South Point and Monarch named first NV operators
Companies saw their applications approved by the Nevada Gaming Commission yesterday, along with payments company Global Cash Access.
South Point Poker and Monarch Interactive have become the first operators licensed to offer online poker in Nevada after receiving approval from the state’s gaming commission yesterday.
The Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) also approved Global Cash Access to offer payment processing solutions in the Silver State.
Last month saw South Point Poker CEO and gaming industry veteran Michael Gaughan (pictured) pledge that his company would be the first to offer legal real-money online poker in the United States, and this week’s unanimous NGC approval follows clearance from the Nevada State Gaming Control Board (GCB) earlier this month.
At the time Gaughan suggested the site could be ready to take its first bet in September, with the second wave of testing already having been completed before the end of last month, but chief operating officer Lawrence Vaughan suggested after the NGC meeting that October was a more realistic launch date.
Vaughan told the Las Vegas Review-Journal: “We are pretty excited to enter the online gaming world. This is an incredible step forward. It’s going to redefine gaming and what the state can do.”
Until last night only three companies had been awarded Nevada egaming licences, with International Game Technology (IGT) and Bally Technologies receiving manufacturer and service provider accreditation in June and Shuffle Master saw its own application approved just weeks later.
All three will be permitted to provide online poker for licensed operators, however South Point has revealed that it will go live with a proprietary offering when it launches real-money online poker later this year.
The award of the licences is ahead of GCB chairman Mark Lipparelli’s tentative 60-90 day schedule, and further operators are set to go before the GCB in the coming weeks and months.
Caesars Interactive Entertainment is to go before the GCB next month, while Golden Gaming – founded by former Station Casinos COO Blake Santini – is the latest to submit an application for an operator’s licence.
Others chasing operator accreditation include Fertitta Interactive, former PokerStars partner Wynn Resorts, and bwin.party’s US partners MGM and Boyd.
For an exclusive interview with South Point Poker CEO Michael Gaughan, visit our sister site eGR North America.