PokerStars closer to launch poker room in NJ

This article is dated April 19, 2015, content related to promotions is no longer valid. Any promotion described below has expired.

PokerStars might be soon opening doors in New Jersey; one of the most claimed online poker rooms in the world, has been struggling in the United States due to the continuous disputes between land-based casino moguls, federal government, and the online gambling industry. The online gaming market in the US is, little by little, taking off; the few states where gambling is already legal, are still fighting for a wider market though. As we all could read last month from PokerStars’ parent company statements, AMAYA Inc, had already in mind the project since last year; the parent company’s plans were to launch PokerStars in New Jersey during the fall season. David Baazov, CEO of AMAYA Inc, commented: "As it relates to New Jersey I would say that we feel that this is coming. We would expect to receive and launch in the next quarter". The launch of PokerStars NJ has been one of the main projects for over a year, a fact that many see like another movement from Amaya to get more recognition from the industry. Many have criticized Amaya’s strategy to get inside of the US online gambling market, making this and other statements hard to believe.

The information now comes from PokerStars’ potential partner, Resorts Hotel Casino, the first legal casino in the nation, outside of the main gambling US state, Nevada. Amaya holds similar contracts all around the world like the Hippodrome Casino in London; so in this case, PokerStars would be having a room at NJ’s Resorts Hotel Casino; the poker room will work as the link between both operator’s activities, land-based casino games and online rooms. During a press conference, casino owner, Morris Bailey, commented that Amaya’s agreement settlement is very close. Both operator and casino are only waiting for formal approval from NJ’s official gaming regulator. Along with PokerStars poker room in NJ, Resorts Hotel Casino is also going to launch soon its own online lounge.