WPT Coverage
I remember when the World Poker Tour started earlier this decade and first watching all the events on TV. They featured great poker action, from casinos in exotic locales around the world, and got a high amount of viewership. At that time, it would have been hard to believe that the WPT would ever see financial losses. But then again, the so-called “poker online boom” of earlier this decade has subsided and there’s not much interest in the game as there once was. In a sign of the times, World Poker Tour Enterprises reported reported a net loss of $3.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2008, contributing to a loss of $12.5 million for the full year, according to pokernews.com. The company reported $2.5 million less in revenues for the quarter compared to the same period a year ago, primarily driven by a change in the release pattern of its television broadcasts and lower international television license fees. While casino online poker is certainly as popular worldwide nowadays as it was in 2004, it is still way more popular than it was in, say, 1997. I’m sure the WPT and other poker operators and tournament organizers will stabilize and continue to make money. While poker may never be as popular as it was five years ago, it is always going to be a very popular and successful worldwide game.
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