- One of Caesars’ four licenses—Bally’s, Caesars, Harrah’s and Showboat—will be used for 888’s own-brand site.
- The poker room will be on 888’s “All American Poker Network.”
- The group is still working towards launching in both Nevada and Delaware.
- News comes along with impressive Q2 financial results.
888 will launch a licensed online gambling site, including poker and casino, under its own brand in New Jersey, the group revealed Tuesday.
Caesars owns four of the twelve licensed casinos in New Jersey: Bally’s, Caesars, Harrah’s and Showboat. In a newly struck deal to extend their partnership, one of these four licenses will be used for 888’s own-branded online gambling product.
The poker room will be part of its All American Poker Network (AAPN), its new US poker network and Delaware subsidiary.
888 has a long-standing partnership with Caesars Interactive Entertainment (CIE): It already operates the WSOP.co.uk, an online poker room under a Gibraltar license offered internationally and promoted in the UK, and its US agreement will result in what has been a delayed launch of a WSOP.com poker room licensed in Nevada.
Though it is believed that Caesars is developing poker software in-house based on the Barriere Poker platform, it is still expected to launch with 888’s software in New Jersey, at least initially.
The news comes along with impressive Q2 financial results, with revenue and active player numbers up in both online poker and casino.
888 CEO Brian Mattingley called the US opportunity “incredibly exciting” for the group, noting that they are “extremely well positioned in the US,” adding that they are “working with the regulators in Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey as these three states become ready to open.”
888 is certainly in a prime spot: Along with its long-running partnership with Caesars, it has formed a partnership with Treasure Island, which will launch the first AAPN room in Nevada.
888’s consortium was also picked in Delaware—a proposal involving Scientific Games and WMS—as the primary vendor for its online gaming services in the state. Its Delaware-based AAPN subsidiary is well-placed to benefit from cross-border shared liquidity when feasible.
