by Mario Alfonsi | Published on Dec 3, 2011 | Updated on Dec 3, 2011eGaming review broke a story that Facebook, which has made its name known as the biggest social network, may be offering real money online poker play in 2012. As of now the idea is much more than thought and Facebook has already begun hiring employees for the project. 888 Holdings is one of the front runners in the early talks with the social media outlet.We do not expect that either Facebook nor the site they would be affiliated with would change their brand at all. It seems as if it would be a partnership in which both sides earn revenue by helping each other.Zynga Poker is already part of Facebook, but it does not allow for real money play. And even though most would think Zynga would be perfect for the real money feature on Facebook, their CEO has stated that they do not have any interest in the venture. This story may also strike some as confusing because Facebook has not historically been an avid supporter of online poker. But more recently they have changed their outlook and have opened up advertisement space for casino and poker sites (where advertising is permitted). Opening up ad space for poker and casino sites simply added a new form of income for Facebook.Facebook is a great place for a potential real-money poker site because it sees so much traffic daily and annually. If this is successful more countries associated with Facebook may view this as a good idea and pursue it. The possible revenue that could be earned is astonishing. Not only will Facebook see a big return, the associated poker site will benefit greatly through increased traffic, sign-ups, and deposits. On paper this seems like a win-win situation for everyone involved, but we will have to wait until it’s up and running to find out.
