Why Zynga will fail at poker

There’s good and bad that comes with doing research for stories. An idea pops in your head and you check Google to find out what others are saying about your chosen topic. Sometimes, you come up with great information and reference points to use to get your point across.

Sometimes, you read something that matches exactly how you feel. In fact, it might match so closely that there’s no reason to even rewrite it. Just link to it.

Such is the case with Zynga’s attempts to get into the online poker arena and why they’ll fail miserable. They are coming in too late. They’re relying on US regulations and state compliance that may delay the process beyond their point of hope. They have neither the players lined up (their Farmville heard is unlikely to become degenerate gamblers overnight) nor the capital to make it happen. The best players are already attached somewhere else and the casinos have never been able to leverage their real-world positioning for online benefits.

All of this is pretty much what Jeff John Roberts at Gigaom said:

Zynga is screwed and its share price shows it.  The game maker’s shtick of selling virtual hay for virtual horses is looking more like an internet fad rather than a viable business model. Meanwhile, Zynga’s recent games have been a flop and its longtime ally, Facebook, is looking for new partners.

I guess great minds do think alike. Check out his version of the story.

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“Online Poker” image via Shutterstock.