Canada has one of the biggest online poker markets in the world, with millions of players across the country logging into poker rooms every year. The country’s most popular gambling website is PokerStars, having earned a top place after Full Tilt Poker left the market in 2011. Getting wind of this news, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation has announced that it is prepared to compete with the current market leader.
Earlier this week, Michael Graydon, CEO of the BCLC, announced that the Canadian Poker Network will become a fierce competitor for PokerStars. The organization, which operators PlayNow.com and EspaceJeux, will make an active effort to take over the largest portion of the Canadian online poker market share.
The CPN still has a long way to go, however. BCLC feel $8.8 million short in online poker revenue since it was launched two years ago; so, the site will need some help before it can make an impact in the online gaming market. Manitoba has announced that it will join the Canadian Poker Network when it launches its online gambling website. The OLG will be launching into the online gambling market, but has yet to confirm whether or not it will join the CPN.
Graydon believes that the CPN could become one of the biggest online pokers network in the world if all provinces join up. Unfortunately, it will be an uphill battle for the top spot in the Canadian online poker market, as PokerStars remains the top choice of most players, despite the presence of government-operated sites like PlayNow.com and EspaceJeux.
PokerStars has recently launched its own mobile poker application in Canada and also offers some unique features that the BCLC has yet to provide. For example, many players have left their preferred gambling websites to play Zoom Poker and the Micro Millions on Poker Stars. So, the Canadian Poker Network will have to do some brainstorming to discover new ways to captivate Canadian players.
