Amaya Inc. announced plans to combine its Full Tilt online poker platform into its industry leading PokerStars brand.
The change will allow the company to focus on improving its PokerStars platform, rather than two separate platforms the company said in a press release after reports of the merger broke online.
“Players will benefit from a larger pool of players offering greater game choice, bigger prize pools,” said Rafi Ashkenazi, Chief Executive Officer of Rational Group, said in a press release. “It will also make us more nimble as we can focus our technological innovation on one platform, rather than two, so we will be able to innovate more quickly and enter newly-regulating and existing markets swiftly.”
PokerStars said the move would result in the “elimination of a number of roles” in Full Tilt’s Dublin office. The number layoffs was not announced as the company said it is still evaluating the impact of the move for its staff, according to Online Poker Report.
Players will be moved to a single account that can be used to access either the PokerStars or Full Tilt platforms. Players will also be moved to the PokerStars VIP system, the release said.
Between the two brands, PokerStars has consistently drawn more players.
PokerStars is also reworking its head-up cash poker game format by pulling heads-up tables and replacing them with a different format.
In an email distributed to customers, PokerStars said will no longer have access to No Limit Hold ‘em, Fixed Limit Hold ‘em and Pot Limit Omaha Heads-Up regular tables. Instead, the games will be replaces with “Zoom” pools, a format where players compete against a different opponent on each hand.
“These changes are part of PokerStars’ ongoing strategic plan to improve the poker ecosystem and enhance the player experience,” said Eric Hollreiser, head of corporate communications at PokerStars’ parent company Amaya Inc. said in a press release. “We expect these changes to incentivize more players to be focused on playing poker and less focused on selecting opponents. Ultimately we believe this will raise the competitive bar and help increase a fun and fair playing experience for everyone.”
