Online poker traffic rose a modest 0.8% this week. Six of the top 10 tracked sites and networks booked a gain for the week.

Fallout from the Cake/Merge site migration continued as Cake Poker Network lost another 9% this week. Since several sites defected from Cake to Merge Gaming Network in April, Cake has lost 42% of its traffic while Merge has gained 214%.

This week marked the beginning of PokerScout's coverage of the licensed Italian poker market. Networks are now ranked according to estimated total real money players from both cash games and tournaments. People's Network, the Italian market leader, debuted at 10th in the worldwide rankings. Stay tuned for more coverage of the Italian market in the weeks ahead.

Top Of The Charts

PartyPoker maintained a slim lead over iPoker Network to hold on to third place for the second consecutive week. The two networks are now separated by less than half a percent.

Movers

Cereus Network marched ahead of IPN to take sixth place. Merge Gaming Network moved up one spot to take 15th from Betfair.

Year Over Year

The worldwide online poker market is still growing, but at a relatively sluggish pace. According to PokerScout's ACES indicator, online poker traffic is increasing at an annual rate of 8%.

Notable gainers:

Merge Gaming Network 155%

PokerStars 22%

Full Tilt Poker 22%

Notable losers:

Cake Poker Network 34%

iPoker Network 31%

Svenska Spel 17%

PacificPoker 15%

PartyPoker 13%