European Gaming & Betting Association

Paris Court rejects PSG claims: use of the brand by sports betting websites constitutes neither act of counterfeiting nor commercial free riding

In a judgment delivered on 17 June 2008 following a claim brought by Paris Saint Germain Football Club against bwin and Unibet two online sports betting companies and members of the EGBA, the Paris Tribunal of First Instance rejected all of the football club’s demands.

According to Sigrid Ligné, Secretary General of the EBGA: “This decision confirms that online sports betting companies are not violating the rights of Paris Saint Germain. Sports betting is a risk management business that requires specific skills and expertise. It is a complementary activity that goes hand in hand with the activities of sports’ clubs and sports’ events organisers.” 

The judge rejected the club’s claim of commercial free riding, remarking that the betting websites were not in commercial competition with PSG, as “they organise bets on sports events that are likely to attract consumers betting on football as well as other sports.” This decision further calls into question the very controversial ruling by the same court on the 30 May 2008 and initiated by the French Tennis Federation (FFT). It also confirms that the activities of football clubs and online sports betting companies are separate and distinct commercial activities. 

The judge found also that “it is impossible to announce events or advertise bets involving the Paris Saint Germain Football Club by paraphrasing and without mentioning the name of the club.” Since the websites in question contain highly visible displays of their own marks, advertise a multitude of bets in a variety of activities other than football and announce all matches in the same way, no matter who is playing, the judge found that there could be no confusion as to the origin of the service offered by the gaming operators, thus rejecting PSG’s claim that their trademark had been infringed.

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For further information or comment please contact: Sigrid Ligné: +32 (0) 2 256 7527 sigrid.ligne@egba.eu The EGBA is an association of the leading European gaming and betting operators Bet-at-home.com, bwin, Digibet, Carmen Media Group, Expekt, Interwetten, PartyGaming and Unibet. EGBA is a Brussels-based non-profit making association. It promotes the right of private gaming and betting operators that are regulated and licensed in one Member State to a fair market access throughout the European Union. Online gaming and betting is a fast growing market, but will remain for the next decades a negligible part of the overall European gaming market in which the traditional  land based offer is expected to grow from € 80 Billion GGR in 2007 to € 95 Billion GGR in 2012, thus keeping the lion share with 90,6% of the market. Source: Global Betting and Gaming Consultants, May 2008

www.egba.eu 

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