Ultimate Gaming, the first online poker site to be completely legal and regulated within the US, announced today that they are closing down their Nevada operations. The closure is due to the lack of profitability for the company, which has been running for 19 months only.
Employees of the now closed down poker site, was informed yesterday about the decision from the main shareholder, Station Casino. Ultimate Gaming Chairman, Tom Breitling, send out a press release where he explained the rationality behind the closure and giving his thoughts on the regulated markets.
With the market currently being regulated state by state, the cost of running a poker site is extremely high and it is very complicated to have sites in multiple states, even in these days where only Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware are regulated.
“As has been the case in other jurisdictions, online poker revenues in Nevada have fallen far short of original projections. Moreover, the state-by-state approach to online gaming has created an extremely cost-prohibitive and challenging operating environment. These factors have combined to make the path to profitability very difficult and uncertain. Consequently, we have decided to cease operations.” Breitling said in a press release.
Ultimate Gaming will work closely together with the Nevada Gambling Commission to ensure that players will be able to cash out smoothly and players are able to contact the support of the site still, should they have any questions or inquiries.
It is never positive when a company has to close down, especially not one who was the first ever regulated site in the US. It simply shows that the market is not big enough to being split up state-by-state, but instead liquidity should be shared across state borders. On a positive note, liquidity may increase with WSOP and the other operators in Nevada.