Two Nevada-based brick-and-mortar casino operators have received initial approval to open online poker rooms, becoming the first companies in the country to reach that milestone. South Point and Monarch Interactive, the internet business unit of Monarch Casino and Resort, were both given recommendations by the Nevada Gaming Control Board (GCB) on Wednesday. The next step is the formal granting of licenses by the Nevada Gaming Commission.

Although Monarch, owner of the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa in Reno, has an online poker license squarely in its sights, the eyes of the gaming world are trained on South Point. Whereas Monach has no online poker platform to speak of, South Point is in the home stretch of the approval process by an independent testing laboratory.

Strict testing by a state-licensed lab is one of the requirements for earning an online poker license in Nevada. In June, Gaming Laboratories International and BMM International were registered by the GCB as approved interactive gaming equipment testing laboratories, so there is a strong likelihood that one of them is giving South Point’s custom-built software a workout.

Monarch has decided that it will license its software from an experienced developer rather than create its own. Bally Technologies, International Game Technology, and Shuffle Master were all approved as system providers in June, although it is not known if Monarch will be partnering with any of them.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, South Point’s status as the first legal, regulated online poker room in the state will bring with it intense scrutiny by the GCB. The Board wants to be sure that everything goes perfectly and that there are no stumbles out of the starting gate. Said GCB Chairman Mark Lipparelli in Wednesday’s approval hearing, “The devil is in the details. I want a comfort level that all requirements had been covered.”

Lawrence Vaughan, South Point’s Chief Operating Officer, told the GCB that the company’s software has been built to make sure all players are at least 21 years old and located within the state of Nevada. The platform contains anti-cheating, collusion, and money laundering safeguards as well. Self-exclusion is also an option for those who feel they are problem gamblers.

The site must meet the same regulatory standards as a brick-and-mortar casino. If South Point meets all of the GCB’s requirements and passes all of the independent tests, company attorney Steve Harris believes the site could launch in October.

In July, South Point CEO Michael Gaughan (pictured) called his shot, telling eGaming Review (EGR) that his company will have an important first-mover advantage when it is granted its license. EGR reported that South Point would likely be licensed this month, a prediction that has proven to be accurate, and would launch its online poker room in September.

In his interview with EGR, Gaughan said, “We’re finishing up our second wave of testing and so far no problems. I may not be the biggest or the best, but hopefully I’ll have a head start by two or three months.”

This isn’t South Point’s first online rodeo. Almost a year ago, it launched a free-play internet poker site on the Zen Entertainment Network. Unlike some “free” rooms, there is no monthly fee to play on any of the Zen sites; they are completely free and offer cash and prizes to winners.

Gaughan admitted to EGR that the Zen venture didn’t go as well as he had hoped. “[The software] was complicated and hard to download,” he said. “[The poor results were] partly down to the provider and partly because I lost interest in it when it didn’t grow as fast as I thought it would.”

The software that South Point currently has in the independent testing process is completely different from the software on its Zen site.

Another company, Global Cash Access, was also recommended by the GCB and, according to EGR, is in talks with South Point to become its payment processor.