Amaya Inc based out of Canada, was a relatively unknown company until it surprised everyone in the poker industry in June 2014, when it confirmed that it had successfully acquired PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker. PokerStars is the biggest online poker website in the world and has upheld that status after being acquired by Amaya Gaming for $4.9 billion. Since then the company has continued to stay in the news as it rolled out a number of strategic and operational changes. The billion dollar acquisition drew a lot of attention from the authorities who wanted to know if the proper…

A California online poker bill will clear the Assembly Appropriations Committee Thursday but be held on the Assembly floor until after upcoming hearings on web poker are complete, according to sources. The one-page shell bill, AB431, is sponsored by Democrat Adam Gray. It states in part that any future Internet poker measure adopted by the legislature must protect consumers and comply with applicable state and federal law. The Assembly Governmental Organization Committee, which handles gaming issues, unanimously approved the bill last month. Its next stop is the Assembly Appropriations Committee, which has jurisdiction over fiscal matters. Sources said the Appropriations…

This week marks the final full week in the life of WPTPoker.com, whose impending closure was announced last week. The World Poker Tour-branded site is one of seven member rooms on partypoker’s network. The death of WPTPoker marks what can only be described as a failed opportunity. It would almost seem a given that an online poker room connected to one of the most recognizable and valuable brands in poker would succeed, but that simply was not the case. Rather than push the site to the forefront, owner bwin.party did almost nothing to promote it. ClubWPT.com, the World Poker Tour’s…

California online poker bill AB 431, a shell bill calling for the generalized creation of a regulatory framework to govern intrastate online poker in the Golden State, was passed forward from the California State Assembly’s Appropriations Committee for later consideration by the state’s full Assembly body. The exact vote count for the moving of AB 431 from the Appropriations Committee has yet to be published.  Poker Players Alliance Vice President Rich Muny issued a Tweet stating that the vote was unanimous.  However, California-based Gambling Compliance writer Chris Krafcik posted a countering Tweet minutes later, stating that GOP members of the…

Two influential American Indian tribes are publicly asking a politically powerful tribal coalition to ease its opposition to extending eligibility for online poker website licenses to California race tracks, but skepticism remains that a bill will make it out of the legislature this year. Council member Laurie E. Gonzalez of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians in a May 20 press release urged that tribes reach consensus on online poker legislation “rather than digging their heels into the ground,” an obvious reference to steadfast opposition against licensing race tracks by the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians and six other coalition…

Earlier this year NetEnt started to deliver online casino games and services to Full Tilt. As a step further in the partnership with Rational Group, NetEnt today announces that a selection of its renowned game portfolio is now also live and available in PokerStars.com’s new casino offering. NetEnt continues to expand its customer base and the launches with Rational Group’s well-known poker sites PokerStars and Full Tilt enables distribution to a new group of players. The poker segment represents a significant share of all online gaming in Europe. NetEnt’s growth strategy includes expansion on regulated markets, making PokerStars a great…