Recently, the World Poker Tour announced that, starting with Season Seven, their final table broadcasts would air on Fox Sports Network and its affiliates. Such a move could sever as a bounce-back for the struggling poker franchise. After their long and successful five-year run on the Travel Channel, their move to Game Show Network did not garner them as much attention as founder Steven Lipscomb had previously enjoyed. Even when the channel paired the WPT final table shows with their broadcasts of High Stakes Poker, their ratings numbers suffered. This setback, along with the failure of their Professional Poker Tour series, forced WPT executives to make a move.

With their new partnership with FSN, combined with their relationship with the MGM/Mirage casino chain, WPT is taking dead aim at the combined forces of the World Series of Poker Circuit, Harrah’s and ESPN. The widespread coverage offered by FSN will attract many non-poker sports fans in ways that neither the Travel Channel nor Game Show Network could provide.

For the regular touring players, such competition could result in more opportunities for exposure, which could lead to more endorsement and sponsorship deals available outside of poker.

For the Joe-Average player who want to live his dream of playing at a TV final table, more exposure could lead to more chances to realize that dream and more satellite tournaments to help pave the way.

For the host casinos, more TV time inevitably leads to more foot traffic through the doors. The hopes of these casino executives lie in having these poker players, students and fans of the game stop on their way to the tournament room to sit down at the slot machines or blackjack tables.

For TV viewers, it gives us a chance to see more of our favorite players at their best (or worst), glued to our screens, hanging on every move.