Global Poker Conference to Lead to the American Poker Awards on Feb. 27
The Global Poker Index (GPI) has finally released some details about the first-ever American Poker Awards (APA), a ceremony set to take place on Feb. 27, at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
Created to bring together all the top names of the poker industry and consolidate the image of poker as both a sport and a game for the masses, the 2015 APA will run around a busy schedule that, in the mind of GPI owner Alex Dreyfus, will combine the seriousness of a poker conference with the glam of an Oscars-like ceremony.
"I think we are at the eve of a new boom," Dreyfus told PokerNews. "This is the perfect time for an initiative like the American Poker Awards."
Although the dinner ceremony is set to begin at 8:30 p.m. local time, the programme of the APA aims to keep players, industry leaders, and others curious about the poker world busy for the whole day.
"We realize that the American Poker Awards do not exist in a vacuum," Dreyfus said about the event. "As part of building a legitimate awards ceremony we’ve taken considerable steps to ensure this event holds true to the sense of industry unification and responsibility that have become hallmarks of every GPI initiative. For this reason, we’ve coupled the 2015 European Poker Awards with the Global Poker Conference."
The conference, which in Dreyfus' mind should help the development of poker in US — "and therefore also in the rest of the world" — "will lead into our awards ceremony and give players, industry thought leaders, poker media, and industry operators a forum to connect and discuss the future of the live poker ecosystem."
After an opening session where the host will discuss his plans for the GPI, the APA will continue with different sessions that include a workshop on social media titled "Leveraging ideas for the poker industry," and two panel discussions about "the online and brick-and-mortar poker room ecosystem" and some strategies to " increase revenues and maximize player loyalty with innovations in live poker room technology and management."
Keeping the same formula already in use at the European Poker Awards (EPA), all the talking will then lead to a prestigious awards ceremony. During the 2015 APA, a jury of experts will announce the winners for 14 different categories including the Poker Player of the Year, the Female Poker Player of the Year, the Rookie of the Year and the winner of the GPI-owned Challenger Cup.
European Poker Awards To Be Held During EPT Malta
Right after the jury will have nominated the winners of the first-ever American Poker Awards, the GPI expedition will then head back to their headquarters in Malta, for the European leg of their awards project.
After the success of last year's event in Deauville, the 2015 EPA will then go south and join the first-ever European Poker Tour (EPT) in Malta for a poker festival that will run in March 18-28, 2015, and which many believe will be one to remember.
"Malta is a great destination for an EPT, and we expect strong participation numbers," EPT President Edgar Stuchly said about the event.
Set to begin on March 25, the 14th edition of the EPA will combine the traditional EPA ceremony with a round of talks and panel discussions — all to be held in the Hilton Hotel in St. Julians, Malta.
Although the entrance to the conferences in Beverly Hills and Malta is free of charge, participants are requested to book themselves a seat through the Awards’ official websiteswww.americanpokerawards.com and www.europeanpokerawards.com.
Image courtesy of the European Poker Awards
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