French GameTreeTV subscribers get more gaming content as poker becomes available.

Internet modems have come a long way since the chirping of a 1200 or 2400 baud modem signaled the start of an evening spent online. It has also been many years since casino news presupposed a brick-and-mortar casino somewhere.

As much of the gambling and gaming scene has shifted online it suddenly became much more widely available, with options ranging from multi-million progressive jackpot slots to free online blackjack and poker games.

Furthermore, “online” has also become a significantly more complex concept.

For instance, subscribers of the French ISP called Free get an ADSL modem combined with an IPTV set top box and a whole lot more. The company was the first ISP to introduce the net-landline-IPTV combo service in France, and its Freebox Revolution is a common sight in many households across the country.

Content is king, and Free has placed another jewel in the crown by adding the poker title created jointly by video games developer TransGaming and leading international poker promoter and Bwin subsidiary World Poker Tour (WPT).

The new WPT-branded game is already available to Free customers through the GameTree TV subscription option and promises a genuine no-limit Texas hold ‘em feel, complete with 3D graphics and challenging AI opponents.

WPT President Adam Pliska was happy with the product: “We couldn’t be more pleased with our new game from TransGaming, which gives our global fan base an immersive and authentic WPT experience on their connected televisions.”

“WPT is known for providing its players with incredible poker experiences both in live events and online,“ added Pliska.

TransGaming CEO Vikas Gupta emphasized the strong market demand driven by technology. “The connected television market is growing at a rapid pace and consumers are looking for the highest quality branded entertainment content on their televisions,” said the CEO.

He went on to add that the new game offers “a dedicated ‘television-based experience’ that makes players feel like they are participating in a real WPT tournament. This game is truly extraordinary and we believe it will define the connected television video games experience.”

Gupta also gave a glimpse into the financial impact of their smart strategies. “We have seen strong traction and revenue growth since our migration to a subscription-only model with GameTree TV and the availability of WPT is expected to catalyse this growth,” said he.