Major Chinese Internet Group Plans New Poker Tour
By Casinomeister, Last updated Dec 2, 2016
Alibaba Sports Group launches International Poker Tour
Reports from Shanghai, China are that Alibaba Sports Group (AliSports) – a subsidiary of the Chinese internet commerce giant Alibaba – held a press conference this week to announce the formation of a new poker tour that will embrace Asia, Europe and North America.
Titled International Poker Tour, the initial set up includes plans for over $7 million in guaranteed prizes, with the first outing likely to be in Shanghai with an initial $870,000 investment that could see the winner taking home around $200,000.
Local reports indicate that there are also plans to introduce chess and bridge events, perhaps in an effort to cross-market between different potential audiences.
The reports note that there has been significant interest in poker competitions held in Macau over recent years, and there is clearly considerable interest in poker across the region.
Certainly Alexandre Dreyfus, a respected poker entrepreneur and founder of the Global Poker League, is enthusiastic about the development, observing that the two largest tech companies in China – Ten Cent and Alibaba – are now promoting poker in a region which holds massive potential.
Online Casino News Courtesy of Infopowa
The man with the plan here at Casinomeister. Bryan Bailey has been running Casinomeister since its launch in June of 1998. He has watched the industry grow from its primeval stage to what it is now. The Meister has attended nearly 100 conferences in the past 20 years and has either been a speaker or a panel moderator for at least 60 events. He has always been an advocate of fairness and reason and is known to like German beer, a good Scotch, and astrophotography.
bryan@casinomeister.com
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