The High Court has dismissed the copyright claims filed by Entain against Outplayed.com and Oddsmonkey, though the company’s brand claims remain unaffected. Justice Cawson noted that Entain must revise its pleadings before it can pursue copyright claims against the two platforms.
Entain launched the lawsuit in August 2022, alleging breaches of copyright and trademark by the operators of the websites. Justice Cawson indicated that Entain had not adequately demonstrated the necessary qualifications concerning authorship, stating:
"Authorship-based qualification fails for want of authors. I do not consider that it can be appropriate for claimants, as late in the day as the case management conference in a case and after the proceedings have been on foot for some 11 months or so, to say that they are in the process of obtaining the requisite assignments without explaining why this could not have been done before now."
The defendants argued that Entain failed to specify the creators of the implicated works or their publication details and asserted that much of the content was produced by third parties.
Entain now has a limited period to revise its copyright claims if it wishes to proceed with the case. The judge dismissed several of Entain's motions aimed at excluding portions of the defendants' defense.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Entain said, "Entain does not comment on active litigation. However, as we have previously said, the matched betting business model is a parasitic one, and we take the protection of our brands and reputation extremely seriously. We have strong grounds for our claim and remain confident in it."
