Playtech Signs Poker Software Licensing Agreement With COPA

Despite the ongoing U.S. crackdown on the online gambling industry, this week the California Online Poker Association (COPA) signed an agreement that will see leading online gambling software vendor Playtech provide it with online poker software and other gaming technology.

COPA has chosen Sciplay as its provider of intrastate online poker

COPA also announced that it has chosen Sciplay, a joint venture between Scientific Game Corporation (SGC) and Playtech, to be its official provider of intrastate online poker facilities and services.

SGC has developed government-sanctioned gaming and lottery services for countries including Switzerland, China, Norway, Germany and Spain. The company also boasts over 120,000 gaming terminals all over the world and provides video lottery services to U.S. states such as West Virginia, South Dakota, Delaware, Maine, as well as to Australia.

Playtech is one of the most successful online gambling software vendors in operation, and since its launch in 1999 has grown to a point where its software powers over 80 leading online casinos, poker rooms and sports betting sites. Playtech clients include UK sportsbooks such as Bet365, Sportech and William Hill. It also powers operators in France, Finland and Italy.

A regulated online poker industry in California is long overdue

The objective of COPA's new agreement with Sciplay and Playtech is to create a safe, secure and legal online gambling platform for citizens of California. Currently California is home to around 60 percent of America's online poker players. It is estimated that each week over two million Californians play poker at offshore poker rooms. Hence, a regulated online poker industry is long overdue.

Said Robert Martin, a member of COPA's Board of Managers, 'Although we've been working on these agreements for months, the timing really couldn't be better as the federal indictments have removed the largest offshore online poker operators from the California market and further created the urgency for regulated online poker within the state of California. COPA will be ready to launch live online poker just as soon as the legislature acts to authorize online poker in California.'