PokerStars feels benefit of "difficult" Full Tilt migration
Firm says players enjoying greater liquidity but concedes merger experiencing "some teething issues"
Full Tilt’s migration onto the PokerStars platform is already showing significant benefits for both platforms despite some initial “teething” problems, the operator has told EGR.
The two brands were merged earlier this week, with Full Tilt now sharing the liquidity and the tech platform of its bigger brother, in a move designed to “streamline development and improve the overall player experience”.
“Overall, the technical background to migration has gone well,” a Full Tilt spokesperson told EGR.
“Unsurprisingly, every project of this magnitude has some teething issues that will need to be bedded in, and we are no different here, especially given the extraordinary number of platform, regulatory, and account permutations that make this a very difficult challenge.
“We’re already seeing the benefit players are getting from more liquidity and game choice and in the long run the company will benefit from more efficient development efforts.”
Amaya CFO Daniel Sebag said in the firm’s Q1 earnings call earlier this week that Amaya expects to lose some players during the migration, although he did not specify an exact number.
However, he said any losses would be made up through the increased efficiencies of the combined platform, which is expected to save around $8m annually.
Despite the merger, Amaya will continue to operate a dual-brand strategy, with Full Tilt retaining its own promotions, table layouts, specialist tournaments and branded differences, such as Rush Poker instead of Zoom Poker.
Full Tilt players who already hold a PokerStars account will not need to update any information or move their account assets which will be transferred automatically to their PokerStars account.
The platform migration was first announced back in February and is expected to result in a number of redundancies at Full Tilt’s Dublin office.
Amaya said Full Tilt remained a profitable poker room, but since its relaunch in 2012 the brand had seen its market share and profitability decline.
Earlier this week PokerStars also announced a new sponsorship deal with eSports organisation Team Liquid.
The deal will see several Team Liquid pros introduce poker into their gaming repertoire, showcasing online poker to brand new audiences on their Twitch streaming channels.
Some members will also take part in PokerStars-sponsored events, test new online products such as the recently-launched Knockout Poker, and compete in some of PokerStars’ biggest online tournaments.