Nevada Online Poker Review March 13, 2014: Potential for 6 Poker Sites

Written By Steve Ruddock on March 13, 2014Last Updated on September 13, 2022
delaware nevada compact more online poker sites

While we eagerly anticipate the initial iGaming revenue figures from Nevada, expected soon, let’s also explore what’s going on in the state’s online poker market.

This week’s coverage includes several intriguing stories, one of which provides insights from Brian Mattingley, the CEO of 888, on the interstate online poker agreement between Nevada and Delaware.

We will also talk about the crucial role Locaid will have in the interstate compact, as it adds its player verification and geolocation services to the two states.

We will also examine the possible overcrowding issue looming in Nevada, provide you with the outcomes of the most recent weekly tournaments, analyze traffic trends, and find out the gossip circulating in the Nevada rumor mill.

888’s Mattingley discusses interstate deal

Brian Mattingley, CEO of 888, has been actively involved in the burgeoning US poker market. It is anticipated that his company will greatly benefit from the new agreement that will merge the player pools of Delaware and Nevada.

888, the sole operator in Delaware, already has a product, WSOP.com, in Nevada and is expected to introduce several more this year. The company is also quite active in New Jersey. In short, 888 is extremely busy.

In a conversation with John Brennan from NorthJersey.com, Mattingley discussed the new interstate compact and made intriguing remarks. Most notably, he didn’t exclude the possibility of different companies, like Ultimate Poker in Nevada and 888 in Delaware, pooling players.

Although it’s improbable due to potential software compatibility issues, it demonstrates the progressive mindset of many individuals in the rapidly growing US industry.

Locaid teaming up with NV and DE

iGamingBusiness.com has reported that Locaid has been chosen to manage geolocation responsibilities for the new online interstate agreement between Nevada and Delaware, according to other interstate online poker news.

Rip Gerber, the President and CEO of Locaid, has released a statement regarding his company’s selection to handle the landmark duty. He said,

For years, we have been working with carriers, operators, and regulators to develop mobile location systems, leading to this significant agreement. We applaud Nevada and Delaware for successfully implementing a secure, user-friendly geolocation compliance method that transcends state boundaries. If New Jersey becomes part of this agreement, our location service, which is already in place in the Garden State, will smoothly assimilate.

Potential for 6 online operators in 2014

The online poker market in Nevada might get a bit congested this year with the potential addition of three more operators. This would increase the total number of online poker sites in the state to six.

Chris Grove was the first to report this, and it was somewhat confirmed at the Massachusetts Internet Gambling Panel on Tuesday. Jim Barbee from the Nevada Gaming Control Board stated that the WSOP.com online poker room, run by 888, is almost done with its field trial. This trial is expected to end in March. Once officially approved, they will be allowed to begin launching other poker sites in partnership with their Nevada partners, notably TI and Wynn.

Weekly Guaranteed Tournaments in Nevada

WSOP.com Sunday $15K Guaranteed

For this week’s tournament, 91 players registered, generating a prize pool of $18,200. Although it’s not officially confirmed, it appears that Kathy Liebert may have secured the 3rd place in the tournament.

    BShriever5 – $5,187.00, Gatsby – $3,003.00, pokerkat – $1,820.00, IBEENGrindN – $1,456.00, COOKIEBEAR – $1,255.80, nevada – $1,073.80, TimTebow – $891.80, Sir1_Sack_U – $618.80, MSAHM4 – $491.40.

“AstroBoy” not only won the Sunday $15k Guaranteed but also secured the $10,000 WSOP Main Event seat in the satellite tournament this weekend.

The Ultimate Poker Tournament with a $10K Guarantee

This week, Ultimate Poker saw a significant dip in attendance with only 88 participants in the tournament. This resulted in an overlay of over $1,800 in the $10k Guaranteed tournament. Brent Hanks, a professional tournament player, made it to the final table and ended up in 5th place. “Butters”, one of Nevada’s top online tournament players, finished in 4th place.

  1. The Agnostic $2,900
  2. PokerPro $2,000
  3. needs_a_boat $1,500
  4. Butters $1,000
  5. BHanks11 $800
  6. JaminOnFaces $600
  7. luckisreal $500
  8. platinum $400
  9. bulldog53 $300

Traffic trends in Nevada

Over the past week, traffic on Nevada’s online poker sites has increased slightly. The three sites, including Real Gaming, which averages zero players, totaled an average cash-game traffic of 200 players. This represents about a 5% increase from last week.

Ultimate Poker was responsible for the increase in traffic, with its site’s average players rising from 70 to 80. Meanwhile, WSOP.com continues to dominate with an average of 120 players, while Real Gaming is having difficulty gaining traction, as it averages zero traffic and peaks at just two players.

Traffic data is provided courtesy of www.pokerscout.com.

The word on the street

UP making headlines

This week, we highlighted Ultimate Poker in three distinct articles concerning their Nevada product. If you missed this coverage, you can read it here. We discussed the site’s new freeplay promotion, the newly launched web series Strip Magic featuring UP Ambassador Antonio Esfandiari, and the company’s partnership with Peppermill Casino.

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Steve Ruddock

Steve has gained recognition as a prominent voice in the regulated U.S. online gambling industry. His writings, which mainly focus on the legal market, are featured in various online and print platforms like OnlinePokerReport.com, USA Today, and others.

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