Serviço Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos do Turismo de Portugal (SRIJ), the Portuguese gaming regulator has recently given 888 the go-ahead to offer shared liquidity online poker with neighboring Spain. Launched in early 2018, the shared liquidity project was a culmination of prolonged negotiations between the gaming regulators of Portugal, Spain, Italy, and France in a bid to revitalize online poker sector in Europe which has not been fairing so well in recent years. Unfortunately, Italy opted to cease the pursuit of this shared liquidity agreement leaving Spain, France, and Portugal which went on to move towards the materialization of the project on.
The first operator to join the shared liquidity project was PokerStars and it has been able to offer shared liquidity poker in France and Spain since January 2018. Later on, the SRIJ allowed the online poker operator to merge its Portuguese pool with its French and Spanish ones.
888 was granted a license to offer its services in the Portuguese gaming market just a few months ago and the launch of its 888poker brand in the country is just one of the first steps it is taking as it further extends its footprint in Europe. With the roll-out, 888poker is now the second online poker operator to go live in Portugal which means that it will be going toe-to-toe with PokerStars, its biggest and only competitor in the country.
What Should Players Expect?
Now, 888poker fans will be able to access the operator’s offering on the 888poker.pt website. In addition to that, they will also be able to share poker tables with Spanish poker players thanks to the newly established interstate poker network. This arrangement not only implies that their will be increased player liquidity but also that they will be able to access even more games and formats.
“We’re looking forward to giving everyone the opportunity to enjoy the game. Shared liquidity with 888poker.es will enhance players’ gaming experience with a greater pool of players, and we believe our platform can help lift the entire landscape for poker in Portugal,” Guy Cohen, 888 Holdings’ head of B2C, commented on the Portuguese launch.
Among the unique things that players can expect are several unique poker variants and formats, more promotions as well as very affordable buy-ins. Furthermore, the launch of the operator’s online poker and shared liquidity offerings will accompany the roll-out of Poker 8, its new poker software. This new software has already been launched on the 888poker.com website and it is every bit as good as it sounds. It is packed with a number of new features while maintaining a lot of things that made the previous software user-friendly and visually appealing.
