Unibet Poker To Transform Into an Online Poker Network
A little more than two years ago, Unibet Poker departed from the Microgaming Poker Network (MPN) to launch its own standalone poker client powered by Relax Gaming.
In the very near future, Unibet is about to transform itself into an online poker network by adding the Finnish online poker room Pokerihuone, which coincidentally has been operating on MPN as a skin. The migration is expected to take place on May 2 following an upgrade to the Unibet Poker software.
Once completed, players on Pokerihuone are expected to have an almost identical experience to that of players on Unibet with the poker rooms sharing liquidity across all games via the same tournaments and ring-games, while also featuring identical VIP program and promotions.
The sharing of liquidity was facilitated by Unibet Poker acquiring iGame last summer, whose only remaining online poker brand is Pokerihuone. The iGame acquisition is believed to be more centered around other more profitable gaming verticals such as online casino, bingo, and sports wagering, however, this also provides a unique opportunity for Unibet to become more than just a stand-alone site.
The immediate impact on Unibet Poker, who is currently ranked as the 12th largest poker network according to the PokerScout Online Poker Traffic Report is expected to be relatively minor as Pokerihuone is not currently one of the larger poker clients on MPN. However, a successful migration could lead the site to add other skins in the near future.
One can speculate that following a successful migration another potential future target to join the newly-formed network could be Stan James Poker, whose parent company was acquired by Unibet one month prior to the iGame acquisition. While nothing formal has been announced, it is possible we may also witness Unibet allowing skins that aren't controlled by its company if it so chooses.
Unibet Poker is understandably excited about migrating from a stand-alone client into an online poker network, however, the poker room's head of poker Andrew West admitted it didn't come easy to do so stating that it was “a lot of work to have another skin operating on the same software.”
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