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Read Full BioA judge in Nevada has ruled that Evolution‘s lawsuit against Light & Wonder must be settled by arbitration. This is a partial victory for Light & Wonder, although the company may still have to pay damages to its competitor.
The case centers around L&W’s game Lightning Roulette, which Evolution claims is based on its games. After dismissing a copyright infringement lawsuit earlier this year, Judge Cristina Silva granted Light & Wonder’s request to settle the dispute through arbitration.
In the court ruling, Silva stated, “I find that the misappropriation trade secret claims … are claims arising out of or in connection with the License Agreement, so L&W’s motion to compel arbitration is granted.”
Evolution sought to maintain its claims in court, arguing that the agreement included a carve-out for disputes related to licensed property or intellectual property.
The two companies must now meet for a status conference on October 30 to determine how to proceed in settling the matter.
Light & Wonder Accused of Stealing Evolution’s Secret Math
The dispute arose after two companies agreed to develop a land-based version of Evolution’s live dealer game, Lightning Roulette. According to court documents, after deciding on terms, Evolution disclosed confidential trade secret information related to Lightning Roulette. This included two math files for the game.
After announcing the deal between the developers, Light & Wonder withdrew from the partnership. The company then released Roulette X, which Evolution says is “strikingly similar” to Lightning Roulette.
Evolution then sent Light & Wonder a letter asking the company to refrain from using its trade secrets in games. However, Light & Wonder ignored this and released another game, PowerX. At this point, Evolution filed a lawsuit. This did not stop Light & Wonder, and the company released a third game, 88 Fortunes Blaze Live Roulette, which Evolution also says is a copycat.
Light & Wonder is facing similar claims of math theft in a case with Aristocrat. The two companies will meet in court later this month to decide the extent of the information they must disclose to settle the dispute. Aristocrat claims former employees who switched to Light & Wonder shared secret files that allowed the company to develop copycat games.
What Will Be the Outcome of Arbitration?
There are a few possible outcomes of arbitration in the case between Light & Wonder and Evolution. Light & Wonder argues that Evolution’s claims are time-barred, as the 12-month clause in their license agreement has already expired.
Judge Silva said this was also a matter for the arbitrator. If they agree or if they rule that Light & Wonder’s games are sufficiently different from Lightning Roulette, then there will be no damages paid.
Evolution will likely be able to demonstrate sufficient similarities between the games to compel Light & Wonder to pay some damages. Light & Wonder is unlikely to admit any wrongdoing, having released multiple games after Evolution’s original accusation.
That means it is unlikely Light & Wonder will offer to pay compensation to settle the dispute privately. The company is also involved in a 13-year dispute with LT Game over accusations that its game Shuffle Master infringed on copyright.
In 2012, Macau customs agents covered Shuffle Master’s equipment in plastic at the G2E Asia trade show, citing patent infringement concerns. However, a judge in Macau recently ruled in Light & Wonder’s favor, dismissing LT Game’s claims.
G2E gets underway in Las Vegas on Monday, and Light & Wonder hopes that there will be no further public accusations of math theft.
