Casino Games Coming Soon to Full Tilt Poker

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Tuesday, July 16th, 2013 | Written by Lucy Brown

After a day of intense rumors and speculation, PokerStars confirmed today their plans to transition Full Tilt Poker into a broader brand that will offer games above and beyond poker.

According to reports, the site will be rebranded as Full Tilt Gaming.

While a list of the games that will be available at Full Tilt Gaming has not been released, statements from PokerStars’ parent company Rational Enterprises have indicated that casino-style gambling is first on the expansion menu.

Poker will continue to be a part of the new Full Tilt.

Dramatic shift for both Full Tilt and PokerStars

The news came as surprise to many simply because it reflects such a dramatic shift for Full Tilt and PokerStars. Up until this point, both companies had existed as poker-only sites, something of a rarity in an industry where full-product shops like Party, 888 and others provide customers with access to all major betting products – sports, casino, bingo and so on – under a single brand.

There’s no indication that the new Full Tilt Gaming will offer anything beyond casino gaming. While bingo might be a natural outgrowth of that type of gaming, it’s less likely that sports betting will be introduced into the equation.

Generally, sports betting carries a higher level of potential legal exposure and regulatory scrutiny than either poker or casino-style games.

PokerStars will remain poker-only

These changes will only apply to Full Tilt. While PokerStars is effectively the owner of Full Tilt, the two brands continue to operate with separate identities.

That separation will continue with the new strategy for Full Tilt. While FTG will expand into casino gaming, PokerStars will continue to focus exclusively on the one product – online poker – that has been central to their identity since the company came online in the early 2000s.

Move positions PokerStars as complete platform partner

PokerStars no doubt had a variety of reasons for instituting such a radical change at Full Tilt. But one of the most compelling (and most obvious) is that not having a casino aspect is likely putting PokerStars behind their competition in the United States.

Remember, PokerStars is generally looking to come into the regulated US market as a partner with an existing casino (such as their arrangement with Resorts in New Jersey). And if you’re an American casino looking to take on a partner, there’s a good chance that you’ll want one with software and expertise across all potential products, not just poker.

This is especially true when you consider the relatively small amount of revenue produced by poker when compared to traditional casino house-backed offerings like slots or roulette.

So by developing casino technology to power Full Tilt, PokerStars also improves the quality of their overall portfolio – and therefore becomes a more attractive partner to land-based American casinos seeking someone to provide the platform and expertise for their online gambling site.

Transition expected to take place in 2014

Details of the changes at Full Tilt are still being kept somewhat under wraps.

But it’s our understanding that the plan is to initiate beta testing of the new games in October of 2013. Add testing time to the need to get regulatory approvals and other logistical precursors, and you’re probably looking toward the middle of 2014 before the full relaunch of Full Tilt Gaming.

Of course, we’ll get more details in the months between, and possibly even some previews of exactly how a Full Tilt Casino looks and plays. Watch our poker news section to keep abreast of the latest developments in this and other stories from the online gambling industry.