HUGE Poker News

PartyGaming Plc
New platform launch

PartyGaming Plc (“PartyGaming” or the “Group”), the world's leading online gaming company, announces today that it has taken a further step towards establishing a new fully integrated PartyGaming operating platform. This platform will, on launch, offer a variety of different games but with a common systems architecture allowing each of its nine million registered PartyPoker customers to use a single account and a shared purse across the Group’s gaming brands.

As part of today’s development, the Group has moved the PartyPoker.com brand and all of its players to the new platform.

Historically, PartyPoker players have shared the same poker-only system with players from each of the Group’s four white label poker clients or “skins” (being Empire Poker, Coral Eurobet, Multipoker and Intertops). Following today’s move, PartyPoker players will now play on their own private tables and benefit from a number of new and exciting products that are exclusive to the new platform. The new platform includes non-poker games such as Blackjack, as well as added features to the poker product such as Side Bets and Deal-Making in poker tournaments. Once the fully integrated platform is launched in the first half of 2006, players will then be able to click through and play on PartyPoker, PartyCasino and other new PartyGaming products that are currently being developed, all using a common account and a shared purse.

The skins’ poker players will continue to have full access to the existing poker system. They will also now benefit from the release of several new product enhancements comprising “beginners’ tables” – these include “micro-limit tables” and low buy-in tables – and $50/$100 and $100/$200 tables. PokerNOW.com, which was acquired by the Group earlier in the year, will continue to operate on the existing poker system with the skins.

Commenting on today’s announcement Richard Segal, Chief Executive said:

“We are on track to deliver our exclusive Party-branded integrated platform that will include additional products and services, enabling us to focus on optimising cross-selling opportunities. We believe that today’s development is an important step towards cementing together the inherent strengths of all the Party brands and is in the best interests of our customers and shareholders. In conjunction with this exciting development, we will continue to maintain and support the poker system we provide for the skins.”

Basically, those players that have been playing on empire and eurobet and getting rakeback will no longer be playing with party poker players. However, players on eurobet, multipoker and empire will continue to play against each other. In other words, this sucks the big one. I am researching for more information and how this will effect us po ker players.

On a side note, party has added Black jack and will allow players to make sidebets on the color of the cards on the flop (all red or black). In addition, party will allow players to makde deals during tournaments.

I will provide more info as i hear it.

how will this expand their cust base? the reason their stock dropped.....i can tell already its a different software...the blackjacks ok but the sidebet is for morons......8-1 on a all 1 color flop? thats the worst bet ive ever heard of.....i think they know the better players are at the skins and are trying to make it easier on their newbies to win..aint gonna happen....i just watched a sharp guy at 25nl eat a table alive...cleaning out new players left and right....its going to make it easier cus 1 good player will be able to dominate a table.....why do these places screw with a good thing??? its unfrickin believable how short sighted these guys can be....

All of the 5/10 6 max and 15/30 and up pros who have been earning rakeback at Euro/Empire now have to go back to Party to chase the fish, the upper limit games are dead on the skins. Apparently rakeback is in the works at Party though.

ProPokerPlayer said:

how will this expand their cust base? the reason their stock dropped.....i can tell already its a different software...the blackjacks ok but the sidebet is for morons......8-1 on a all 1 color flop? thats the worst bet ive ever heard of.....i think they know the better players are at the skins and are trying to make it easier on their newbies to win..aint gonna happen....i just watched a sharp guy at 25nl eat a table alive...cleaning out new players left and right....its going to make it easier cus 1 good player will be able to dominate a table.....why do these places screw with a good thing??? its unfrickin believable how short sighted these guys can be....

Click to expand...

Since when did bad odds stop morons from placing bets. Have you ever been to a casino and watch the yo-yos playing the HARDWAYS?

Party make some money with these gimmicks, but they would have made the same money without killing their skins.

Like matt, i have already contacted some rakeback sites and they are all insisting that they will be offering rakeback for party. If that is the case, there isnt much to worry about for now.

Party saw the writing on the wall, Empire is going to get bought by someone else. Not happy about other guys getting rich off of their creation, the Party folks just made it clear to anyone that does buy Empire out they are getting a greatly reduced value operation. Party kept from doing this move as Empire went public thinking they would eventually buy them, but since they couldn't come to an agreement on price this inevitable action came.

thanx for the post....

Matt24 said:

All of the 5/10 6 max and 15/30 and up pros who have been earning rakeback at Euro/Empire now have to go back to Party to chase the fish, the upper limit games are dead on the skins. Apparently rakeback is in the works at Party though.

Click to expand...

it's not just the upper limits either. I played quite a bit of nl25-100 full and 6 max in the last several hours. Horrible games, and next to no table selection. RIP skins, and rakeback.

nah, rakeback will be available at party, and actually already is in a way.