It’s a fascinating tale, I swear, how the WSOP and their new mobile online poker app won over my free-time play … and actually got me to pony up cash for playable chips — a conversion the game-greats at Zynga Texas Hold’em could never achieve with me. (Though Scramble with Friends did get a few of my bucks once.)

Zynga Poker, apparently recognizing a decrease in my “Texas Hold’em” play, buzzes me mid-Omaha in a failed effort to win me back to their handheld digital tables.

The story gets even better when you look into the lawsuit between Zynga and WSOP app-maker Electronic Arts … particularly as Zynga gets ready to do battle on Facebook for real-money gambling in partnership with BwinParty.

The future is all about real-money slot machines. That’s my not-so-new position and I’m sticking to it — especially after some intense battles of Words with Friends gave me a glimpse of who’s spending money to get slot customers.

Check it out … two competing ads currently appearing on Zynga’s free version of Words with Friends …

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