they pulled out of the United States earlier this year.

PartyPoker, on the other hand, is only up 5% YoY (Year over Year). The company has to be disappointed with this number, and was surely hoping for a bigger influx of customers after “Black Friday”. Things are definitely looking up for Bwin.Party, though, as recent developments in the United States will likely have a big impact on their bottom line.

Source: Pokerscout.com

3. 2012 PCA Gets Underway on January 5th.

The 2012 PCA (Pokerstars Caribbean Adventure) gets underway in less than two days. The first event of the series will be the $100k Super High Roller event, which gets underway at 12 pm local time on Thursday afternoon.

The main event begins on Saturday, January 7th and wraps up on Friday, January 13th.

The full PCA schedule can be found here.

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Filed Under: Online Poker Rooms

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