The global poker industry is easily one of the most competitive gaming markets in the world and it is not often that you will find a gaming operator welcoming other competitors into the market as it usually results in a fight for market share which means bigger advertising and marketing budgets to boost brand visibility and build its player database.

The Poker Sports League (PSL) which launched in India and conducted its first season earlier this year is one company that is not afraid to welcome the competition. Poker is currently banned throughout most of India as legislators look on poker as a game based on chance and hence categorize it as gambling which is illegal in India. However states like West Bengal and Karnataka in recent times have passed legislation that has categorized poker as a game of skill and hence made legalized since it is not considered gambling anymore.

GPL And Match IPL Welcome

Global Poker League (GPL) which was the first ever poker league to be established by Mediarex Entertainment under Alex Dreyfus has also expressed interest in setting up domestic poker leagues in India, Brazil and China. GPL India is expected to launch shortly and so will Match IPL as both leagues have a similar focus as the PSL which is to sportify poker in India and educate both legislators and a growing market on what is all about.

The PSL believes that when more operators enter the country and take up lobbying efforts to legalize poker throughout India, it will help speed up efforts to get poker legalized and also help increase the market size. Pranav Bagai, the chief executive officer of the PSL told Calvin Ayre recently that the PSL is currently working on changing the perception of poker in India and welcomed other operators to assist with these efforts.

In a statement, Bagai said “Anything that is good for poker in India is great for Poker Sports League, We are glad that other companies are trying to launch leagues in India. It will help with growing the poker eco-system. That being said – the reach, scope and vision of PSL cannot be compared in the poker industry, we are a league apart, and that pun is intended.”

PSL Gears For Season 2

The PSL had a great Season 1 and was very happy with the response and live streaming results. The company has already confirmed that it will proceed with Season 2 and plans to make a few strategic changes that will help make Season 2 bigger and better. One of those changes will be a television deal that will broadcast Season 2 across television channels in India and significantly help poker gain more visibility in India.

The World Poker Tour (WPT) recently completed its first ever WPT India and was happy with the inaugural edition. PokerStars, the biggest online poker operator in the world has also expressed interest in entering India once poker is legalized and when that happens, the PSL will then have some serious competition to think about.

Tags: GPL India, India, Karnataka, Match IPL, Poker Sports League, Pranav Bagai, PSL, West Bengal, WPT India

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 26th, 2017 at 8:18 am and is filed under Poker Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

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