In the beginning, online poker was played through IRC, which is also known as Internet Relay Chat.  Through chat and abbreviations, players would use the IRC network to play poker against one another.  In 1998, Planet Poker then released the first form of software that was dedicated to playing poker online.  The poker room was basic and nothing fancy compared to what we have today, but when Planet Poker dealt their first hand, this began the evolution of online poker into what it is today.

Planet Poker’s emergence and early successes was tarnished when their algorithm was cracked.  This major flaw in their security paved the way for the likes of Party Poker, Paradise Poker and other poker sites to become immediate players in the online poker marketplace, as these emerging poker sites picked up the slack that Planet Poker’s security hole left in the ever-growing online poker marketplace.

When Chris Moneymaker won the WSOP Main Event on ESPN television, online poker began what is known as the online poker boom.  Moneymaker, a seemingly average Joe, won his way to the WSOP main event via a PokerStars online poker satellite tournament, which he obviously parlayed his winnings into millions of dollars in prize money, as well as a World Series of Poker bracelet.

While online poker was peaking in terms of interest and participation, legislation in the USA known as UIGEA caused the online poker world to reorganize and consolidate.  Many smaller online card rooms were absorbed or bought out by larger poker rooms and PokerStars overtook Party Poker as the world’s largest online poker site shortly after UIGEA was implemented.  Unlike Party Poker, PokerStars did not pull out of the US marketplace and continued to allow players from the USA to play for real money.

Today, there are over 500 active poker rooms.  The industry continues to grow as poker rooms offer more game selection, bigger and more attractive promotions, and cater to the needs of the online poker players.