888 to Partner with Treasure Island in Nevada Online Poker
Nevada officials have long made it clear that they intend for the Silver State to emerge as not only the epicenter, but also the dominant leader in the fledgling United States online poker market.
Nevada was the first state to pass legislation to regulate access to the game – there are now three, with Delaware and New Jersey also having given the go ahead to Internet-based wagering – and is moving quickly forward in an attempt to be the first to have the online poker games go live.
To that end, the Nevada Gaming Control Board has already granted over a dozen operator licenses and last week they recommended that a partnership between online poker room 888 and land-based Las Vegas Casino Treasure Island be granted permission to operate an online poker website in Nevada.
Last month a new bill was signed into law by Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval which not only cleared the way for the Governor to negotiate interstate online poker deals, but also allows the state of Nevada to move forward with online poker even though it remains unregulated, and largely unaddressed, at the federal level.
The next hurdle for the 888/Treasure Island partnership to clear will come on March 21st, when they are expected to be granted final approval from the Nevada Gaming Commission. 888 is no stranger to partnerships with major Las Vegas casino entities; they currently are partnered with Caesars in the operation of World Series of Poker branded online poker rooms in markets outside the United States, a deal which is expected to come to an end in the near-to-middle future as Caesars is working to develop its own web poker platform.
According to a press release put out by 888, a new company has been formed to operate the Nevada online room called All American Poker Network (AAPN) and has been incorporated in the state of Delaware. The preliminary recommendation by the Nevada Gaming Control Board marks the first for a non-US company, also according to the press release.
Brian Mattingley, 888’s Chief Executive Officer, was quoted in the release as saying, “This is the perfect deal for 888, providing the ideal platform through which to launch our B2C brands into the US market, once regulated.”
“The partnership with Treasure Island, a top tier casino property and operator in Las Vegas, is a further step forwards and another vote of confidence in our technology and people. We are well positioned to become a market leader in Nevada and other states as they regulate online poker going forward,” he added.
As the race to launch the first real-money online poker and gambling sites in the United States has attracted the attention of the poker media as well as the mainstream media, not to mention the scrutiny of bettors eager to log onto the sites, the companies who are the first out of the gate will certainly be seen as trailblazers.
In this sense, a partnership between 888, one of the largest and best-respected online poker rooms and Treasure Island, an iconic Las Vegas property, is only fitting. After all, Treasure Island was originally opened back in 1993, having been developed by casino legend and noted man-of-luxury Steve Wynn.
Twenty years later, Wynn is still looking to make history while bringing opulence to the masses. He currently has two hats in two rings as he hopes to be granted licenses to build casino resorts in Boston as well as in Pennsylvania. He has promised to spend $1 billion on the Boston property should he be approved, assuring Massachusetts residents that his new property would be the finest hotel in Boston once completed.
