From iGaming Business – British online and land-based gambling operator William Hill is reportedly planning to launch a new poker site powered by technology from Playtech Limited and focused on the Italian market.

London-based William Hill has been active in the Italian market since mid-2011 with its online casino managing to secure a seven percent share of the market so far although the iPoker Network competitor from Playtech has holds over 15 percent.

According to statistics from the Amministrazione Autonoma Monopoli Di Stato (AAMS) regulator, PokerStars.it is the largest player in the ring-fenced Italian market with 38.3 percent of cash games alongside 51.3 percent of tournament play and numerous reports suggest that the new Playtech-powered offering from William Hill will hope to match this allocation by sharing liquidity with the iPoker Network.

The iPoker Network’s Italian share includes contributions from tier-one operators such as Sisal, Titan, SNAI and Eurobet with AAMS figures for the first three months of 2012 showing a 34.6 percent decline year-on-year in cash game revenues.