Online Poker is a volatile industry, along with the majority of online gambling. It’s always evolving and nothing stays the same for long. 2023 has perhaps seen more movement than ever with an ever-changing landscape, but you can check this list of the best real money poker sites in 2023 to see which sites are really leading the way.
There have also been several acquisitions and changes with established brands, so let’s take a look at some of the most notable moves.
Entain Buys STS and Angstrom Sports in 2023
If you like to keep your ears and eyes routed to the latest in iGaming News, then you will probably have heard of Jette Nygaard Andersen. She’s the CEO of Entain, the company that owns a lot of betting companies already like Ladbrokes and Coral. In 2023, she’s had a bit of a spending spree having acquired some notable businesses.
STS is a major sportsbook brand in Eastern Europe with a very good following in both Poland and Croatia where it can be seen as the primary sponsor on some of the local football teams’ shirts. It’s rumoured that the Entain CEO want to break into the Eastern European markets.
Entain has also bought the Sports Analytical Data company, Angstrom Sports. The view is here that Entain wants to augment its sportsbook offerings with the latest and best technologies championed by Angstom.
Fanatics Buying PointsBet’s US Business in 2023
If you like watching sports you will probably have seen both Fanatics and PointsBet being advertised, especially if you’re watching US sports. Fanatics might have been limited to selling merchandise in the past but not their business is diverse and expansive. They’ve just bought PointsBet’s US business. Whether they continue to operate it under the former name or switch around remains to be seen but what is certain, at the cost of $150m they now have the right to operate sports betting (and iGaming) in 15 US states including New York.
Playtika Set to Acquire Innplay Labs later in 2023
Two of the more prominent names to come out of Israel in the iGaming scene are Playtika and Innplay Labs. Playtika stems back to 2010 and while it branches multiple software development studies, it specialises in the development of mobile games.
Innplay Labs developed the popular mobile games: Animal Kingdom, Tiles of Fortune as well and Animals & Coins. Given how successful these games have been they made the company a ripe investment if not from the rights alone. However, the $300m sale will also see them take advantage of the bespoke technology that powers their graphics.
888 Holdings Acquired William Hill in 2022
William Hill used to be one of the most recognizable betting shops on the UK high street. While they aren’t visible and they aren’t empty, they’re certainly declining in popularity. As such the online brand also struggled to keep up with the marketplace. 888 Holdings, the company behind such subsidiaries as 888sport, 888casino and 888poker was set to combine its operations with William Hill. 888 announced at the time they wanted to take advantage of their former rivals’ tech department and use it to create a refined product across all platforms.
PokerStars joins Flutter Entertainment in 2020
PokerStars was doing a lot right for a long time. For some customers, it was (and still is) the undeniable and unrivalled online destination for poker experiences. Its commercial ability to market itself well with great marketing ties and a good public image by always adhering to local laws (notably pulling out of markets when the laws changed) made it a very appealing business acquisition. Subsequently, Flutter Entertainment did just that and bought the company in 2020.
Before the deal, Flutter only had a minor presence in the online poker marketplace. It said that while it would overhaul some of the PokerStars platforms, it would look to use its poker technologies to improve its poker offerings through its pre-existing brands like Betfair and PaddyPower.
