In an intriguing move, the streaming poker channel Poker Central has teamed with one of the preeminent gaming companies in the industry for a “live event” studio in Las Vegas that will open in May.
Poker Central and ESP Gaming have joined forces to create a studio set in ARIA Resort & Casino that will serve both entities. For Poker Central, the new studios will be a prime set for their broadcasts on PokerGO of such events as the Super High Roller Bowl, the Poker Masters Series and the reborn Poker After Dark, all of which are prominent programming pieces for the streaming network. For ESP Gaming, the studio will serve as the host space for their own live eSports programming, including the Vainglory Premier League.
“Nearly a year ago we set out to create a digital-first poker network that would showcase some of the world’s best tournaments and lifestyle content – both on and off the felt,” said J. R. McCabe, the Chief Digital Officer of Poker Central. “While this studio marks the fulfillment of that goal, it also doubles as a promise to our loyal viewers – to continually expand our programming slate, offer even more tournaments at all levels and get fans even closer to the mind sport they love.”
Jeff Liboon, the President of ESP Gaming, was equally pleased with the new digs. “With demand for our eSports production services continuing to grow, we needed a home to host more tournaments and competitions at broadcast-quality level so we could continue to deliver best-in-class eSports content to audiences worldwide. This partnership with Poker Central gives us the ability to bring the best in live eSports to new fans and create a preeminent location for developers to elevate their leading titles from game to sport.”
The new studios will allow both entities to expand their potential programming extensively. The more than 10,000 square-foot studio will have space for nine poker tables with an occupancy of up to 300 people, including space for 120 fans and event spectators. The venue features multiple sound stages including a main studio, break desk area and a streaming lounge, which will provide flexibility to host a wide variety of poker and eSports events. The studio will be open to the public on an event-by-event basis. Nevada gaming regulations will apply to all poker events and the first program for the new studios will be a “grand opening” special broadcast of Poker After Dark airing on PokerGO from May 16-18.
Since their shutdown as a cable station in December 2016, Poker Central has blossomed as a streaming outlet. Charging its customers $10 per month for viewing, Poker Central has been able to show improvement over what they were offering previously. Instead of retreaded programs from the World Poker Tour and old European poker tournaments, Poker Central went full bore in creating new programming for the streaming station. While they came up with “reality” television programs with a poker edge (such as Major Wager, a show about prop betting, and Poker Nights, a comedy from former Saturday Night Live alum Chris Parnell about a home poker game), it is their “made for television” poker tournaments that have been the buzz in the poker world.
Already holding the broadcast rights to the Super High Roller Bowl, the $300,000 buy in event which has rewarded its victors with millions in prize money, Poker Central decided to up their content. They created the Poker Masters event, a five-tournament schedule of high buy in tournaments that ran last year for the first time. They also brought back arguably the preeminent poker program of the “poker boom” era in Poker After Dark and negotiated deals to live stream the broadcasts of the World Series of Poker, the World Poker Tour and the ARIA High Roller Series.
One area that Poker Central has been quiet about is the actual number of subscribers that the streaming network has. Come May 2018, it will mark one year that PokerGO has been a streaming network, but no actual subscription figures have been released nor information on whether they are of the month-by-month variety (which costs $10 per month) or of the yearly subscription ($99). The closest niche programming that might be comparable to PokerGO would be the WWE Network.
The WWE Network has 1.7 million subscribers as of WrestleMania 33 last year, the traditional time when World Wrestling Entertainment announces their subscriber numbers because it is the peak of their viewing year (new numbers for the WWE Network will be released on Monday afternoon). If PokerGO were to have even a quarter of that figure – roughly 425,000 subscribers – it would indicate that Poker Central is in rather robust health. And, like many companies that have a product still under development, it seems that Poker Central is putting the money back into PokerGO, hence the new studios and the new programming that can only improve the product that is going to its viewers.
