According to an article on iGaming Post (www.gaming-awards.com) there may be a new suitor for Full Tilt Poker waiting in the wings. iGaming Post is reporting that they have confirmed this second suitor (an unnamed UK investment firm) from three separate sources, stating that they will be interested in purchasing the Full Tilt Poker software only, should the deal currently being brokered between Full Tilt and Groupe Bernard Tapie fall through.

According to the article:

“The deal would centre around offering in the region of $30 to $35 million for the software alone, while the FTP name, brand and all associated with it would be then wound up. The funds for the software would be deposited in a neutral account for Administrators of the company to distribute (sic) to creditors of FTP.”

Should the deal between FTP and GBT fall apart (which is definitely not out of the question at this point) the new group would be willing to take over Full Tilt’s assets, but would dissolve the Full Tilt Poker brand itself –there is no telling what this would mean to the players who are still waiting for some $300 million the now-flailing site owes them, or if the US Department of Justice would even allow such a deal.

There is of course the potential that a current online poker network or site might seize upon the chance to upgrade their software by adding Full Tilt Poker’s, or possibly (if it was legally permissible) acquire the database of Full Tilt Poker players which has to number in the millions.

The author of the article at iGaming Post closes the piece by stating:

“Our information points us to the conclusion that should the GBT deal falter; the only major asset of Full Tilt Poker will be bought and used most certainly by an existing operator.”

This is something I have been saying all along; the only asset worth anything (the Full Tilt Brand has been irreparably damaged in my opinion) is the site’s software platform, but even that has taken a hit in recent months with challenges to the Rush Poker patent that Full Tilt Poker applied for. Not to mention that the iGaming world moves at a lightning pace, and a site that has been offline for a year or longer is likely to see its software become dated, no matter how good it was in the past.

My latest take on the matter is that Groupe Bernard Tapie has no interest in reopening Full Tilt and is stalling the deal (citing unpaid debts by players) in order to do precisely what this second suitor wants to do; acquire the Full Tilt Poker software for a rock-bottom price, which GBT Can then use in their International Stadium Poker Tour (ISPT).

Tags: Assets, Bernard Tapie, Conclusion, Creditors, Current, Department Of Justice, Full Software, Full tilt Poker, Gaming Awards, Investment Firm, Online Poker, Poker Network, poker players, Poker Software, Purchasing Software, Software Platform, Suitor, Uk Investment, Us Department Of Justice, Waiting In The Wings

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 8th, 2012 at 9:10 am and is filed under Poker News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.