Rush Street Interactive or RSI for short is committed to poker as its acquisition of Run It Once Poker in May indicated. Now, the company is doubling down on this commitment to poker with the purchase of Poker Night in America, a television series.
RSI Acquires Another Important Poker Asset
This comes on top of RSI’s rumored ambitions to break ground into poker with a dedicated platform that will provide yet another vertical to the existing sports betting and iGaming portfolios. Should this happen, RSI will use BetRivers, a brand that it has already deployed across several countries and jurisdictions in the United States, to also spearhead an online poker platform.
Commenting on the latest acquisition, RSI CEO Richard Schwartz said that the acquisition of Poker Night is an important step-up for the company as it seeks to navigate the poker industry and community. Poker Night brings great and worthwhile TV content and has the ability to create great poker content that can be broadcast and streamed to fans. Schwartz noted cited by PokerFuse.com:
Recall that two quarters ago we also purchased an online poker platform. Together these two will position us well for when we eventually launch online poker and the strong associated cross-sell opportunities that poker will bring to our casino and sportsbook verticals.
RSI CEO Richard Schwartz
Poker Night in America is a particularly important show and asset for RSI now. The show is often featured as part of the CBS Sports Network broadcasts and the production has seen a number of heavyweight poker players appear on the show, including Doug Polk, Maria Ho, and Phil Hellmuth. Hellmuth also has stock in RSI.
A Poker Platform Possibly Coming for the Company
RSI’s affiliation with Hellmuth has already helped the company build up its portfolio and presence in land-based online poker across the United States. Hellmuth, who has won 16 WSOP bracelets is a role model and an ambassador for the game globally.
While no definitive plans for a platform have yet been confirmed by RSI it would be hard to imagine that the company, which operates in several iGaming markets, would give up on the opportunity to leverage its poker expertise and status in the vertical to forge ahead with a dedicated platform of its own.