With online poker now legal in Nevada, and UltimatePoker.com currently legally able to offer the game to those within the state’s borders, I predict, in the end, the big winner in the online poker bonanza will be Facebook (FB), but for this to come to pass, poker must spread beyond just Nevada. First of all, casino gambling is legal in many states. Poker is considered a game of skill, and embraced as such even by many who might frown upon games of chance. Poker offers politicians a new way to increase revenues without having to enforce new obligatory taxes (always…

From Business Insider Editor’s note: Nicholas Kisberg is CEO of CardsChat.com, an online poker forum.    Dear Mr. Adelson, We in the online poker community would like to really thank you for your recent statements in which you refer to Internet gambling as “…a toxin that all good people should resist.” Why? Because you wrote that article using scare-mongering tactics, and backed up your arguments with ridiculous claims, allowing even the most naïve reader to plainly see your ulterior motives. And we appreciate that. We really do. It saves us a lot of trouble and makes writing this letter easier….

For the past few months, Poker Players Alliance Executive Director John Pappas has been running up the frequent flyer mileage over online gaming. With federal internet poker legalization prospects seemingly at a standstill, Pappas focused efforts of the 1.2 million-member lobbying organization on various individual state legislative activities. Debate over Internet gaming and online poker surfaced this year in California, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. Pappas is spending part of the weekend at the World Series of Poker in the organization’s booth inside the Rio’s Convention Center. He plans to discuss the various online gaming legalization efforts with the tournament’s attendees. “We…

From Technorati Caesars Interactive Entertainment, a subsidiary of the world’s largest gaming company, has acquired the rights and ownership of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) mobile application, according to a press release issued by the company this week. According to Caesars, buying the WSOP mobile app enables it to “expand its presence in free-to-play social and mobile gaming.” The poker app is being developed by a group of 19 Canada-based game developers.  The company’s Playtika division will operate the mobile venture as a free-to-play social game. The WSOP application is available on the Facebook platform, Amazon Kindle, Android, and…

It seems all but certain that online poker will not be legislated at a federal level before states begin negotiating online poker compacts.  There are a number of potential issues that need to be addressed before states can agree to share player pools. Rake Allocation Formulas The most important issue facing potential Interstate poker compacts is how to allocate rake.  There are five formulas that have been used in online poker to determine how rake is distributed to players.  This distribution is important in terms of taxes and player promotions. Dealt – The dealt rake method was once used by…

From CNBC Like brick-and-mortar retailers, casinos in Las Vegas—and pretty soon in Atlantic City—are finding themselves up against a familiar foe: the Internet. It may seem counterintuitive that Nevada and New Jersey—homes to the two biggest gambling cities in the country—are leading the charge at the state level to legalize online betting. But states, like many Americans, are looking for new revenue streams as the economy continues to sputter to life. And some casinos are being proactive, looking for ways to develop or partner their way to a Web-based gaming presence. In February, Nevada become the first state to approve…