BCLC PlayNow.com joins Loto-Quebec on Canadian Poker Network

21 February 2011
(PRESS RELEASE) – The British Columbia Lottery Corporation's Play Now iGaming site has joined the Canadian Poker Network.
The first regulated poker network in North America, the Canadian Poker Network, powered by GTECH G2, launched last December when poker players at Loto Québec's Espace Jeux site joined the network. Now players in British Columbia will play at the same tables as players in Quebec. The increased liquidity means more choice for players of every level.
The Canadian Poker Network features the state-of-the-art poker software developed by GTECH G2 for its European networks. Designed to handle over 10,000 concurrent players, the system has been thoroughly tested to the highest standards and has received TST and BC Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch (GPEB) approval. The Canadian Poker Network is open only to residents of the provinces of Quebec and British Columbia, Canada.
GTECH G2 is providing eight poker variants including Texas Hold'em and Canadian Stud (or Soko) which is played the same way as 5-Card Stud except that there are two extra combinations: a four-card Flush and a four-card Straight.
The increased liquidity of the expanded network is sure to result in many more tournaments like the $250,000 free roll held earlier this month.
Canadian Poker Network operations are based in Canada. The system is housed in a Montreal based data centre and poker network operations are in the National Operations Centre in Moncton, New Brunswick.
"The CPN is an excellent example of the kind of convergence of the igaming and lottery industries that GTECH G2 was created to serve," said Paolo Personeni, President of GTECH G2. "We are proud to be partnered with such innovative lotteries, and look forward to enabling other lottery corporations to enter the igaming space with confidence."