Online poker leading light PokerStars will have bwin.party shareholders touching cloth at the news they’ve signed a third European casino contract. Casino Gran Madrid, in the Spanish capital, will benefit from “a new décor for the new era”, according to Azar Plus, with live tournaments reportedly ready to get underway early next year. The latest joint venture follows similar deals with the Hippodrome Casino in central London, Circus Groupe in Belgium as well as internationally at the Grand Waldo in Macau. If they manage to take on the Atlantic Club Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, then it will round off quite a 2012 for the online poker giant.
Merge Gaming Network skin RPM Poker has reportedly shut down after it was sold to a third party. Players first started worrying when the site’s dot.eu domain stopped working before others noticed problems with the software. This was followed by the players that contacted Merge Gaming support, according to 4Flush, being told the news that Merge Gaming had bought the skin. Players are able to transfer their balances to the likes of Carbon Poker, Sportsbook.com and PlayersOnly and can also get rakeback moved over. The same doesn’t apply for VIP and tournament tickets that cannot be moved with no further information yet available as to what will happen to them.
Phil Ivey has announced his new free-to-play social poker offering IveyPoker will be available from early next year. Poker fans will be able to download the app on Facebook, iOS and Android and its purpose will be to “entertain and teach the world winning poker”. It gives fans the opportunity to “play for fun with top professionals” at the same time as learning new skills through video content that will be of use to novice and experienced players.
