With Playtech’s iPoker network extending its lead as the largest regulated network in the industry, eGR’s Tom Victor caught up with its operations manager who ?lls us in on segregation, integration and the challenges of working with licensees in Spain
P R O F I L E
Asaf Younger
Operations manager iPoker
eGR: Are any operators on the lower tier of the network close to making the step up? AY: A lot of tier two operators are making good progress towards qualifying for the upper tier, but most importantly we continue seeing a balance of all types of players on both tiers. That is extending the lifetime expectancy of players on both tier one and tier two. Our goal is to allow all operators to qualify for tier one status, and it is certainly open to everyone. There is an advantage of being a sportsbook operator as they meet the criteria more easily. We’re seeing extended lifetime expectancy and less drain with both tiers and that proves to us that our strategy is closely aligned with that of the players. eGR: Last year we saw a merger between Titan and CelebPoker – do you expect more smaller lower-tier skins to be absorbed into those on the upper tier? AY: Everybody understands that the online poker industry is shrinking and consolidating, and we see a lot of operators out there trying to adjust and improve their business models to ?t these new market conditions. Consequently, some operators may ?nd themselves in a situation where they can consolidate skins while still keeping their new business models. If the conditions are right, such eGaming Review (eGR): How did you land upon the two-tier system? Asaf Younger (AY): It was derived through a thorough investigation of the ecology of the network, our main goal of which was to extend the players’ lifetime expectancy. We want to maximize the player usage of each deposit they make, essentially making each deposit go further. This has been the ?fth iteration of the network rules to be introduced, the ?rst published in 2007. What we’re hoping to achieve is an enjoyable poker environment, which includes all types of players.
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consolidations may occur internally or in the form of further external licensee migration to the network. eGR: How easy have you found it to make an impression on the Spanish market? AY: iPoker’s penetration to the Spanish market has been strong to date, and we are very con?dent for the future. Our vast experience in regulated markets, as seen with our strong position in the Italian market, and also the Betclic Everest migration on the French market has taught us that one of the key elements to our success on a market is to have strong local partners. iPoker enjoys a versatile, heterogeneous composition of operators in Spain; we have local established brands with a strong land-based casino presence, strong local media companies, sportsbook-oriented operators, and poker-oriented operators, some with vast experience from historic dot com activity. This very unique network composition, and with our knowledge from the other markets, presents a real growth potential for the iPoker network. I am con?dent that iPoker is going to be the preferred choice for the Spanish poker community. Additionally, while we focus on our online activity in Spain, we have opportunities to host further boutique land-based poker events together with our local casino and media partners, in a similar way to what we did in June 2012, when the market opened, at the iPOPS in Barcelona.
eGR: How easy has it been to integrate new operators who have joined since you implemented the new network rules? AY: The Betclic integration was the ?rst major new integration under the current network environment, which was quickly enacted after the agreement was signed with them last year. The speed with which iPoker has completed the migration has exceeded management’s expectations. Regarding Betfair, there is partial operation on the Ongame platform, which pertains to existing players, however all new sign-ups operate on iPoker’s network. Full migration will be completed by the end of H113.
"What we’re hoping to achieve is an enjoyable poker environment, which includes all types of players"
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