Best of PRO This Week: Ultimate Poker, Unibet and Spanish iGaming Revenues

Exclusive News Articles

Promotions Simplified: PokerStars Mission Weeks

Earn some VPPs and wait to see how much you have won—a keep it simple marketing strategy. PokerStars is running its third Mission Week, perhaps the simplest of all the “mission” promotions offered by any operator. During Mission Week, PokerStars is awarding $350k in prize money via three freerolls to be played on March 10 .

The “Pay Day Effect” on Swedish Cash Game Traffic

The absence of promotions exposes the natural rhythm of the poker market in Sweden. The Swedish market—which means the sole online poker room, Svenska Spel—experiences a predictable and pronounced end-of-month cash game traffic boost, traffic data shows.

Spanish iGaming Q4 Better than Expected

Online poker grew in the last three months of the year, albeit by less than other forms of regulated gambling. Later than expected but better than expected, Spanish regulator DGOJ has published its report for the last quarter of 2013. Poker revenues increased with the end of year seasonal effect, but still lagged behind gains in other forms of regulated gambling.

Malta’s LGA Back in Poker Players’ Crosshairs

Players rally to criticize a regulatory body “that no longer functions,” Fresh attention has been brought onto the Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) of Malta.

Unibet Self-Reports a Top 20 Position in Online Poker Traffic

New poker client boasts over 500 concurrent cash game seats. Unibet’s new independent online poker client is hitting over 500 concurrent cash game players, according to self-reported data from a Unibet representative.

Adjarabet Slips into Top 10

A possible side effect of the Winamax billion hand promotion, but the Georgian site can now boast that it is in the top 10 in the world. Adjarabet first joined the cash game traffic rankings a little under six months ago, and this week, measured by 7 day moving average, it made into the top ten ranked rooms in the world.

iPoker France Offers Late Winter Sale

Tournaments with over €200k in guarantees are having their buyins reduced by up to 60%. This week iPoker France sites are offering up to 60% off tournament entry prices for their guaranteed tournaments—the guarantee remains the same, but the buyin is reduced.

Sunday in New Jersey: Party’s Monster $100k, Ultimate Hits “NO-verlays”

Two New Jersey’s online poker rooms had success with their Sunday tournaments last week, with PartyPoker’s audacious $100,000 Sunday Major smashing its guarantee, and Ultimate Poker hitting “NO-verlays” on its two Sunday bigs.

Ultimate Poker’s Total US Traffic Remains Below 100

Average cash game statistics have fallen off, but the company hopes to rebound with a series of new and innovative promotions. Ultimate Gaming’s two state regulated sites in Nevada and New Jersey have now spent six weeks with a combined average of less than 100 concurrent cash game seats filled.

Delays to Norway’s Liberalization of Online Gaming May Not Threaten Live Poker Plans

Norway’s regulator has sent the government proposals for the regulation of live tournaments. Norway’s coalition government is expected to delay new gambling laws following questions from the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Norway is not a member of the EU; but as an EFTA country, is expected to comply with many EU regulations.

Super Series 888 Offers Spanish Players an Early Spring Tournament Championship

PokerStars Spain’s SCOOP will not start until April 6. Last week, PokerStars announced a provisional program for its Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP), meanwhile, 888poker.ES has already started its own Spring tournament series.

Missions Expand to Merge Gaming Rooms Carbon and Aced Poker

The mission concept promises to attract or retain recreational players by adding eGaming features to real money poker. Merge Gaming skins, Carbon and Aced Poker have announced a Daily Missions promotion for March. The sites have put up $15,000 in bonus money to be awarded to players who successfully achieve their mission goals.

Other French Operators Barely Affected by Winamax Spike

Barely affected, but not unaffected, French market dynamics may not necessarily mirror the global market. The extraordinary spike in Winamax cash game traffic caused by its billionth cash game hand promotion is not matched by an equivalent dip in the cash game traffic of other operators.

First Spanish Online Gaming Awards Supported by DGOJ Director General

Carlos Hernandez showed support for the online gaming industry and gave a speech at the JDigital awards presentation in Madrid. In a show of support for the online gaming industry in Spain, Director General of the Spanish gaming regulator Carlos Hernandez gave a speech at the first ever Digital Game Association (JDigital) eGaming awards ceremony.