Facebook launched its Playsino Poker version

Alex Kelly, the CEO of the company, said: “This is the first social poker platform in the world to offer up to four simultaneous tables of action in 15 languages. The game is absolutely free to play and offers a unique virtual gaming experience.”

Kelly added that Playsino has incorporated the most popular features from its real money online poker experience including playing almost anyone in the world in their native language; playing at multiple tables at the same time; viewing detailed hand histories and employing a player skill evaluation tool.

“Participants will be able to play up to four tables simultaneously, a feature particularly compelling for experienced and aspiring online poker players,” said Kelly. “The interactive Buddy List lets players browse what stakes friends are playing and join them at their tables, while the patent-pending chat translator gives them the ability to communicate.”

Last October fast-growing Playsino acquired rivals Popover Games and Foghorn Games. According to a report by SuperData, social-casino games are expected to hit us$ 1.6 billion in worldwide revenue for 2012, growing to us$ 2.4 billion by 2015.

Social-casino game players currently account for 13 % of total players on Facebook, compared to just 8 % in 2011 and 6 % in 2010, according to Kontagent. The analytics firm says that social-casino games have higher-than-average revenue per user: at least 40 % higher than a typical casual social game.