The Stars Group has inked a deal with International Entertainment Corp that will see the casino and entertainment company operate PokerStars’ live events and poker rooms across Asia. 

When The City of Dreams (COD) and PokerStars parted ways recently, I assumed PokerStars made the call in the wake of the Chinese Ministry of Culture proposing to pull the plug on online poker (social or otherwise) in the People’s Republic on June 1.

Since the US debacle, PokerStars has been keen not to blemish their sheen further, and it made sense to keep their powder dry until they learned more about the Ministry of Culture’s intentions. That was until Lawrence Ho shared his hunch with the world. The Melco Resorts & Entertainment owner told the press that CODs live poker venture with Stars was never profitable, and they got the boot so they could use the tablespace for more profitable table games.

In the wake of the Stars split, the higher-ups in the Isle of Man always indicated their desire to remain a driving force in the region, and today, their murky plans become somewhat more transparent.