Official details below.
POKER CENTRAL AND ESP GAMING LAUNCH NEW LIVE EVENT STUDIO IN THE HEART OF THE LAS VEGAS STRIP
State-of-the-Art PokerGO Studio at ARIA Resort & Casino to Host Poker and Esports Events
Productions to Include Super High Roller Bowl, Poker Masters, U.S. Poker Open, Poker After Dark, Vainglory Premier League and More
LAS VEGAS – April 5, 2018 – Poker Central®, the ultimate destination for fans of poker tournaments, cash games, and lifestyle away from the tables, and ESP Gaming, the world’s premier competitive gaming content creation company, unveiled their new studio earlier today. Owned and operated by Poker Central, the studio was built entirely from the ground up at ARIA Resort & Casino and will be the exclusive home for all Poker Central-owned live events distributed on its over-the-top subscription service, PokerGO. The first production will take place May 16 – 18 with a special grand opening edition of “Poker After Dark.”
In addition to its ongoing partnership with ARIA, fellow Poker Central portfolio company ESP Gaming also will use the digitally advanced space to host its own live esports event productions including the Vainglory Premier League, the world’s No. 1 international mobile esports league created by Super Evil Megacorp.
“Nearly a year ago we set out to create a digital-first poker network that would showcase some of the world’s best tournaments and lifestyle content – both on and off the felt,” said JR McCabe, chief digital officer of Poker Central. “While this studio marks the fulfillment of that goal, it also doubles as a promise to our loyal viewers – to continually expand our programming slate, offer even more tournaments at all levels and get fans even closer to the mind sport they love.”
The more than 10,000 square-foot studio will have space for nine poker tables with an occupancy of up to 300 people, including space for 120 fans and event spectators. The venue features multiple sound stages including a main studio, break desk area and a streaming lounge, which will provide flexibility to host a wide variety of poker and esports events. The studio will be open to the public on an event-by-event basis. Nevada gaming regulations will apply to all poker events.
Jeff Liboon, president of ESP Gaming, said, “With demand for our esports production services continuing to grow, we needed a home to host more tournaments and competitions at broadcast-quality levels so we could continue to deliver best-in-class esports content to audiences worldwide. This partnership with Poker Central gives us the ability to bring the best in live esports to new fans and create a preeminent location for developers to elevate their leading titles from game to sport.”
The opening of the PokerGO Studio follows a banner year for Poker Central and PokerGO, which saw a slate of expanded broadcast partnerships with ESPN and NBC Sports Network, as well as international expansion with licensing of the World Series of Poker and other Poker Central events to Doupai.tv in China. The network also launched a portfolio of original programming co-productions including “Stories from the Felt,” “Super High Roller Club,” “Major Wager” and “Poker Nights,” while continuing its expansion of high-stakes tournament offerings with the inaugural Poker Masters and U.S. Poker Open.
About Poker Central®
Poker Central is the ultimate destination for fans of poker tournaments, cash games, and lifestyle away from the tables. Poker Central delivers poker’s most premier live events around the world via PokerGO, its direct-to-consumer OTT subscription service, as well as through network television distribution. PokerGO delivers over 100 days of live poker on an annual basis alongside a video-on-demand library that features original series and classic poker programming. Streaming and televised tournaments include its owned tournaments, such as Super High Roller Bowl and Poker Masters, along with The World Series of Poker, ARIA High Roller Series, and WPT final tables, among others. For more information, visit www.pokercentral.com and www.pokergo.com.
About ESP Gaming
ESP Gaming is the premier competitive gaming content creation company in the world with decades of production experience in live sports and gaming, including events like the X-Games, Olympics, NFL and World Series of Poker. As an industry leading source of premium experiences for game developers, esports teams and gaming communities, ESP Gaming offers best-in-class broadcast and digital production, distribution, end-to-end league and tournament operations, player management, marketing, sponsorship, ad sales and more. ESP Gaming also offers ESP Labs as an esports investment arm for securing funding for games, platforms and products. For more information, visit ESPGaming.com. Follow ESP Gaming on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest news and updates.
