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Our first story in this edition of PokerGuru 3-Bet is of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Europe signing up with the King’s Casino, Rozvadov in a multi-year deal. The second is about Boyaa Poker Tour, where the Main Event was won by Brian Yip and the third is about Playtech, an online giant taking over a bingo software company.
WSOP Europe has entered into a multi-year deal with the King’s Casino Rozvadov, with plans to launch several more events at this particular stop. To date, WSOP has held a single circuit event at King’s Casino last year, with the second one scheduled to begin tomorrow.
Ty Stewart, Executive Director, WSOP believes the venue has huge potential in Central Europe and stated that “The existing setup already reminds me of the Amazon Room at the Rio and it’s only going to get bigger. When the new hotel and the renovations are complete, and considering the way Leon and staff cater to poker players, this is going to be a very comfortable environment for a large festival such as ours.”
He added that with the casino’s support and media coverage it was an ideal place to be a Las Vegas model for the continent.
The terms for the deal include the following –
It was stated that all the Main Events would consist of live streaming and reporting with television coverage. The dates for these are to be announced.
King’s Casino is currently in the process of expanding on its already existing 150 poker tables, which host tournaments and cash games all through the year.
Leon Tsoukernik, owner, King’s Casino said that the new space would be increased by 1,800 meters, with 40 more poker tables and 218 more rooms. The new center would have three floors for its hotel, with an entire floor for luxury suites, as well as a wellness section with saunas, massage rooms, Jacuzzi and a health club. The expansion is expected to be complete before the end of 2017.
Tsoukernik further added that the small town of 500 locals had already played host to more than 250,000 players and more would come in once the expansion was complete.
Brian Yip Wins 2016 Boyaa Poker Tour Main Event
The three-day Boyaa Poker Tour (BPT) Main Event concluded on October 24, with Hong Kong player Brian Yip collecting the title and the winning purse of HKD 560,000. The event drew 300 entries, with 70% of these coming from countries such as the U.S., Germany, Italy, Poland, Thailand, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Russia and Iraq.
Hosted by Boyaa Interactive, a Hong Kong-based company and PokerKing the event saw double the entries it had last year, mainly due to the fun atmosphere and the fact that a huge 50% of its prize pool was distributed among almost 150 odd players.
Several side events also played out, including a global invitational event, Worldwide Squad Tournament and a Deep Stack Turbo which attracted 219 entries.
The Worldwide Squad Tournament was won by Team Mainland China led by Yanda Ye, who later said, “It was a great honor to participate in this tournament by representing Mainland China division and it’s very meaningful to lead this team to win this competition.”
The BPT recently joined the Global Poker Index (GPI) and has been active in providing a professional and conducive arena for poker players in the region. At the opening ceremony, the company a donation of HKD 40,000 to the Macau charity organization, Macau Bishop Hill Children’s Centre, which helps children and young people in need.
Online gaming software giant, Playtech has further expanded its portfolio by acquiring 90% of ECM Systems, a company that provides bingo software and hardware solutions for UK sites. ECM has a range of products for bingo operators in UK and Ireland and has lately also entered the digital strategy arena, much like Playtech. It posted profits of £9.1 million and an EBITDA of £4.5 million for the 2016 financial year.
In July this year, Playtech had also acquired 90% stake in Best Gaming Technology for about €138 million and recently took over Aristocrat Lotteries for €10.5 million. The company also signed up as software provider to Sky Bet and launched a sports betting app for the Apple Watch. Playtech was heavily rumored to be involved in the takeover bids for bwin.party and Amaya.
Additionally, Playtech has also signed a deal with Warner Bros. Consumer Products for a series of special slots. The six new titles will feature superheroes and comic book villains including Batman, Catwoman, Superman, The Joker and Green Lantern.
Playtech is the parent company of iPoker, the fifth-largest online poker network in the world, with a plethora of sites such as Bet365, Betfair, Ladbrokes, NetBet, Paddy Power, Titanbet Poker, and William Hill.