French online gambling operator Winamax will reportedly expand services to more European regulated jurisdictions. At present, the company operates online poker and sports betting options in its domestic market.
Winamax has recently hinted in its LinkedIn page that it is eyeing expansion into the regulated iGaming markets of Spain, Portugal, Italy, and the UK. The operator has noted that it is hiring specialists with proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and English, respectively.
Several conclusions can be drawn from the above information. In the first place, the French operator has seemingly decided to extend its international footprint, following the example of other gambling operators from around Europe which have been striving to enter as many regulated jurisdictions as possible. In addition, the choice of countries it has decided to launch its operations in should be paid a bit more special attention to.
Late last year, gambling regulators from the above-mentioned four jurisdictions as well as ones from France reached an accord on the technical standards that all five should comply with in order to be able to enter online poker shared liquidity agreements. It was also announced that first such agreements may be finalized by mid-2017.
Although shared liquidity on online poker is a topic that has been discussed for several years now, it could be said that France was the regulated jurisdiction to make first important steps towards the materialization of the idea. Last summer, the country amended its gambling laws so as to allow its online gambling regulator – ARJEL – to discuss and possibly reach shared liquidity agreements with other countries with regulated online gambling markets.
Here it is also important to note that the regulated online poker markets of Spain, Italy, France, and Portugal are ring-fenced, which means that local cash players cannot participate in international pools. The model has not proved to be particularly successful in Italy, Spain, and France, hence their openness to review their regulations and open their markets at least partially.
In France, for example, online poker revenue dropped 3% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2016 to €54 million. The country regulated its online poker market in 2010. Revenue has been dropping with every quarter passing since then, with the first quarter of 2016 being the lone exception to the general downward trend.
As for Portugal, its online poker market is the youngest one of all four. In fact, it was last December when PokerStars became the first online poker operator to launch in the Southern European country. Despite the ring fence, the .pt website of the world’s largest card room has enjoyed excellent initial cash game traffic statistics.
Where Is Winamax Headed to First?
Winamax has made it known earlier this month that it is hiring Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking people for its development department. This could mean that Spain and Portugal will be the first regulated jurisdictions the French operator is to expand into.
In Spain, Winamax will meet bigger competition as there are several other poker websites operating in the local market. However, PokerStars is the sole poker room in Portugal at present.
Word has also spread out that the French gambling operator may establish a shared liquidity network once it expands into new jurisdictions.
