Europe UK : Hands-On Mobile, the world’s leading developer of connected games and applications, has announced the launch of multiplayer World Poker Tour® Texas Hold ‘Em 2 with multi-media company, 3UK. The arrival of the game on this side of the Atlantic marks the first time a free play, multiplayer World Poker Tour game will be available to European poker fans. Now poker players can play in real-time against up to five other people from around the globe.

“We have been looking forward to this launch for a long time and we are all incredibly excited to bring the huge success of multiplayer World Poker Tour on mobile from the US to Europe,” said Eric Hobson, President and General Manager EMEA, Hands-On Mobile. “Poker is a real community game and now, with World Poker Tour Texas Hold ‘Em 2, that community will be able to play and interact with each other no matter where they are in the world.”

Hands-On Mobile’s original World Poker Tour Texas Hold ‘Em ‘play-for-fun’ multiplayer game has enjoyed huge success in the US market, where it consistently ranked as the number one card and casino title. Currently 200,000 multiplayer hands are played each week in the US, with around 10,000 unique users playing each day. The average user plays for four hours per month, with hundreds of players exceeding sessions of nearly eight hours straight. The game has provided a highly sustainable revenue stream far beyond the natural shelf life of most other mobile products and it has consistently remained in the top 10 performing game titles in the US with over 3.6 million downloads.

In the UK, World Poker Tour Texas Hold ‘Em 2 multiplayer will initially only be available from 3UK. It will have one payment option – a monthly subscription fee of £1.99.

“We’re excited about being the first operator to offer true multiplayer poker in Europe,” said John Penberthy-Smith, 3UK Marketing Director. “Connected, subscription-based games with a strong community approach represent a huge growth opportunity in mobile gaming. With World Poker Tour Texas Hold ’Em 2 we have the mobile gaming equivalent of a royal flush.”