Software:Zynga Poker

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Zynga Poker
Developer(s)Zynga
Designer(s)Justin Waldron
Eric Schiermeyer
Programmer(s)Michael Luxton
Justin Waldron
Platform(s)Facebook, Android, iOS (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch), Google+, Windows Phone, Windows
Genre(s)Poker card game
Mode(s)Multiplayer

Zynga Poker is a social game developed by Zynga as an application for the social-networking website Facebook as well as Android, iPhone, Windows Phone,[1] Windows,[2] MySpace, Tagged, and Google+. It was launched in July 2007.

In 2011, with 38 million players, Zynga Poker was the largest poker site in the world.[3] In 2018, after increased competition in the market, Zynga Poker had a 6.1% market share in social casino games.

Gameplay

The game allows Facebook players to simulate playing Texas Hold 'em poker in a social gaming environment. Users enter a casino lobby and can play at any table or join friends for a game. Players can choose from casual tables, tournament play, or VIP tables. A leader board shows players how they compare in chip ranking to other players and allows players to send or receive gifts. A 2019 virtual ethnographic study of the game identified design features such as pop-up prompts to purchase additional chips after a loss, which researchers compared to loss-chasing mechanics associated with problem gambling.[4]

History

Development and market dominance

It was created and launched in July 2007 by a team consisting of some of the founders of the company including Justin Waldron, Michael Luxton, and Eric Schiermeyer.[5]

In March 2011, Zynga Poker hosted PokerCon, a live poker tournament at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.[3] According to a March 2011 ESPN article, with 38 million players, Zynga Poker at that time was the largest poker site in the world.[3]

In July 2012, Zynga announced that it would be providing real-money gaming outside of United States in 2013.[6]

According to a 2014 article by Dean Takahashi, about 350 million have played Zynga Poker, and the game has millions of daily players.[7]

Update and loss of market dominance

In 2014, the game underwent a major redesign that, according to VentureBeat, proved unpopular with users who felt Zynga had added too many unwanted features to core gameplay.[7] That year Zynga Poker held an estimated 61 percent of the social poker revenue market, earning $9–13 million monthly, though its audience fell by 44%. Facing user objections, Zynga restored an earlier "classic" version of the game, and its chief executive and head of games left the company around the same time. By 2015, VentureBeat reported that players were increasingly shifting to social casino games, a trend it linked to the app's declining position.[8]

Recent features and events

In the first quarter of 2017, the company reported a loss, although revenue was rising compared to the year prior.[9] Zynga Poker accounted for 23% of Zynga's game revenue in 2018,[10] though increased competition reduced its social casino market share to 6.1% that year.[11] In November 2018, mobile revenue was down 3% for the year, with bookings flat. Zynga attributed the decline to platform changes Facebook made earlier that year. At the time, the game was engaged in an ongoing partnership with the World Poker Tour.[12]

Zynga Poker represented 15% of Zynga's total revenue in the first quarter of 2019, down from 21% a year earlier.[13] In March 2019, the game introduced a "Spin & Win" tournament mode in its World Poker Tour Tournament Center, combining poker with a prize wheel for faster play at higher stakes.[14][15] That September, the company partnered with actor Brad Garrett for a sweepstakes event.[16] According to Consumer Affairs, Zynga Poker users were affected by a data breach in 2019.[17] The breach was later found to have compromised more than 170 million Zynga accounts across the company's game portfolio, including Zynga Poker.[18]

Zynga reported a slight overall profit for 2019, though Zynga Poker's profit fell by 7%, a decline the company attributed to its continued recovery from the prior year's Facebook platform changes.[19]

Acquisition by Take-Two Interactive

In January 2022, Take-Two Interactive agreed to acquire Zynga in a cash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $12.7 billion. The acquisition closed on May 23, 2022, making Zynga Poker part of Take-Two's mobile games portfolio alongside other Zynga titles such as FarmVille and Words with Friends.[20]

Languages and availability

As of August 2010, the game is available in Mandarin Chinese in China as well as on Facebook in Hong Kong and Taiwan under the name Zynga Texas Poker.[21] The game is also available in English, Indonesian, Spanish, Portuguese, Turkish, and French. The mobile version of the game is available in 18 languages.

Sponsorships

In 2018, Nascar announced that Go Fas Racing was partnering with Zynga Poker, with the game serving as primary sponsor for the No. 32 Ford and Matt DiBenedetto.[22]

References

  1. ↑ "Zynga Poker is now on Windows Phone!". 2014-12-15. https://www.windowscentral.com/zynga-poker-makes-its-much-awaited-debut-windows-phone. 
  2. ↑ "Buy Zynga Poker – Texas Holdem". https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/zynga-poker-texas-holdem/9nblggh10g0x. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "PokerCon makes debut this weekend". ESPN.com. March 17, 2011. http://espn.go.com/fantasy/blog/_/name/poker/id/6228322. 
  4. ↑ Reynolds, Jennifer (March 2019). "Gambling on Big Data: Designing Risk in Social Casino Games". https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/8C51F1A74A2C69C82ADE427645EE2658/S1867299X19000187a.pdf/gambling-on-big-data-designing-risk-in-social-casino-games.pdf.  "NCP". European Journal of Risk Regulation 10 (1): 116–131. doi:10.1017/err.2019.18. ISSN 1867-299X. https://novoscasinosonline.com/. 
  5. ↑ Zynga CEO Mark Pincus on the future of the company, Guardian
  6. ↑ "It's official: Zynga chases online gambling outside the U.S. in 2013". http://blog.games.com/2012/07/30/zynga-online-gambling-2013/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Takahashi, Dean (2014-03-03). "Zynga launches big overhaul to its flagship poker game". VentureBeat. https://venturebeat.com/2014/03/03/zynga-launches-big-overhaul-to-its-flagship-poker-game/. 
  8. ↑ "Zynga Poker's struggles hurt overall market as players flee to social casino games". 2015-05-22. https://venturebeat.com/2015/05/22/zynga-pokers-struggles-hurt-overall-market-as-players-flee-to-social-casino-games/. 
  9. ↑ "Zynga Poker has best mobile quarter ahead of 10th birthday". 2017-05-04. https://calvinayre.com/2017/05/05/business/zynga-poker-best-mobile-month/. 
  10. ↑ "Zynga Poker shines as founder Pincus gives up voting control". 2018-05-04. https://calvinayre.com/2018/05/04/business/zynga-poker-shines-founder-cedes-control/. 
  11. ↑ "Zynga Poker Revenue Grows 5.8 Percent In Q1". 2018. https://www.cardplayer.com/poker-news/22830-zynga-poker-revenue-grows-5-8-percent-in-q1. 
  12. ↑ "Zynga's once reliable slots and poker games losing steam". 2018-10-31. https://calvinayre.com/2018/11/01/business/zynga-slots-poker-losing-steam/. 
  13. ↑ "Zynga has record Q1, no thanks to poker and (most) social slots". 2019-05-02. https://calvinayre.com/2019/05/02/business/zynga-record-quarter-poker-social-slots-decline/. 
  14. ↑ "Zynga Poker launches new spin-and-win mode in World Poker Tour tournaments". 2019-03-28. https://venturebeat.com/2019/03/28/zynga-poker-launches-new-spin-and-win-mode-in-world-poker-tour-tournaments/. 
  15. ↑ "Zynga Poker Gets Faster, Higher-Stakes Spin & Win Mode". 2019-03-28. https://www.androidheadlines.com/2019/03/zynga-higher-stakes-spin-win-mode.html. 
  16. ↑ "Zynga Poker Partners with Actor, Comedian and Card Shark Brad Garrett for 'Celebrity Home Game' Sweepstakes Event, Benefiting Maximum Hope Foundation". 2019-09-16. https://apnews.com/Business%20Wire/86b62cc0fa2b4850b4dce7a90b6da447. 
  17. ↑ "Words With Friends and other Zynga game players may have had their data hacked". 2019-12-26. https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/words-with-friends-and-other-zynga-game-players-may-have-had-their-data-hacked-122619.html. 
  18. ↑ "Hacker Steals Over 218 Million Zynga 'Words with Friends' Gamers Data". 2019-09-16. https://thehackernews.com/2019/09/zynga-game-hacking.html. 
  19. ↑ "Zynga hits Q4 earnings targets as CEO says 'turnaround is now complete'". 2019-02-06. https://venturebeat.com/2019/02/06/zynga-hits-q4-earnings-targets-as-ceo-says-turnaround-is-complete/. 
  20. ↑ "Take-Two Completes $12.7 Billion Acquisition of Zynga". 2022-05-23. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/take-two-zynga-acquisition-1235152410/. 
  21. ↑ "Zynga launches its first international version of popular poker game". 2010-08-17. https://venturebeat.com/2010/08/17/zynga-launches-its-first-international-version-of-popular-poker-game/. 
  22. ↑ "nascar.com". 28 April 2018. https://www.nascar.com/news-media/2018/04/28/zynga-poker-ups-partnership-with-go-fas-racing-matt-dibenedetto/. 



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