More than four years after what was later on dubbed the Black Friday of US online poker, PokerStars and Full Tilt, the world’s biggest online poker rooms, are returning to the States or at least to New Jersey.
Gaming giant Amaya Inc., which owns the two websites, announced on Wednesday that the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement had given the green light to the company to commence poker operations within the state’s borders. The approval came after the gambling regulator took more than a year to review Amaya’s application.
Commenting on the latest announcement, David Baazov, CEO and Chairman of the Canadian gambling operator, said that they are extremely pleased to add the Garden State to the list of regulated online markets they provide their services in. More information on how and when the company will launch its operations in New Jersey is to be provided in the near future.
Under its agreement with Atlantic City’s Resorts Casino Hotel, Amaya will offer online poker and other casino games to New Jersey-based players. The Canadian gaming giant has also been given the green light to provide both land-based and online B2B gaming solutions to customers in the Garden State.
New Jersey is one of three states where online gambling is legal, the other two being Delaware and Nevada. Online casino operations were legalized in the Garden State in November 2013. Despite the relatively slow start, online gambling has gradually improved. Last year, the amount of $122 million was generated. What is more, proceeds from Internet operations increased 15.6% year-on-year during the first eight months of 2015 to reach $96.7 million.
Prior to being purchased by Amaya, PokerStars applied for a New Jersey online gambling license twice. However, the state gambling regulator denied the company the chance to return to the state. In fact, PokerStars was suspended by the Division of Gaming Enforcement for two years as it had to solve certain legal issues concerning company executives. In fact, those issues were instrumental to PokerStars’ sale to the Canadian gambling operator in August 2014. It also purchased Full Tilt, which too is among the most popular online poker rooms.
According to the latest industry estimates, PokerStars and Full Tilt combined represent a large share in the global online poker market. The two brands combined have over 95 million registered players.
