BY TOM SOMACH

Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., owner of the World Series of Poker (WSOP), has announced that PartyPoker.net, a play-for-fun online poker room, has renewed its product-placement agreement for the 38th annual WSOP.

According to Harrah’s officials, PartyPoker.net will be integrated into several facets of the WSOP for the second straight year, including having its logo appear on all poker tables during the WSOP.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“We’re pleased to announce that PartyPoker.net has renewed its product-placement deal,” said WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack.

“It is one of a fantastic group of commercial companies we welcome back to the team,” he added.

PartyPoker.net is being allowed to be a sponsor at the 2007 WSOP because it is a play-money poker site and its sister real-money site, PartyPoker.com, does not service the U.S. market.

Fearing repercussions from the U.S. governement over being invovled with illegal Internet gambling sites, the WSOP announced earlier this year: “The 2007 World Series of Poker venue will not contain advertising from dot.com sites that allow access to U.S. residents, nor ads from dot.net sites affiliated with those entities.”

Because they still accept U.S. customers, in apparent violation of U.S. law, top Internet poker rooms Full Tilt Poker and Poker Stars won’t be allowed to sponsor the 2007 WSOP in any manner.

Party Poker can sponsor it, however, because it banned U.S. customers last year, after the U.S. Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which bans American financial entities such as banks and credit cards companies from transferring monies to and from Internet gambling sites.

With a total gross prize pool of more than $171 million and more than 48,000 player registrations, the 2006 WSOP shattered every participation and prize money record for a live poker event.

The top prize for the $10,000 buy-in No-Limit Texas Hold’em World Championship, commonly referred to as the Main Event, reached $12 million.

(E-mail Tom Somach at tomsomach@yahoo.com.)