ConsenSys-Backed Virtue Gaming Launches ‘Play-to-Earn Poker’

The bustling play-to-earn space is adding poker tables to the mix with the release of Virtue Gaming’s online poker platform.

The ConsenSys-backed betting platform, which also runs Virtue Poker, is the only blockchain-based poker game of its kind licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority. The project is looking to revive online gambling communities that have been dormant since the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act by integrating them into the same network.

The platform’s “play-to-earn” title comes from promotions that allow amateur players to play in real-money tables with house chips. If players win enough hands, they are entitled to be paid out a percentage of their winnings.

Cash prizes will be paid out in tether (USDT) after the promotional period ends.

Read more: ConsenSys Project Virtue Poker Raises $5M Ahead of Mainnet Launch

The model, which incentivizes amateur players to join the platform, is designed to attract professional gamblers, who historically make the most money on platforms with large pools of non-pros.

A representative of Virtue Gaming told CoinDesk the company plans on using its marketing budget to fund the promotions, focusing more on building its community than advertising the site.

“Virtue Gaming’s innovative patent pending play-to-earn model allows us to create a global poker network for the first time in over a decade,” Virtue Poker CEO Ryan Gittleson said in a press release. “This new gaming model can now be used to disrupt the industry, allowing U.S. players to play the game they know and love against players from all over the world.”