Play 32Red Bingo
32Red seem like they have had a right bingo fight on their hands against gaming giants William Hill, but they appear to have won ‘house’ after the UK High Court ruled in their favour and awarded them with £150K in damages.
This is not the end of the story either, as 32Red could also be awarded costs which they incurred taking William Hill to court. In a previous estimate, these costs run over £1 million which is a huge figure compared to the damage award of £150k.
In hindsight, William Hill would have probably been far better off going for an out of court settlement.
The dispute between 32Red and William Hill stems from the brand name of their online casino site ‘32Vegas’ and this has been a long standing one, as it dates back to 2009. And you could say that it is one William Hill inherited because they acquired 32Vegas in a deal they had with Playtech some time ago.
The UK High Court held 32Red in favour on two counts.
Count 1. The Court held that William Hill’s 32 Vegas casino signs were sufficiently similar to 32Red’s marks to cause a likelihood of confusion amongst consumers.
Count 2. The Court also held that William Hill’s infringement caused detriment to the distinctive character and repute of 32Red’s trademarks. The Court choose to dismiss William Hill’s counterclaim as to the validity of 32Red’s trademark rights in the UK and European Community.
It is not hard to see their justification in use of the name 32Vegas, as it could cause confusion for customers. Anything you see with 32 before a name in the gaming industry, you would automatically associate with the 32Red brand.
Ed Ware, CEO of 32Red said: ‘We are naturally delighted that the High Court has upheld our claims. This judgment firmly establishes our Intellectual Property Rights and should deter other operators from infringing our trade marks. As highlighted by the judge, we have an excellent reputation as an online casino operator and a strong brand – these are extremely valuable assets in any marketplace.’
Both 32Red and William Hill come from casino / sports book background in the online gaming space, and both of them have moved into the realms of bingo opening online bingo sites.
32Red Bingo run on microgaming software, but William Hill choose to go with virtue fusion.
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