PokerStars New Jersey Launch Expected In Q1 2016

Home » Poker News » PokerStars New Jersey Launch Expected In Q1 2016

Monday, November 23rd, 2015 | Written by Adam Brown

In 2011, Black Friday resulted in the shutdown of multiple online poker sites in the United States, including PokerStars which has since been shut out of the country’s online gambling market. Now, the company is finally poised to make a comeback stateside after being granted a license to operate in New Jersey, the question naturally arises as to when state residents will be able to play on the site, and what they can expect to look forward to? Read on to find out.

About the New Jersey Deal

After trying to reenter the US market, PokerStars had its iGaming application suspended by the state of New Jersey due to the status of the company’s founder Isai Scheinberg, who is still considered a fugitive from the Department of Justice for flouting the country’s UIGEA. Agreeing a $731 million settlement with the DoJ, followed by a change of ownership in August 2014, however, has meant that Amaya Gaming, the new parent company of PokerStars, has finally been permitted to operate in New Jersey. To bring the deal to fruition, Amaya partnered with Resorts AC, a land-based casino that operates in the state. PokerStars is well-known throughout the world as being the largest online poker operator and seems to have aspirations to expand their reach into Delaware and Nevada with a successful launch in New Jersey.

Expected Impact of PokerStars NJ

In New Jersey, sites have struggled to attract players, but many industry experts believe that the familiar PokerStars brand will spur interest in online poker in the state. Many people anticipate that the site will quickly gain market share away from the two other main operators in New Jersey, namely Borgata (PartyPoker/Pala Interactive), and Caesars Interactive NJ (888/WSOP). At the present time, WSOP and 888 Poker’s partially shared network and Party Poker and Borgata’s totally shared network has a 50-50 split of the market.

Full details on what PokerStars will offer to New Jersey players hasn’t been released, but there is a possibility that the site will offer online slots and table games as well as online poker. Amaya has announced that they also intend to bring well-known Full Tilt poker to the state in the future. Following approval of its New Jersey license, Amaya’s CEO David Baazov commented:

“We are very pleased to add New Jersey to the long list of regulated markets that have found PokerStars and Full Tilt suitable to offer real-money online gaming. I want to thank the DGE for their thorough and fair review of our business. We look forward to bringing our popular brands, innovative technology, marketing prowess and world-class security and game integrity to the growing New Jersey online gaming market.”

History of the PokerStars Agreement

The agreement between PokerStars and New Jersey has been a long time coming. Amaya first approached the state in late 2012 upon hearing that New Jersey was moving to legalize online poker. The company had their sights set on buying The Atlantic Club Casino in Atlantic City, but the deal was never completed. Then in 2013 after New Jersey passed online gambling legislation, Amaya entered into a partnership with Atlantic City resorts and was ready to launch; however, the company could not get a gambling license.

Since 2013, New Jersey has conducted a full investigation into the business practices of Amaya and PokerStars and finally issued a report earlier in 2015 stating that they could see no reason not to allow the company to operate in the state. Some industry insiders believe there was more to the story than that and that Governor Chris Christie may have stood in the way of the licensing. While it can’t be determined if there is truth to that rumor, whatever obstacles were keeping Amaya out of New Jersey have now been removed.

NJ Launch Expected in 2016

At this time, there is no word about when PokerStars NJ will launch. It could be a matter of weeks or months, but speculating on a possible launch date, Global Poker League CEO Alex Dreyfus wrote on his twitter account:

“I believe Amaya/Pokerstars will launch in Q1 2016, no need to add cost on Y15. Need a strong strategy to develop a market without killing it.”

One thing that is clear, however, is that both Amaya and the state of New Jersey are now interested in moving forward as quickly as possible. The popularity of internet poker continues to wane stateside, with New Jersey’s October revenues shrinking to $1,913,403 last month, currently representing just 14.9% of the state’s overall online revenues. Observers are now hoping that PokerStars launch will not only prove a boon for the Garden State, but may also act as a catalyst for other state’s to adopt legislation of their own. As Eilers Research states, Amaya Gaming’s presence could help “precipitate a material reshuffling of the landscape for regulated online gambling in both the U.S. and abroad.”