Harrah's License Company, LLC,the corporation's licensing arm, has embarked on a revolutionary partnership with AOL (America Online) to create a World Series of Poker (WSOP) and AOL- branded free online poker room. Although overall growth in the online poker industry has been dwindling as of late, cooperation between these major players will likely help revive mainstream interest in the game.

The joint AOL/WSOP poker site will feature free poker games for players of every skill level, also including private poker rooms and tournaments. In addition to the poker games, the site will also feature poker-related content to help players get a leg up on the game, and improve their overall experience. Thanks to the partnership with Harrah's, the site will also offer behind-the-scenes coverage from the World Series itself.

Although poker play is being offered for free, in keeping with the stricter interpretations of U.S. gambling laws, winners will not go home empty-handed. Accordingly, AOL will now be the only U.S.-based provider of free poker games to give away 12 seats at the WSOP Main Event. Additionally, through AOL's poker offering, one player will win a seat to the WSOP's Tournament of Champions.


The deal between the two companies comes on the heels of a study conducted jointly by AOL Games and SRBI Public Affairs, which showed that American interest in poker skyrocketed in the last year. Close to half of the participants surveyed said that they play some variety of poker, while over ten percent said that they have played poker online. Attesting to the mushrooming popularity of televised poker programming, the survey also found that 37 percent of the participants watch major poker events on TV.

AOL witnessed the burgeoning appeal of poker, not only through the survey, but also through performance on the service itself. "The renewed interest in poker has also been reflected on AOL.com, where poker is constantly among the most popular games on our service," said Ralph Rivera, vice president and general manager, AOL Games. "Joining forces with Harrah's to create the most compelling World Series of Poker-branded poker destination online is a great way to satisfy our users' interests in all things poker."

Source:  Poker777 Staff

Wednesday, 19 October 2005