Paradise Ent inks IGT technology deal, forces SHFL to cry ‘uncle’ in patent suit

The casino industry appears to have witnessed the end to one of the most contentious intellectual property disputes in its history.

This week, Hong Kong-listed gaming device maker Paradise Entertainment Ltd informed the market that Macau’s Court of First instance had dismissed a patent infringement suit filed by the Asian division of US rival SHFL Entertainment, a division of Bally Technologies, which is itself owned by Scientific Games Corporation.

The case was tossed after SHFL Macau withdrew its claim that Paradise subsidiary LT Game’s patent claims on a multi-player, live-dealer electronic table game (ETG) had abused SHFL’s own intellectual property holdings.

The fight, which dates back to 2012, was waged not only in the courts, but also on the floor of local gaming conventions, including G2E Asia, with injunctions flying hither and yon, causing much uproar and acrimony between eastern and western interests.