"PokerPro is a welcome addition to our casinos, and we're pleased with the performance of the tables across our fleet," said Rodney Dofort, Senior Vice President of Carnival Corporation's Casino Division. "PokerTek has been great partner for us over the past three years, and we look forward to continuing our relationship with them."
The initial PokerPro installation occurred in April of 2006 on the Carnival Victory. Based on the successful performance of the product, 50 additional installations have taken place on various Carnival Corporation cruise ships across the fleet.
"We value our continued partnership with Carnival Corporation," said James Crawford, President of PokerTek. "In addition to extending our contract, Carnival's commitment to PokerPro has allowed us to co-develop unique additional features which further enhance the players' experience and maximize participation. We are currently rolling these upgrades out across the fleet, and we are both pleased with the results."
Carnival and PokerTek have also partnered for the second year in a row to offer the Carnival PokerPro Challenge, a large-scale poker tournament on the high-seas. Players compete in No-Limit Texas Hold'em tournaments on Carnival brand ships. Winners of each tournament qualify for a seat in the final event, which will take place on January 24, 2010. A guaranteed us$ 50,000 in cash prizes will be awarded during the final event, with first place awarded us$ 25,000 in cash.