WPT & WSOP

The two biggest brands in golbal poker will join forces later this year at the annual World Poker Congress.

The organizers of the WPC are thrilled that Steve Lipscomb, president of the World Poker Tour, and Jeffery Pollack, commissioner of the World Series of Poker will jointly deliver the opening keynote address at WPC 2007 on 29-30 Novemberin St. Julian’s, Malta. The two veterans at the helms of competing poker institutions will discuss the current state of the game and what the future has in store.

"With Steve Lipscomb and Jeffery Pollack, we will present two of the individuals most responsible for the recent poker boom," says Sue Schneider, president of River City Group, one of the organizers of the World Poker Congress. "With their unique perspective and wisdom, they will examine the global reach of the game and how it is penetrating international markets."

An award-winning producer/director of television and film, Lipscomb has directed the remarkable growth of the WPT, including the 2005 launch of the Professional Players Tour (PPT), international expansion of WPT, and the branding of the WPT with a variety of different merchandising licenses and much more.

As the first commissioner of the World Series of Poker, Pollack has brought a healthy professionalism to the event. The recently completed WSOP 2007 was a resounding success, after doubts about it’s future after internet qualification routes for US players were shut down. His sense of branding was developed when he was managing director of broadcasting and new media at NASCAR Digital Entertainment.

The World Poker Congress is the first conference to fully explore the links between the live and online games. The conference will feature two tracks dedicated to the different forms of the game, as well as plenary and general sessions featuring topics that appeal to each audience.

Attendees will join colleagues to discuss issues such as marketing your poker room, player development, legislation and economics in Europe, staging tournaments, building a player base, business strategies for a quickly maturing industry, fraud and security, mergers and acquisitions, and much more.

"The World Poker Congress is the premier conference for the business of poker globally," says Roger Gros, publisher of Global Gaming Business and PokerBIZ magazines, the other producer of WPC. "There is clearly a synergy between online poker rooms and real world poker and the WPC examines how to capitalize on the growth of the game no matter which side of the equation your business operates."