The World Poker Tour has been acquired by Ourgame International Holdings Ltd.—a Hong Kong-listed, Beijing-based corporation specializing in social gaming—for million in cash.
Ourgame offers a wide range of online card and board games across different platforms and has more than 500 million users. The WPT had previously worked with Ourgames to hold a WPT National China tournament at MGM Grand Sanya Resort and extends a December alliance between the two companies in which WPT agreed to exclusively license its products and services to Ourgame in more than a dozen Asian countries.
The WPT will maintain its Irvine, California headquarters and Los Angeles production offices while expanding offices in Beijing, officials for the companies said.
“Having already established an exciting partnership with Ourgame, a high-growth company led by an enthusiastic group that is fully invested in the global growth of the sport of poker, we are delighted to now become a fully-integrated member of the Ourgame family,” said WPT President & CEO Adam Pliska. “I want to thank bwin.party CEO Norbert Teufelberger and bwin.party CFO Martin Weigold for all of their support over the last six years, and for helping facilitate this agreement.”
In 2009, bwin.party acquired the WPT for $12.3 million.
“World Poker Tour is unquestionably the global leader in organizing world-class poker events, and we are very proud to acquire one of the world’s greatest brands,” added Ourgame CEO Frank Ng. “WPT, with Ourgame as its new owner, will continue to expand its already impressive global presence, bringing poker and gaming entertainment to cities and homes around the world via television broadcasts, mobile devices, card tables, and more.”
Pliska said consumers can expect to see a great improvement in WPT’s online products, including its poker website clubWPT.com, as well as more live poker events internationally.
“Asia is the fastest growing market in poker right now. It’s a real phenomenon,” Pliska said. “We’ve just started to scratch the surface and we have a great interest in expanding throughout the region.”
Ourgame is a unit of the Beijing Lianzhong Interactive Network Co., Ltd.
