What’s The Fuss About US Poker?

There’s been a lot in the news lately about American poker. The state of Nevada has recently relaxed its legislation, and started approving licenses for companies to operate online poker sites within its borders. There are also plans to pass a bill that would open up online poker elsewhere.

Investors would have you believe that this is about to open the floodgates to allow the revival of a $10 billion industry; sadly, it’s not quite as clear cut as that.

Online gaming in general is big business, but it’s unlikely that we’ll see legal online poker in all 50 states any time soon. Yes, Nevada is opening up, and others are preparing to follow suit, but you can expect the next few years to remain low key, with sites operating on a state-by-state basis.

Right now, PokerStars is the giant in the online poker industry, and their recent acquisition of Full Tilt has secured that position. Their nearest rivals each hold only five or six percent market share, and when it comes to online communities, players tend to flock to where other players are, so that situation is only likely to improve for PokerStars.

What will happen when Caesars and other bricks and mortar giants join the industry? Only time will tell. It’s likely that with creative marketing they’ll get a good share or loyal customers; the kind that do live games as well as online – but the chances of them turning the industry into a big cash cow for investors is slim. Don’t get too caught up in the hype.

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