2017 A Pivotal Year for PartyPoker

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Thursday, January 4th, 2018 | Written by Shane Larson

After its launch in 2001, PartyPoker grew to become the undisputed king of the online poker scene until everything changed in 2016 following the passing of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). This piece of legislation subsequently prevented any businesses from receiving payments related to gambling over the internet, and in one swoop initiated the ultimate decline of online gambling in the United States.

That year, PartyPoker had no choice but to close their real-money operations for US residents, and furthermore agreed to pay a $105 million non-prosecution penalty for contravening the country’s online gambling laws. Rather than then focusing its efforts on other markets around the world, PartyPoker instead lost direction, resulting in the once a titan of the industry losing both its market share and brand value.

Nevertheless, PartyPoker still retained a presence in the poker industry by sponsoring the World Poker Tour (WPT), but apart from this little else of relevance happened with the company. That was until the parent company behind PartyPoker, GVC Holdings, decided that 2016 was the year to revive the brand and become a major presence once more in the online poker industry. The following year, PartyPoker then made several changes that were designed to help the brand re-establish itself amongst customers, and claw back some of its market share from competitors.

Rebirth of PartyPoker

One strategy for PartyPoker was to become more player friendly. The company achieved this by establishing a team with poker player Patrick Antonius at the helm so as to receive feedback from its players and make all the changes necessary in order to improve their overall experience. The managing director of PartyPoker, Tom Waters, has said that listening to player feedback and improving management were the two key factors behind the brand’s revival after an almost decade long decline.

PartyPoker also decided to end its relationship with the WPT and launch its own PartyPoker LIVE Tournaments, instead, with the decision proving to be a sound one. This is reflected in the healthy attendance figures at these tournaments, as well as the positive feedback received from the players themselves.

In terms of management changes, PartyPoker brought in a number of experienced players that have subsequently been instrumental in turning PartyPoker into a major brand once more. This included making poker Hall of Famer Mike Sexton the chairman of the company, as well as contracting John Duthie to manage the PartyPoker LIVE tournament series. Commenting upon Duthie’s impact on the tour, Tom Waters stated:

”John has had a huge impact in developing partypoker LIVE this year. He has vast experience in the field and always puts the player first. This has led to key decisions being made to ensure the tour focused on quality and player experience. His wide reach with the playing community has really helped close the gap between partypoker and its players.”

Changes in 2017

PartyPoker made several changes last year, some of which were responsible for bringing the online poker operator back to life. These included introducing the first MILLLIONS Online, and confirming that another one will be happening this year; this time around with a $20 million guarantee.

Player feedback was also used to make enhancements to the site’s lobby and virtual tables. Amongst these innovations was an updated lobby design to reduce clutter and improve appearance, in addition to darkening the color scheme to make it easier on the eyes. Furthermore, the company created the Diamond Club for those players that rake more than $100,000 over the course of a year, with other innovations including VIP bonuses, 24/7 Skype customer support, and 50% rakeback. As mentioned, the software was made friendlier for users, too, and a LIVE events tab now makes it easier than ever to find a live event taking place.

Efforts Paying Off

PartyPoker LIVE was introduced in January 2017, with the LIVE tournament series regularly featuring tournaments with multi-million dollar guarantees, and $5,000 buy-in Main Events. It didn’t take long for the PartyPoker MILLIONS to become a massive success, either, and inspire the company to arrange more international tournaments in 2018.

As a testimony to the huge strides made by PartyPoker last year, it was then able to grab the 2017 EGR Poker Operator of the Year Award, a title which PokerStars had received for the previous three years, further highlighting the prestigious position PartyPoker now holds within the industry, and how far it has come during its recent resurgence.