This years World Poker Congress is becoming a one-of-a-kind event, in that it will be the first large-scale poker industry gathering that brings together both land-based and online poker executives in a high-profile arena.  Recently announcing their attendance at the event is World Series of Poker Commissioner, Jeffrey Pollack, as well as World Poker Tour CEO, Steven Lipscomb.  Another attendee, who may come as a surprise considering his recent announcement to step down from his position with Party Gaming, is Vikrant Bhargava.

Hosted in Stockholm, Sweden on June 26 and 27, the World Poker Congress will take an innovative angle in looking at the entire poker industry (both on land and on the internet) by examining trends and factors that effect both individual industries.  Unlike the tension that has resulted between land-based casinos and online casino sites, both sides of the poker industry have managed to exist in a harmonious state, which has proven to be conducive to each respective industry.  For instance, one of the topics being addressed by land-based poker officials is how the online poker and casino industry contributed to the casino poker industry by drawing players online and giving them the comfort and no-pressure environment of learning the game on their computer.

The format of the Congress will be broken down into two sections called "Live" and "Online", with several meetings being held that address both industries at once.  Some of the "Live Poker" topics include presentations on how to successfully market and manage a poker room, news on the blossoming poker industry in Europe (where it is being clothed with new regulation protocols), as well as the wave of the future - the online TV poker tournament.

As for the online component of the poker industry, it will be addressed through a series of presentations that specifically cover online poker room branding, customer retention and acquisition, and the legal issues affecting online poker in the UK, where it is thought that online poker might find a new breeding ground in helping it to become an even larger and credited industry.

Many poker and casino gambling companies are already scheduled to attend the World Poker Congress, including Boss Media, FOX Sports, BetFair, BetonSports, Intertops, Ladbrokes Nordic, Ongame Software, PokerAffiliate.com, World Poker Tour Enterprises, Cantor Gaming, Belgium Gaming Commission, Austrian Lotteries, International Poker Federations and Sportingbet to name a few.  Event planners have also schedule several notable speakers, including Mark Blandford of SportingBet and Othmar Valzacchi of Sports TV Production International.