People Asked and the Texas AG Answered: Advisory Opinion Concludes Daily Fantasy Sports Illegal in Texas

On Tuesday January 19, 2016, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued his advisory opinion on the legality of daily fantasy sports (DFS) under Texas law. In short, he did not apply the law to the DFS industry favorably.

Since October 2015, daily fantasy sports — namely, industry leaders DraftKings, Inc. and FanDuel, Inc. — have been threatened nationally under federal statutes, individual state laws, and consumer lawsuits. The firestorm was sparked by news of scandal.  On September 27, 2015, a DraftKings employee inadvertently released company …

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Illinois and Texas: The Latest in the Daily Fantasy Sports Legality Issue

As daily fantasy sports (DFS) litigation is on standby in New York (pending is the expedited appellate hearing scheduled for January 4, 2016), the situation is heating up in Illinois and Texas.

Sparked by an alleged September 2015 insider trading scandal between DFS industry leaders DraftKings, Inc. and FanDuel, Inc., the legality of DFS has become a national issue among the country’s individual states. Under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (2006), states have the individual and independent right to determine whether a subject activity …

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Who’s Next? Patent Holder Targets NFL in Latest Lawsuit

Virtual Gaming Technologies LLC (VGT) is no stranger to filing infringement suits against fantasy sports operators. This week, the patent holder has filed lawsuits against FanDuel, DraftKings, Fox Sports, ESPN, Draftpot, and DraftDay. On November 5, 2015, the company targeted a new defendant—the National Football League.

In its complaint, filed in the Eastern District of Texas, the company alleges that the NFL Interactive Gaming Platform infringes upon its patents which similarly offer live scoring in relation to player performance. The plaintiff patent holder …

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Sacking the Opposition: Redskins Fight Amicus Brief in Trademark Dispute

On Tuesday, June 30, the owner of the Washington Redskins challenged the Native American defendants’ request to introduce a parallel case’s amicus brief that addresses the rights to federal action of trademark holders under the Lanham Act and related First Amendment issues. According to the team’s objection, the brief was untimely, had not been allowed by the court, and offered further argument that did not constitute an authority.

At a hearing on June 23, the defendants argued that the Supreme Court’s decision in Walker v.

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Ending in a Tie: MLB Advanced Media, Orostream Settle Patent Suit Over Mobile App

On Wednesday, June 3, U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap granted a stipulated dismissal of claims between plaintiff Orostream LLC and MLB Advanced Media.  Orostream filed suit in February in the Eastern District of Texas, alleging patent infringement in regards to the MLB.TV mobile app.  According to Orostream, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had issued it a patent in October 1998 titled “Computer Network System and Method for Efficient Information Transfer,” and MLB Advanced Media was repeatedly infringing upon it.

In the complaint, Orostream alleged …

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