Facebook May Soon Enter Into the Online Poker Arena

Apparently, Facebook has been holding meetings with online gaming experts, consultants and social gaming entrepreneurs for several months regarding the future of online poker on the site.

If the rumors turn out to be true, “real money” poker would be available via Facebook sometime within the next 60 days through as many as eight licensed providers. Potential licensees include top game developer Gamesys, whose offerings currently include several games based on television shows such as The Price Is Right and Deal or No Deal, and 888 Holdings PLC, which owns 888Poker.com and jointly operates WSOP.com alongside Caesars Entertainment.

There are still plenty of issues to work out including age verification, finding a processor for the high volume of real money transactions, and deciding how to divvy up what some experts are projecting could amount to billions in revenue.

But even if these rumors turn out to be true, Americans need not get their hopes up. Real money online poker through Facebook won’t be an option as long as the current status of online gaming in the United States holds. The United Kingdom is the most likely testing ground, potentially spreading from there to the rest of the legalized online gambling world. Pressed for comment, a Facebook representative has said “We’re always in discussions with companies about lots of different ideas, but we don’t comment on future plans or speculation.”