888Poker, PartyPoker, and PokerStars recently released their trading figures for the last financial year, and if the figures are anything to go by (they definitely are), then the online poker industry has begun to shift towards very interesting dynamics. Considered to be the top three online poker operators on the planet, the three companies have been responsible for shaping the world of online poker as we know it but now the gaming atmosphere is changing rapidly, something that while beneficial to some of them, has been a curse of sorts to others.
PartyPoker’s Booming Business
Needless to say, despite the popularity of online poker, the game’s growth has been quite slow over the past few years especially when compared to other online gambling verticals. This, however, has not impacted PartyPoker – in fact the company saw a revenue increase of 42 percent in 2018. In the first few months of this years, the company has also reported a revenue bump of 38 percent. With such outstanding financial figures, the company has now even already overtaken 888 to become the second-largest online poker room in both the United States and the rest of the world.
PartyPoker’s success over the relatively short period has been largely attributed to a decent number of innovative features and offerings including a 50 percent rakeback to high rollers as well as the launch of the fan-favorite PartyPoker LIVE tour. The operator also runs some huge events and festivals like the $10 million guaranteed MILLIONS Online.
PokerStars’ Fight to Stay at the Top
In 2018, PokerStars’ parent company, the Stars Group, reported a 1.1 percent revenue increase to $886.6 million. A 1.1 percent revenue bump may seem to be a pretty small number, but the behemoth online poker platform has a clear lead in the online poker industry with revenues being more than five times the amount reported by its current closest competitor, PartyPoker.
While the past year was not so great for PokerStars, it still manages to maintain a major lead over its competitors perhaps because of its outstanding brand. As a matter of fact, poker is still the biggest revenue contributor for the company. The company is also exploring other verticals it hopes will propel its growth in the United States and international gaming markets.
888poker’s Woes
This company’s recently released revenue reports were rather disheartening, to say the least. There was a 37 percent decline in its revenue in 2018 and this was the second lowest revenues ever recorded by the online poker operator. Things have gotten so bad that the company has resorted to running multiple promotions including rake-free tournaments in a bid to get itself back on the map.