Ladbrokes may be one of the most popular names when it comes to British bookmakers but the company provides a whole wealth of online gaming opportunities. You may first have come across Ladbrokes through their bright red stores on the High Street in your local city or town but nowadays, people are more used to logging on to their Ladbrokes account and enjoying some gaming fun without leaving the house. Poker has been at the heart of the online gaming entertainment provided by Ladbrokes but the company has announced that there will be a change to the poker provision it provides.
In a press release, Ladbrokes announced that they would be switching from the MPN (previously known as the Micrograming) poker platform and would be switching to the iPoker Network, which is part of Playtech. This is a big transition, moving from one major player in the online poker industry to another and there will be some players who will be unsure about this move. There will have been poker players that selected the Ladbrokes site because of the fact that it was on the poker network that it was and wasn’t part of the iPoker Network. Whether these poker players will decide to stick with Ladbrokes or switch to another poker provider remains to be seen.
A bigger poker network awaits for Ladbrokes
Of course, online poker players that are fans of the iPoker Network may now look more favourably on the Ladbrokes poker offering and could decide to create an account with the company. One of the first changes that will come in the partnership between the two will be the creation of a Vegas tab for the Ladbrokes site and rang of games.
There is yet to be a date announced for when the transfer of the Ladbrokes poker element will take place but it is expected to take place sooner rather than later. Given that Ladbrokes signed up to be part of the Microgaming Network back in 2009, this represents a major change for the company. Microgaming, or MPN as it is now known, has been ranked at around the 10th largest network for online poker traffic but with Ladbrokes being one of the major skins of the network, this may result in a drop-off. With iPoker currently ranking in fourth position, only behind serious names like PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and the partypoker network, it is easy to see why Ladbrokes have been happy to make the switch.
Ladbrokes will be joining with a number of their online betting rivals including William Hill, Paddy Power and the highly recommended bet365 Poker. The immediate news for Ladbrokes was positive as when the news broke, their share price leapt to its highest point in the past five years.