Online Poker Popularity Continues to Grow

When compared to last year, September saw continued growth in interest for online poker sites as figures once again rose. The poker-playing sector experienced a 5.2% rise in the number of people joining online games. 

The weekly online poker traffic update, released by gambling website Poker Scout, shows that the month of September proved to be another good period for the industry. All of the top ten online poker sites have shown a significantly increased level of activity against last year. The site calculates that there should be a continued 1% annual rise, which is a marked change from last month. 

PokerStars once again held the top slot on the table with an average of more than 27,000 players at the virtual poker tables, peaking at 46,091. Their success has been put down to the continued growth of their World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), which finished this weekend. It featured 62 live online cash games and had a prize pool of over $50 million, with the final, grandstand match boasting a $10 million fund on its own. 

The other popular sites like Full Tilt Poker, Party Poker and iPoker figured prominently at the top of the list. Full Tilt averaged 17,400 and peaked at 28,000, a 16% expansion in players believed to be due to their $50 promotion attracting new players. Whether the end of this promotion will see them slip back in the rankings is yet to be seen but the company has said that they are in a healthy position in the black at present.