Gaming Report: Dream11 Wins Infringement Suit, Twitter India Legal Chief Joins Junglee Games & More 

Dream11 filed an infringement suit against ‘dream11.bet’ back in 2020 for using the ‘Dream11 Mark’ to ride on the company’s goodwill and reputation. The Delhi High Court recently ruled in favor of Dream11, ordering a permanent injunction on ‘dream11.bet.’

Junglee Games has appointed the former Senior Legal Counsel of Twitter India, Kapil Chaudhary, as its General Counsel.

There has been a change of guard in Mumbai-based Nazara Technologies. After the erstwhile CEO Manish Agarwal stepped down, founder Nitish Mittersain has officially taken over as the company’s chief executive officer (CEO).

With a vision of modernizing the New Delhi railway station, the Northern Railways recently received a proposal to set up gaming zones in railway stations so passengers can enjoy the waiting period. The cumulative cost of the modernization and renovation plan is estimated to be in the ballpark of ₹150 Crores.

One of the world’s largest sports betting companies, Entain, and poker giant, GGPoker, are making headway into the German online poker market after being granted licenses to operate in the country.

The World Poker Tour (WPT) has partnered with France’s leading live tournament operator, Texapoker, to host WPT Prime events in France and other parts of Western Europe.

Delhi HC Grants Permanent Injunction in Favour of Dream 11 in a Trade Mark Infringement Suit Against Dream11.Bet

The Delhi High Court recently passed a summary judgment in favor of gaming unicorn, Dream11 in its infringement lawsuit against the domain name ‘www.dream11.bet’.

The case dates back to 2020. Dream11`s parent company, Sporta Technologies Private Limited, filed a suit in the Delhi High Court against the domain for using Dream11 as a domain name, claiming infringement of its reputation and goodwill. The domain hosted match-prediction videos, touting itself as a gambling website containing Dream11 trademarks.

In a hearing on February 6, 2020, the Delhi High Court directed the domain name registrar GoDaddy to disable and suspend the website with immediate effect. YouTube was also issued a directive to “suspend/remove/take down Dream11.bet from its platform.

The court, in its ruling, cited Anugya Gupta v. Ajay Kumar and Another, 2022 SCC OnLine Del 1922, holding that the right of a proprietor in a domain name is entitled to equal protection, applying the principles of the trademark law.

Justice Navin Chawla, in his order, said, “The adoption of the domain name www.dream11.bet is a clear case of infringement of the plaintiffs’ marks and amounts to passing off the services of the defendant as that of the plaintiffs. The defendant not only intends to take unfair advantage of the marks of the plaintiffs and ride on the reputation of the plaintiffs’ marks but also deceive unwary consumers of their association with the plaintiffs. Such acts of the defendant would also lead to dilution of the mark of the plaintiffs.”

“In my opinion, therefore, this is a fit case where a Summary Judgment in terms of Order XIII-A of the CPC, as applicable to commercial disputes of a specified value, read with Rule 27 of the IPD Rules, deserves to be passed in favor of the plaintiffs and against the defendant.”

Since the defendant failed to appear for the hearing and file its written statement, the Joint Registrar (Judicial) closed the case in July 2022. Thus the case was heard “ex-parte.”

The court, in its final ruling, stated, “The Suit is decreed in favor of the plaintiffs and against the defendant in terms of prayers made in paragraph nos. 33 (A) and (B) of the plant. The plaintiff is also held entitled to the costs of the Suit.”

Twitter India Legal Chief Kapil Chaudhary Joins Junglee Games

Junglee Games has appointed the former Senior Legal Counsel of Twitter India, Kapil Chaudhary, as its General Counsel.

Chaudhary graduated in law from Delhi University in 2000 and started his professional career with FoxMandal, one of India’s oldest law firms. Since then, he has accumulated over two decades of industry experience and has worked in leadership positions for companies like Star News, Schlumberger, IBM, and Autodesk.

“I look forward to working alongside the best minds in the industry,” said Chaudhary.

“Grateful and excited to share that I have recently started in my new position as the General Counsel for Junglee Games! I look forward to working alongside the best minds in the industry to help achieve big goals and help the company scale greater heights,” Chaudhary wrote on his official LinkedIn profile.

Junglee Games was founded in 2012 in San Francisco and had secured its funding from Silicon Valley. The online skill gaming app is famous for its games like Howzat, Junglee Rummy, Poker, Carrom Stars, and Solitaire Gold. With over a decade of industry exposure, the app crossed 25 Million users in 2019 and has been steadily increasing its reach.

Nitesh Mittersain Takes Over as CEO of Nazara Technologies

Founder of Nazara Technologies, Nitesh Mittersain, is back as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the gaming firm. Mittersain, who has previously served as the company’s CEO for 15 years, announced that he was resuming the position after Manish Agarwal stepped down. Agarwal relinquished the post on October 20.

Mittersain, who officially took over on December 1, tweeted the news.

I’m back as #Nazara CEO from today and look forward to making a strong impact filled with positive intent and hard work! pic.twitter.com/TkuwOksI4R

— Nitish Mittersain (@mittersain) December 1, 2022

In his statement to VCCircle, Mittersain said, “At a time when Nazara is looking to grow faster and maintain the momentum since me and Manish were working closely for the last seven years, I feel that the least disruptive way to do the transition was for me to do the CEO position again.”

“I will be driving the business along with the team. We had also roped in Sudhir Kamath as chief operating officer of the company, and I believe we have a very strong team to take the business ahead. We will now focus more on the organic growth of our existing businesses and also on some key strategic acquisitions next year,” he added.

Mittersain founded the company in 1999. He is a member of the South Asia board of the Young President Organisation (YPO) and a trustee of the Dr. B. K. Goyal Heart Foundation and the Dhanvantari Awards Foundation.

New Delhi Railway Station Might House Gaming Zones Very Soon

The Northern Railways recently received a proposal to set up gaming zones at the New Delhi railway stations to give the facility an “international feel” and make the waiting period fun and enjoyable for travelers. The proposal also includes converting Old Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations with matching modern-day requirements and passenger-friendly features.

The previous renovation and modernization plan for the New Delhi railway stations were estimated to be around ₹10,000 Crores. However, according to senior railway officials, “The new proposal will replace the earlier plan and involves an investment of a little over ₹150 Crores, which is a fraction of the previous budget proposed.”

A presentation regarding the proposal in question has already been pitched before the railway board, including the railway minister. If the initiative gets approved by the officials, several New Delhi railway stations at Anand Vihar, Nizamuddin, and Sarai Rohilla will get a gaming area inside them.

New Delhi station handles over 300 trains and seven lakh passengers daily, making it one of the busiest stations in the country. Northern Railway officials feel that the modernization program of New Delhi railway stations needs to be expedited given the rising traffic and increased passenger rush. The new proposal also includes separating arrival and departure areas, regulating entry and exit at the main gates, and establishing modern high-capacity parking lots, food courts, lounges, etc.

Entain & GGPoker Secure Online Poker Licenses in the German State of Saxony-Anhalt

Bwin, Ladbrokes, and GGPoker are among the well-known online poker brands that will be debuting as regulated operators in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt in the near future but as yet unspecified date.

Entain PLC, the parent company of Bwin and Ladbrokes, announced last week that it had become the first operator to receive licensing from Saxony-Anhalt’s gaming regulators, while GGPoker parent NSUS issued a similar announcement on December 1.

Upon receiving the Saxony-Anhalt approval, Entain’s Chief Governance Officer, Robert Hoskin, said, “We’re delighted to now have our licenses for gaming and poker services in the regulated German market, enabling us to offer and market them to our customers. It is an important and welcome step towards achieving the goal of a fully regulated online betting and gaming market in Germany. Only through such regulation and its enforcement will we avoid the reality of customers going to the black market where there are none of the safeguards that reputable operators such as Entain guarantee.”

NSUS Germany’s Sven Stiel offered a similar take: “We are delighted to have gone the long and constructive path with the German authorities. We are now able to offer our high-quality, innovative and secure poker environment officially and legally backed. This is the decisive step towards modern iGaming in Germany under professional and customer-oriented conditions.”

Germany’s online-gambling licensing situation is more complex than other European countries. Federal authorities struggled through a years-long legislative battle that allowed various forms of online gambling to be licensed and regulated. However, the actual regulatory approval takes place at the state level, meaning that each of Germany’s 16 states can issue its own operating licenses.

WPT and Texapoker Join Hands For New Live Events in Western Europe

World Poker (WPT) has partnered with France’s leading live tournament operator, Texapoker, with plans to host live tournaments in France and other parts of Western Europe.

The brand entered the French market in 2003 and has hosted events at the renowned Aviation Club in Paris. Players will get to participate in a series of regional WPT Prime events with the new partnership.

Texapoker was founded in 2008, and since then, it has allied with fifteen poker rooms. The WPT will have access to this network of live poker partners, and they can host events of all sizes around Western Europe.

“Even amidst an incredible 20th-anniversary season, we are preparing for our progression into 2023. Partnering with Texapoker provides us with a wonderful opportunity to return the WPT brand to the French market,” said WPT CEO Adam Pliska.

Kicking off its French expedition, WPT Prime will initially make three stops in Western Europe, two in France and one in Italy. This includes the WPT Prime Paris in Club Circus Paris in January, the WPT Prime Sanremo in Casinò di Sanremo, Italy, in June, and the WPT Prime Aix-en-Provence in Pasino Grand, located at Aix-en-Provence, France in October.