PokerStars Network is entering a new phase. When Flutter Entertainment launched its new network model in August, the initial focus was primarily on bringing its own poker brands onto a shared platform. Now, however, PokerStars is opening its technology and player liquidity to third-party operators as well.
The move represents one of the biggest changes to PokerStars' business model in its 25-year history. Rather than operating exclusively as a consumer-facing online poker brand, PokerStars is now positioning itself as a full-scale B2B poker network provider.
The first stage of PokerStars Network involved brands owned by PokerStars' parent company, Flutter Entertainment. Betfair migrated from the iPoker Network to PSN on August 13, while Paddy Power and Sky Poker are also expected to follow.
The major development now is that PokerStars Network will not remain a closed Flutter ecosystem.
PokerStars Network Opens Its Doors to External Operators
In late September, PokerStars officially began promoting PokerStars Network as a B2B solution.
The company has made it clear that after integrating Flutter-owned brands, it is now ready to work with operators outside the Flutter group.
PokerStars has also launched a dedicated B2B website for the network.
The underlying model is similar to the structure long used by traditional poker networks. Instead of having to develop proprietary poker software, build an independent player pool and operate an entire poker ecosystem from scratch, an operator can connect to PokerStars Network and gain access to its technology and liquidity.
This represents a fundamental departure from PokerStars' traditional business model. For most of its history, PokerStars built its enormous international player base under its own consumer brand, while networks such as iPoker pooled players from multiple independently branded operators.
PokerStars is now entering that same B2B market.
More Than Just Poker Liquidity
The PokerStars B2B proposition extends far beyond simply giving partners access to a larger player pool.
According to PokerStars Network, its offering includes shared liquidity, centrally operated games and tournament structures, game integrity systems, promotional infrastructure and technology integration.
Partners can also benefit from some of the best-known products and brands in the PokerStars ecosystem. The B2B proposition specifically highlights assets including the Sunday Million, Spin & Go and European Poker Tour (EPT).
That could make the network particularly attractive to sportsbooks and online casino operators looking to add poker to their existing product portfolios.
One of the biggest challenges when launching a new poker room is not necessarily the software itself, but liquidity.
A poker room needs enough active players to maintain cash game tables, start Sit & Gos consistently and generate tournament fields large enough to offer attractive guarantees. Building that ecosystem from zero can be extremely difficult.
By joining PokerStars Network, an operator can instead connect to an established poker infrastructure and existing player pool.
Operators Can Keep Their Own Brands
One of the most interesting aspects of PokerStars' B2B strategy is its flexibility when it comes to branding.
According to the company's B2B proposition, the PokerStars brand and its associated sub-brands can be combined with an operator's existing identity depending on the market and commercial opportunity. White-label solutions are also possible.
In other words, an external operator does not necessarily have to run its poker product under the PokerStars name.
It could theoretically retain its own brand and customer relationship while PokerStars provides the underlying technology and poker liquidity.
In other markets, the opposite approach could also be possible, with a local partner bringing the PokerStars brand itself into a new jurisdiction.
Italy Has Already Shown How the Model Can Work
Although opening the network to companies outside Flutter is a new development, the underlying concept has already been tested.
In Italy, Flutter-owned Sisal and SNAI have joined PokerStars Network. Sisal retained its own consumer brand while its players gained access to PokerStars' larger liquidity pool and poker products.
Following the migration, Sisal's poker revenue increased by more than 50%, while the combined network maintained a market share of more than 55% of the Italian online poker market.
The crucial difference now is that PokerStars is no longer offering this model exclusively to Flutter-owned brands.
PokerStars Moves Directly Into iPoker's B2B Territory
The new strategy could also reshape competition in the online poker network market.
Playtech's iPoker has long operated around precisely the model PokerStars is now adopting: multiple operators can maintain their own brands while sharing the same poker technology and player liquidity.
There is an additional twist to the story. Three Flutter brands — Betfair, Paddy Power and Sky Poker — previously used iPoker technology. Betfair has already migrated to PokerStars Network, while Paddy Power and Sky Poker are expected to follow.
PokerStars is therefore first moving its parent company's brands away from a competing poker network and onto its own infrastructure — and is now entering the same B2B market to recruit third-party operators.
iPoker is not the only network operating this way. GGNetwork also works with external operators in selected markets, including brands such as Danske Spil and OlyBet.
For PokerStars, however, the move represents something much bigger than another network expansion. After 25 years of primarily building its poker ecosystem around its own brand, the company is effectively turning that ecosystem into a product that other operators can buy into.
If PokerStars Network succeeds in attracting major external partners, the consequences could be significant for the balance of liquidity in global online poker — potentially giving PokerStars another route to closing the gap on GGPoker.
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