PokerWorks

For three consecutive years, poker has topped the list of online search terms on Lycos.com. The idea that poker was a fad or has diminished in popularity in the last few years, well, simply is not true.

As 2008 comes to a close, Lycos released its ninth annual list of top 50 search terms for the present year, based on the searches that people conduct on a daily basis throughout the year - from January 1st to December 1st. And once again, poker was the most searched term, ahead of Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, Facebook, YouTube, and golf. Poker came in with 5 percent more searches than Hilton, who placed second on the list.

The press release from Lycos attributes the attention to poker to the “continued success of the World Poker Tour and year-round televised celebrity poker tournaments.” In truth, the World Series of Poker on ESPN, which brought in record ratings this year with its coverage of the 2008 events and the delayed final table, also likely contributed to the interest in poker. As well, the game’s general popularity continues to grow among people of all ages through online poker, increasing numbers of live poker tournaments around the world, and the prevalence of the game in nearly every casino.

Making its first top-ten appearance in 2004 in the number ten spot on Lycos, poker rose 434 percent from 2005 to 2006 to hit the number one position, and it has stayed there ever since. Those who predicted poker to be a fad clearly did not have a finger on the pulse of the public.

Poker kept its standing on the search engine despite the tripling of YouTube popularity in the past year, Facebook rising 500 percent in its ranking, and Craigslist being up 900 percent. While other searches tend to be fads of a sort and see their popularity rise and fall dramatically, poker reigns supreme for three years running.

*Of course poker is number one in search terms. Poker isn't going to disappear like a fad that had its moment of glory, especially not as long as there are great fr$$ money deals on super sites like PokerStars . The fr$$ money offers may be for a limited time, but poker is forever.*