WPT Enterprises, Inc. the company that helped launch the current global
poker boom, issued a statement today encouraging the U.S. poker community to
focus on the bright future ahead in the wake of Congressional passage of the
“Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006.” “The Justice
Department has been very clear that it believes online gaming to be illegal
in the United States and our policies have been always been tailored
accordingly,” said Adam Pliska, General Counsel of WPTE. “This law clarifies
the rules and makes it possible for everyone to move forward on an even
footing.” It is estimated that over 50 million Americans play poker on a
regular basis, with more than 100 million players world-wide. Whereas
casinos were closing their poker rooms in 2001 prior to the launch of the
World Poker Tour, today casinos across the country are expanding their rooms
or opening new showcase poker rooms like the 111 table room at Foxwoods
Resort and Casino in Connecticut and the 85 table room at the Borgata in
Atlantic City. “It was a wide-spread love of this game and the reinvention
of poker as a televised sport that ignited the poker phenomenon,” said Steve
Lipscomb, CEO and founder of WPTE. “And, that is what will continue to drive
the future of the sport. WPTE remains committed to growing the domestic
poker market through traditional franchise opportunities like consumer
products, sponsorship and events.”
WPTE is the producer of the WORLD POKER TOUR® (WPT) TV television series,
which airs in the U.S. on the Travel Channel, as well as 150 countries and
territories. WPTE also maintains an online gaming site that explicitly
excludes U.S. customers from wagering online.
The WORLD POKER TOUR launched the poker phenomenon when it first aired on
the Travel Channel on March 30, 2003, and it continues to lead the way in
developing poker as a major international sport. WPT schedules, information
and merchandise. The highest rated show ever on The Travel Channel, the WPT
is now seen in more than 150 countries and territories worldwide. Premiere
shows of the WPT air on the Travel Channel March to June and WPTE’s newest
series, the PROFESSIONAL POKER TOUR airs from July to December every
Wednesday, 9 p.m. ET/PT.
About WPTE
WPT Enterprises, Inc. is a company engaged in the creation of
internationally branded entertainment and consumer products driven by the
development, production, and marketing of televised programming based on
gaming themes. WPTE is the creator of the World Poker Tour®, a television
show based on a series of high-stakes poker tournaments that airs on the
Travel Channel in the United States and more than 150 markets globally. With
the WPT in its fifth season, WPTE has launched a second series on the Travel
Channel, the Professional Poker Tour(TM), which focuses on the play of
poker’s leading stars. WPT Enterprises currently licenses its brand to
companies in the business of poker equipment and instruction, apparel,
publishing, electronic and wireless entertainment, DVD/home entertainment,
casino games, and giftware. The company is also engaged in the sale of
corporate sponsorships. For show information, tools for improving poker
play, and other WPT news.
