MyBet Poker Closing at the End of the Month
While we wait to see what if any the effects of Brexit might be on the online poker marketplace, one small shake-up which had nothing to do with the United Kingdom's vote to leave the European Union was recently announced with mybet Holding SE advising its customers that it is closing its poker room.
According to Poker Industry Pro, the online poker operator announced the shutdown will be effective on June 30 via a statement on its website that has since been removed.
Once the poker accounts are closed, customers will automatically have their balances moved to the main wallet as the casino and sports book — both of which have been performing better for the company — will continue to operate and become the company's main focus. Additionally, any player points from online poker can be converted into cash until July 15.
"It’s been a good time we had at mybet Poker, but even good things sometimes come to an end," shared mybet in a statement.
In a press release regarding the shutdown, mybet Holding SE Manager Investor & Public Relations Manager Sebastian Bucher listed the lack of revenue being generated from poker as the primary reason for the decision to close the virtual room.
"The group generated revenues of around EUR 1.0 million in the financial year 2015 from Poker, compared to annual total revenues of EUR 63.0 million," the press release stated. "Since 2014, the company is conducting a fundamental strategic reorientation."
The statement added that the company will be focusing on its core casino and sports wagering operations while also planning to roll out a new platform during the summer.
"Key focus is the sports betting and casino games as well as the implementation of a new high-performance IT platform for the whole product range," explained Bucher. "The introduction of the new platform is planned to take place between the middle of July and the beginning of August."
Zeno Osskó, Chief Executive Officer of mybet Holdings SE, voiced similar sentiments regarding the decision to close the online poker room.
"The poker business contributed with only a minor share to our revenue and delivered virtually no contribution to the operating result of the group," noted Osskó. "In addition, we do not see a sufficient growth potential in this area to support the operational turnaround in the short term. From our point of view, continuing our Poker offering was not expedient, especially in the light of the upcoming introduction of the new mybet platform."
The mybet skin has been known to be one of the smaller ones on the iPoker Network. Currently iPoker is the fifth most trafficked online poker room according to PokerScout, with 1,000 ring-game players on a seven-day rolling average. This puts them in a virtual tie with partypoker who is listed in fourth place on the site with a similar amount of ring-game players.
Players on other iPoker skins will likely not notice any difference before or after the closure, as the online poker room contributed negligibly to the overall network's liquidity.
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