With the European Poker Tour (EPT) in Prague coming to a close, all eyes turn to the World Poker Tour (WPT). You don’t want to blink. There’s a lot going on.
The first piece of news to bring you concerns an extended relationship with the Swiss Luxury Watchmakers, Hublot. The pair have done business before, with Season XII WPT World Championship winner Keven Stammen winning a Hublot Power Unico watch, but the new deal strengthens this relationship even further.
Hublot will become the official timekeeper and official watch of the WPT (images of a Hublot Shot Clock have already sprung to mind). The partnership was announced during the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic, WPT Alpha8 at The Bellagio in Las Vegas.
Q:Hublot has once again proven itself to be first, unique and different, as the first luxury brand to become Official Timekeeper and Official Watch of the international professional poker circuit,” said Hublot CEO Ricardo Guadalupe. “We chose the World Poker Tour because its global presence, televised tournaments and quality of its players make it a benchmark in the game.”;
Hublot is no stranger to the world of sport and gaming. They have a heavy presence in the world of football, motor racing, and cricket. They were also the official watch of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
Winners of every televised Main Tour Event and Alpha8 events will received a Hublot timepiece; the WPT Player of the Year (POY) will receive a specially engraved watch, and Hublot have also created a new watch called the Big Bang World Poker Tour watch that is available to anyone with enough diamond-crusted jewels to pay for it.
Q:Hublot is a Swiss luxury brand renowned across the globe for its sports watches with an instantly recognizable design,” said WPT CEO Adam Pliska. “This partnership will bring even more value to each and every televised event of the World Poker Tour.”;
WPT Partner with Ourgame
When the People’s Republic of China (PRC) creates a fully-regulated online gambling network, the WPT will be in fine position after announcing a deal with the Asian gaming specialists Ourgame International Holdings Limited.
The Beijing-based outfit, who own more than 300 Internet and mobile games and have more than 15 million active users per month, now have the right to use the WPT logo and trademark exclusively in the likes of Bhutan, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Laos, Korea, Nepal, Macau, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, and Vietnam. They will also have non-exclusive rights in Japan.
Q:The World Poker Tour has worked hard to expand its footprint throughout Asian territories over the last few years with much success,” Pliska added. “By working with Ourgame to expand the WPT brand in Asia, we are assuring that the recent strong growth of the WPT in the region will continue for many years to come.”;
Ourgame CEO Frank Ng stated, “As China’s leading card and board game platform, we are very pleased to have found a great global partner in the World Poker Tour, as we start to expand from China to Asia. The WPT is a true global leader in organizing world-class poker events around the globe, and we share a common vision of promoting poker as a genuine mind sport.”
There will be an official announcement made during a press conference scheduled for January 2015.