Las Vegas Review Journal – The manager executive of European online gaming giant 888 Holdings said Wednesday that rival PokerStars need to be allowed to function within the U.s.a. now that the corporate is being sold for $4.9 billion to a Canadian Internet wagering firm.
The comments by 888 CEO Brian Mattingley differ dramatically from online industry rivals and numerous state lawmakers, who've moved to prohibit PokerStars from entering legal U.S. gaming jurisdictions.
PokerStars, which forfeited $731 million to federal prosecutors in 2012 to settle a civil complaint, accepted online wagers from Americans after the activity was ruled illegal in 2006.
Mattingley, whose Gibraltar-based company is partners with Caesars Interactive Entertainment in legal online gaming websites in Nevada and New Jersey, said adding PokerStars into the combination would grow the U.S... Internet market. Actual Internet gaming revenues reported by Nevada — not up to $1 million a month — and New Jersey have fallen far below lofty projections.
“We compete with PokerStars throughout Europe,” Mattingley said in a phone interview from London. “They are an impressive competitor. But they might make we all work much harder and it will expand the market. I MIGHT much rather have a small slice of a big pie, than a large piece of a small pie.”
Mattingley said Nevada’s three online poker operations and the six Atlantic City casinos that currently handle New Jersey’s online gaming business, suffer because U.S. customers still access illegal and unregulated online gaming websites.
‘It could be like unleashing an 800-pound gorilla into the market, but having more players on a regulated site would receive advantages everyone,” Mattingley said.
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