Item 3. Legal Proceedings
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
From time to time, we are subject to various claims, complaints and legal actions in the normal course of business. In addition, we may receive notifications alleging infringement of patent or other intellectual property rights.
In December 2016, a copyright lawsuit was filed against our subsidiary, Wooga, in the regional court of Berlin, Germany. The plaintiff is suing for additional remuneration for his contributions to a storyline provided for two of Wooga’s games and alleged reuse of parts of that storyline in one of Wooga’s other games. We have defended this case vigorously and will continue to do so.
In April 2018, a putative class action lawsuit, Sean Wilson, et al. v. Playtika LTD, Playtika Holding Corp. and Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. was filed against us in federal district court that is directed against certain of our social casino games, including Caesars Slots , Slotomania , House of Fun and Vegas Downtown Slots . The plaintiff alleged three causes of action, including that our social casino games violate Washington State gambling laws, violate Washington State consumer protection laws and a claim of unjust enrichment. The plaintiff sought certification of a class action, monetary damages and injunctive relief. In August 2020, we entered into a settlement agreement, which remains contingent on final court approval, to settle the Sean Wilson litigation. Under the terms of the settlement, which will take effect only after final court approval of the proposed class settlement, we and CIE will pay a combined total of $38.0 million into a settlement fund and all members of the settlement class who do not exclude themselves will release all claims relating to the subject matter of the lawsuit. In August 2020, the court granted preliminary approval of the settlement agreement, and in February 2021, the court granted final approval of the settlement agreement.
In November 2013, our subsidiary, Playtika, Ltd., sent an initial demand letter to Enigmatus s.r.o., a game developer in the Czech Republic, which owns various U.S. trademark registrations that resemble our Sloto-formative trademark names, demanding that it cease use of the trademark Slotopoly. In response, Enigmatus s.r.o. asserted that it was the owner of the Sloto-formative trademarks and denied that its game title infringed our trademarks. Enigmatus s.r.o. applied to register one of our trademarks in the United Kingdom and European Union, and we successfully opposed its applications. In December
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2016, Enigmatus s.r.o., filed a trademark infringement lawsuit, Enigmatus, s.r.o. v. Playtika LTD and Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. , against Playtika, Ltd. and CIE in the Federal Court of Canada asserting that our use of the Slotomania trademarks violates its proprietary and trademark rights. The plaintiff sought injunctive relief and monetary damages. Pleadings have been exchanged and the lawsuit is in the discovery stage. No trial date has been scheduled. We have defended this case vigorously and will continue to do so.
On October 26, 2020, a patent infringement claim, NEXRF Corp. v. Playtika Ltd., Playtika Holding Corp. and Caesars Interactive Entertainment LLC , was filed against Playtika Holding Corp., Playtika Ltd. and Caesars Interactive Entertainment LLC in U.S. District Court, District of Nevada. The plaintiff alleges that the defendants are infringing certain patents related to certain of its games and is seeking monetary damages. We submitted our response to the complaint on February 18, 2021. Due to the early nature of this case, it is not possible to assess whether this case may be material to our business. We intend to defend the case vigorously.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.
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PART II