For many online poker networks, player volume and revenues tend to decline during May and June.
Not in Nevada.
The 45th annual WSOP has attracted prestigious poker professionals, wealthy businessmen, and notable members of the poker community to Vegas. It seems that some of them are also exploring WSOP.com, the online version of the WSOP.
WSOP.com’s Head of Online Poker, Bill Rini and his team, have gone above and beyond to welcome the poker community. They’ve offered numerous opportunities for players to either make a fortune online or secure a spot in a live WSOP event. The fact that this doesn’t hurt is an understatement.
It seems that as the rest of the online poker community struggles, the activity on Nevada’s virtual poker tables is only just beginning to heat up – and not a moment too soon.
Online poker revenue down in April
Last month, the three major poker networks in Nevada reported a month-over-month revenue decrease of 14.5% ($792,000). The disappointing revenue figures for April are the state’s lowest since it began publishing online gaming reports in February.
Cash-game volume saw a distressing dip of 11.7 percent throughout the month, a loss significantly greater than the global market’s percentage loss.
Looking back, it seems that WSOP.com accepted that their performance in April would be lacklustre, concentrating instead on the cross-promotional opportunities provided by the live WSOP. It’s fair to say that this strategy was successful.
Cash-game volume on WSOP.com surges upwards
Cash-game traffic on WSOP.com has hit its peak since mid-March, thanks to its brand association with the WSOP, strong marketing campaign, and the introduction of the High-Roller Series.
Data collected from PokerFuse Pro through PokerScout indicates that the 7-day cash-game averages on poker sites based in Nevada are as follows:
- WSOP: 113 – There has been a 13 percent increase in traffic since last week, and it continues to rise quickly.
- Ultimate Poker: 58 – The WSOP effect also benefits UP, which has increased from 53 just a week ago.
- Real Gaming has officially transformed into the Betfair of Nevada, standing at 0.
The disappointing results of Nevada’s iGaming operators in April seem to be fading, as traffic numbers are predicted to increase even more.
The recent surge in traffic could be attributed to several factors. These include the Rio’s new rule allowing players to participate online while engaging in a live WSOP event, the availability of the Grind Room, and a novel depositing method letting players fund their WSOP.com account directly from the Rio’s casino cage.
High-roller events exceed guarantees
Four of the seven High-Roller events scheduled by WSOP.com have concluded. So far, the series has seen a decent, if not outstanding, number of participants.
The first event, a NLHE tournament with a $215 buy-in and a $10k guarantee, attracted 62 participants, exceeding its guarantee by 24 percent. This upward trend continued with the second and third events, which surpassed their already high guarantees by $2,800 and $4,800 respectively.
Even Event #4, the first to feature a $30,000 guaranteed prize, managed to just surpass its minimum guarantee by $200. Any surplus is considered a win.
The High-Roller Series will persist until May 31st, at which time it will give way to the more casual-friendly WSOP Online Championship.
On a less positive note, both of Nevada’s Sunday Majors showed losses compared to the previous week. WSOP’s $15k Guarantee attracted only 85 participants ($17,000 prize pool) and Ultimate Poker’s $10,000 Sunday fell short of its guarantee by a substantial $1,810.
Predictions for June
Despite the recent traffic increase possibly not being sufficient to boost revenues back to March’s levels, it’s likely that Nevada’s poker sites will see monthly monetary growth in both May and June.
As more players arrive at the Rio every minute, a majority of whom are here for the WSOP’s smaller buy-in events, I anticipate an upward trend in cash-game and tournament traffic on WSOP.com at a fast pace. This increase will likely continue until the Online Championship concludes.
Ultimate Poker should see a slight increase in traffic, but it will be nowhere near the surge it experienced during last year’s WSOP when it was the only available game. In June 2013, the network consistently had over 200 concurrent cash-game players for most of the series. If it manages to exceed 80 during the 2014 series, I would be impressed.
