As the current worldwide economic situation continues to capture the attention of businesses and governments around the world, it is critical that the gaming industry, whether online or live, continues to adapt to the changes. With this in mind, the World Poker Congress has announced the dates for its 2009 meeting and revealed some of the prominent members of the poker community who will speak during the event.
The World Poker Congress, which has been in existence since 2005, will hold its yearly gathering on June 24th and 25th at the Sheraton Porto Hotel & Spa in the coastal city of Porto, Portugal. The purpose of the conference, which features key players in the poker industry from around the world, is to create better synergy between the online and brick and mortar poker worlds. A look at the topics scheduled to be discussed at the conference and the list of speakers that will be in attendance reflect many of the issues that poker faces nowadays.
What should be some of the most important banter will focus on those markets where poker is still in a growth stage. Discussion on the first day of the World Poker Congress will center on three markets: Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America. The trio has extreme potential for growth in both the online and live poker communities. Online poker attendees will be focusing on subjects such as maintaining player trust, the importance of sports books in an online poker operation, and whether there should still be rakeback options available. The live poker segment will focus on subjects such as potential standardization of tournament rules, the operation of a poker room, and the game’s social aspect.
For all of these subjects, the World Poker Congress has drawn some of the best and brightest in the poker industry to lead the discussion. While the list has yet to be finalized, confirmed speakers include the CEO of Devilfish Gaming PLC, Paul Barnes, who will be discussing the rakeback issue, and David Carrion of the Spanish gaming giant Cirsa, who will look at the future of Latin American gaming. The keynote speakers of the event will be the CEO of Party Gaming, Jim Ryan, and the founder and CEO of World Poker Tour Enterprises, Steve Lipscomb.
Lipscomb points out that the conference is critical to both the online and live poker worlds. In a press release distributed recently by event organizers, Lipscomb noted, “The World Poker Congress is simply not like other conferences. In attendance are the decision makers from the most exciting companies in the poker arena – and they are there to do business.” The WPC is also critical in expanding the game around the world, best stated by poker professional and President of the Slovak Poker Sport Federation, Dag Palovic: “The first WPT event in Eastern Europe will be organized in September 2009 thanks to the WPC.”
The World Poker Congress conference in Porto should offer a great deal of information for driving the poker industry forward, not only online, but also in the casino world.
