{"id":1630,"date":"2017-11-11T10:30:38","date_gmt":"2017-11-11T10:30:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.moneypokersites.com\/?p=1630"},"modified":"2020-09-04T20:28:25","modified_gmt":"2020-09-04T20:28:25","slug":"pokerstars-aims-to-be-the-first-operator-in-pennsylvania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moneypokersites.com\/news\/pokerstars-aims-to-be-the-first-operator-in-pennsylvania\/","title":{"rendered":"PokerStars Aims to Be the First Operator in Pennsylvania"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"pokerstars<\/p>\n

It\u2019s still early days since Pennsylvania officially became the country\u2019s fourth state to legalize and regulate online poker, along with online table games and slots when Gov. Tom Wolf signed the online expansion into law on Oct 30th.<\/p>\n

No one really knows how iGaming is going to be implemented in PA, nor in fact, has any timeline been set in stone. For now, all anyone has to work from is New Jersey\u2019s past experience of processing licenses to operators and setting up online poker rooms and casino sites.<\/p>\n

Regardless, all major gambling operators are excited at the opportunities presented by Pennsylvania\u2019s new online gambling market, and The Stars Group, owner and operator of the world\u2019s biggest poker website PokerStars, has already subtlety hinted at the idea and the possibility of being the first operator into PA\u2019s online gambling scene during its Q3 earnings call.<\/p>\n

Stars Group\u2019s Q3 Report<\/strong><\/p>\n

The company published their Q3 financial figures which showed an impressive 21.7 percent year-over-year increase to $329,443, compared to $270,681. Online poker accounted for 12.5% of this figure, $224.1 million. But if you take into account the changes in foreign exchange rates, then the real-money online poker revenues would have increased by approximately 7.5% instead. However, this is still remarkable when you consider the fact that PokerStars recently pulled out of the Australia market due to changes in its online gambling laws.<\/p>\n

Poker wasn\u2019t the company\u2019s only strong performer for Q3 as their online casino and sportsbook platform put up even more extraordinary numbers, with a combined 48.3 percent YOY increase for a total of $95.2 million.<\/p>\n

Players base also saw a 2 percent increase to a total of 2.1 million, of which around 2 million played poker. Both casino and sportsbook platforms also saw an increase in their player base by 20 percent and 14 percent respectively, to 553,000 and 273,000 active players.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot only did we see improvement in our poker business, but our casino continues to grow with a significant active player base and our online sportsbook continues to see meaningful growth in turnover,\u201d said Rafi Ashkenazi, Chief Executive Officer.<\/p>\n