Real Gaming Becomes Third Online Poker Site in NevadaThe South Point Casino soft-launched its RealGaming.com online poker site this week – the third company to offer real money online poker for players in Nevada.
Following the arrivals of Ultimate Poker and WSOP.com in 2013, South Point Casino became the third player in the Nevada real money online poker market this week when it soft-launched its RealGaming.com poker product. The soft-launch period is expected to last a month, while the site proves to the Nevada Gaming Control Board that its technology works.
CEO of South Point Casino – Michael Gaughan – anticipates no problems, as the software behind RealGaming.com has been build from scratch in order to set the foundation for future development and continued innovation
. Gaughan also explained that the delay in launching RealGaming.com was due to wanting to develop a multi-platform product and get it right
.
Web-Based Online Poker in Nevada
Unlike its two competitors, RealGaming.com is a web-based poker client with no download required. It works across all platforms (including Android and iPhone) and has a unique geo-location verification procedure which requires players to download a mobile app from the Real Gaming website, which then receives a unique identifier each time a player starts a session, which the player must then enter to gain access to the tables.
The software itself looks and feels more like a social networking site – with a profile section, a who´s online
gallery and a built-in message area from which players can send messages to their buddies. The games themselves are limited to NL Texas Hold´em for the present, with multitable tournaments due to start this weekend along with a limited selection of Sit n Go tournaments.
South Point Players Waiting a Long Time
South Point Casino was one of the first Nevada operators to be awarded an online poker license by the Nevada Gaming Commission back in August 2012, and a lot of players expected it to be the first provider of online poker in Nevada. However, delays in building the software – and a re-branding to RealGaming.com – put back the launch date.
Nonetheless, Michael Gaughan is undeterred, claiming that the relatively small Nevada online poker market is still in its infancy and the site´s success will be measured when compacts are formed between Nevada and other States which regulate online poker in the US. For the present, Gaughan is relying on the loyalty of South Point Casino´s brick and mortar clients to get RealGaming.com through its soft-launch phase.
Features to be Released Step-by-Step
Gaughan has also confessed that not all the site´s features will be released in one go. Even when the soft-launch phase is complete, there are no plans for a substantial marketing campaign or a major promotion to attract players away from Ultimate Poker and WSOP.com. We´re starting very small
he said, with Real Gaming Marketing Executive Tom Mikovits adding For us, the job is to educate our loyal customers that this is a safe and regulated activity.
Other than the novelty value of being the third Nevada online poker site, the only incentive currently offered for players to sign-up to RealGaming.com is the site´s Real Rewards
program – a points-based loyalty program which awards two Real Rewards Points for each $1.00 contributed to the rake and then allows players to convert their points into cash bonuses.
Whether this will be enough for RealGaming.com to make a significant impression in the Nevada market, only time will tell.
