Last week we reported PartyGaming is negotiating a possible take-over with Empire Online. This week the news surfaced that PartyGaming has bought MultiPoker and IntertopsPoker, both former so-called 'skins' of PartyPoker. A third skin, Coral Eurobet, has decided to go it's own way and is preparing to migrate it's player base to another platform, which is rumored to be the OnGame poker network.
PartyGaming recently launched the first phase of a new fully integrated platform covering all aspects of gaming (poker, casino and mobile gaming). In the process of doing so it moved all it's 'own' players to the new platform, but shutout players that were referred by so-called 'skins', like Empire Poker. This left the skins with a severely reduced player base.
With PartyGaming's announcement that it has acquired MultiPoker for $14.5 million and IntertopsPoker for $4 million, as well as the rumor that Coral Eurobet is preparing a move from PartyGaming's software to the OnGame Network, the player base of Empire Online, the last remaining major skin, is reduced even further.
This doesn't really help Empire Online's valuation on the London Stock Exchange, and in fact the stock has been in a downward spiral ever since PartyGaming decided to separate itself from it's former skins. A lower valuation of Empire Online will benefit PartyGaming, because it's currently negotiating a take-over with Empire Online.