After over two months of speculation regarding the future of online poker mainstay PokerStars, which was believed to be headed in the direction of either a float or an all-out sale, the company now seems to be favoring the former. When rumors surfaced regarding a potential takeover of the online poker company, major players like Rank Group and William Hill were believed to be among the likely takers. Now, however, PokerStars' majority owners, the Scheinberg family, are believed to have instead chosen the option of launching an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange.

Such a move could earn the company anywhere from $2.5 to $3 billion. While this is certainly a nice figure, the value of floating in the long run is marred by a piece of legislation currently on the table in the U.S., which could effectively restrict the country's poker players from accessing online gambling sites. Considering the fact that the majority of online poker players reside in the U.S., the possibility of such legislation is one that threatens to cripple the industry as a whole.

Source: Poker777 Staff

Monday, 27 March 2006