Yahoo! to enter online poker ring
The world of online poker could see a massive shake up in the coming months as international internet service provider (ISP) Yahoo! has revealed its intention to join the industry.
Independent poker rooms are currently the standard online, and have without doubt made a fantastic success of the industry.
The online poker community is a brilliant but small one though, with limited resources, due to the problems involved with hosting large numbers of players.
This means large prize giveaways are difficult to generate.
With a major international ISP such as Yahoo! entering the ring, the whole look and feel of online poker could be changed, with a flood new players becoming attracted to the game.
As with any commercial company entering an independently-led industry, there is a threat that online poker as gamers know it will change, to accommodate newcomers who may be intimidated by smaller, less familiar website names.
However the benefits are also numerous, and having such a large company back the game will be a massive boost when it comes to lobbying the US government on the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.
Yahoo! is launching the venture in partnership with Gibraltar gaming group St Minver, and will offer real-money games, available from yahoo.co.uk.