The emergence of an European shared liquidity would ensure a healthy ecosystem? Having worked in France and Italy in the poker world (888 poker in France and Lottomatica in Italy) since his birth. Shared liquidity for online poker between Spain, France, and Portugal is going well so far, according to a statement released by regulators from the three nations.

Nearly four years after online poker launched in New Jersey and Delaware, and more than four years after Nevada became the first to legalize the games, the three states have announced an agreement to share online gaming liquidity.

The long-awaited news will benefit online poker players in all three states, as well as internet slots players in New Jersey and Delaware. Each state gaming regulator must now approve the plan before the online sites can coordinate to officially launch their shared pools and progressive jackpots.

Been waiting for this move for a long time now. Regulated poker in America is moving super slow but this is a step in the right direction. https://t.co/ouFfmhalBv

— Scott Blumstein (@SBlum2711) October 13, 2017

Nevada and Delaware Ahead of the Game

In March 2015, Nevada and Delaware launched the Multi-State Poker Network. Governors Brian Sandoval and Jack Markel signed the actual agreement in February 2014, but it took more than one year to secure 888 as the platform and coordinate the online poker sites.

Both states’ representatives knew that the key to online poker success would be liquidity, as neither state alone had the ability to draw significant numbers of players to the tables. By sharing online poker player pools, more games and stakes could be offered, and as tournaments grew, guarantees could be raised. The entire idea of building a larger poker arena was to increase the industry’s attractiveness to players.

It is not known how much revenue Nevada receives from online poker, as the state only boasts of one operator – WSOP-dot-com – and does not report revenue for public consumption unless there are at least three companies in operation. Delaware, on the other, hand, collects minimal revenue from its online poker sites, with much more coming from the online casino ventures.

The bigger plan, however, was to launch the network and eventually bring New Jersey into the mix. The popularity of online poker and other games quickly eclipsed that of Nevada and Delaware, so to join all three states together figured in to a broader strategy.

New Jersey Increases the Stakes

In the middle of Friday afternoon on October 13, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announced the three-state liquidity agreement.

“New Jersey has been a pioneer in the development of authorized, regulated online gaming,” he said, “which has been a budding success since its launch in late 2013. Pooling players with Nevada and Delaware will enhance revenue growth, attract new customers, and create opportunities for players and internet gaming operators. This agreement marks the beginning of a new and exciting chapter for online gaming, and we look forward to working with our partners in Nevada and Delaware in this endeavor.”

There are two significant results of the agreement.

First, online poker players will be able to share player pools in all three states. This means players in any of the states will be able to compete against each other. With more players on the sites, it will likely improve the number of cash games and stakes available, and tournaments will draw more players, which can result in higher guarantees and more tournament options.

At this point, the only online poker operator in all three states is WSOP, so players on WSOP and 888 will be the first to share liquidity. However, it stands to reason that other online poker operators in New Jersey, such as MGM, might now have the incentive to launch in Nevada as well. This would create much-needed competition in Nevada and give players in the newly-shared US market more options.

Second, online slots players will be able to share progressive jackpots in New Jersey and Delaware. Nevada has yet to authorize online casino games, but it may consider doing so if other states continue to show extensive revenue benefits and now bigger progressive jackpots. Sites that offer casino slot games online will now be able to join those games in two states, allowing jackpots to increase faster and to potentially larger amounts.

Next Steps

New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement Director David Rebuck noted, “New Jersey stands to approve a game offering for all three states as soon as an operator submits such a product for testing.”

The onus is now on WSOP and 888 to produce the technology that allows shared liquidity for the online poker sites. If New Jersey is prepared to conduct the lion’s share of the testing, that will ease the pressure on Nevada and Delaware. In the end, though, all three states’ gaming regulators will need to test and verify the software to ensure it meets all standards and is prepared for launch.

It is doubtful that it will take as long as it did for Nevada and Delaware to launch their joint online poker venture, which was more than a year in the making. Players can expect liquidity to be available in 2018, but most likely in the spring or early summer. And with WSOP at the center of the project as it begins, it will likely want to launch in time for players in all states to play online satellites for the summer World Series of Poker tournaments in Las Vegas.

The WSOP did release a short statement after the New Jersey announcement that it is ready to begin the process. “We applaud the government leadership and the regulators in New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware for reaching this meaningful agreement. We will immediately begin efforts to take our existing Delaware-Nevada compact and add New Jersey to the mix by following the requirements established by the regulators so WSOP.com can share liquidity with all three states.”

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania and Michigan continue to work on their respective pieces of online gaming legislation. Should they legalize and regulate online poker and casino games in the near future, they may be able to initiate discussions with the three-state coalition right away. But their decisions regarding bills in 2017 – or possibly 2018 – remain to be made.

Huge news for poker in the US. And good news for any state thinking about legalizing online poker. https://t.co/vfDZWiGu64

— Dustin Gouker (@DustinGouker) October 13, 2017

Related Articles

A long time ago, online poker was a free world, open to players living in almost any country. Massive tournaments and promotions were standard, and hundreds of thousands of players could be spotted at the tables. But nine years ago, poker Black Friday seized the PokerStars domain with many other sites and changed the course of history forever.

Shared Liquidity Poker Games

After that, some states in the US have legalized gambling, but Europe has taken a different approach. While some countries have adopted various regulations, others have created shared liquidity, creating a fenced market that merges their players' pool.

Portugal was the last country to join the shared liquidity with Spain and France, and now many trusted sites like 888Poker offer their services to European players. Sites like this have made of poker pt a whole new experience with the addition of hundreds of players from other countries and exclusive promotions.

But let's go back a little. What is poker shared liquidity? When a country legalizes online poker, it has two options:

1. Ask poker rooms to apply for licenses or partner with local sites to offer their global services;

2. create a fenced market where only players living in the same country can play against each other.

Spain, France, and Portugal initially decided to close markets, and the poker rooms operated in this way for several years. But those countries and Italy signed a shared liquidity agreement (which never ended the process), and after a brief approval process, players living in Spain were able to fight against French and Portuguese players.

Why is poker shared liquidity good for poker players?

The first benefit is clear. There will be more traffic and tables, so players will have more options to play. But that's not all:

• More promotions are launched by poker rooms, taking advantage of local celebrations and increased traffic;
• Only licensed poker rooms can offer their services in those countries;
• Tournament series experience a guaranteed prize pool boost.

Best of all, players have to do nothing to enjoy the benefits of shared liquidity. They have to sign up at a legal poker room or keep playing on the same site and witness the increase in traffic and new promotions.

Why not all countries create shared liquidity?

Shared Liquidity Poker Rules

It took three countries more than five years to reach a shared liquidity agreement. This implies intense political work, and the most important thing is that the country must have the will to pass gambling bills, which is not the reality in many places where gambling is still taboo.

In other words, it may take many years before we see more countries come together to create a more significant poker environment. Nevertheless, benefits like a major tax income and tackling down the gray market is very appealing, and that's why new laws and regulations are usually being discussed.

Summary

Determining whether regulation and shared liquidity are good for online poker is complex. We could say that if a country decides to legalize online gambling, players would appreciate having the biggest possible pool to play. Still, it involves complex tax regulations and other requirements.

But, if you live in a country that belongs to shared liquidity, the best thing you can do is hit the tables now to enjoy a better action.

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