PartyGaming gets ready for US with poker deal
ONLINE gaming group PartyGaming said yesterday it had completed the acquisition of the World Poker Tour brand, positioning itself for a return to the US market when legislation allows it.
PartyGaming paid $12.3m (£7.3m) for the World Poker Tour (WPT) brand and other assets – including the rights to a business with over 16,000 subscribers – beating rival bidder Mandalay Media to seal the deal. Mandalay had made an indicative offer of $36.5m for the whole of WPT Enterprises.
PartyGaming will also pay a minimum of $3m over the next three years as part of a revenue share agreement.
PartyGaming chief executive Jim Ryan said the firm’s plans include using the ClubWPT subscription platform to “leverage our 12m-strong US player database via a Party-branded website.”