Harrah’s, WSOP Sued by Everest Poker
Ultra Internet Media S.A., the owner of internet poker room, Everest Poker, has filed a lawsuit for breach of contract against Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., the owner of the World Series of Poker. The lawsuit filed by Everest Poker claims that Harrah’s is in breach of contract stating that the poker room is supposed to be the sole sponsor of the event on the felt and that it was a three year deal agreed upon between the two parties. The logo for Everest Poker was printed on the middle of every poker table at the World Series of Poker as well as the inside ring of every featured table. All of these areas get significant television air time during the World Series of Poker, which is aired on ESPN.
Ultra Internet Media paid Harrah’s $6.2 million for the sponsor rights in 2008, $7.9 million for the sponsor rights in 2009, and is supposed to pay $8.4 million for sponsor rights in 2010. Ultra Internet Media told Harrah’s in April of 2010 that it would not be cutting their payment check for 2010 and asked to have all of its Everest Poker logos removed from the felt tables. Ultra Internet Media claims that an ESPN affiliate in France, RTL9, replaced the logo of Everest Poker with one from its major competitor, Full Tilt Poker, which constitutes a breach of contract according to Ultra Internet Media. Ultra Internet Media claims the following in the lawsuit:
“Harrah’s and ESPN agreed to control their affiliate, RTL9, and require RTL9 to cease causing violations of the agreement during its broadcasts and transmissions into France. Every material breach of the agreement represents lost potential future profits, erosion of goodwill, and compromise of UIM’s international business reputation.”
To make matters worse in this case, Ultra Internet Media’s most lucrative market the past couple of years has been that of the country of France. So, not having their logo on the television broadcasts has hurt their revenue in the end. Party Poker was the sponsor of the World Series of Poker prior to Everest Poker but decided to pull its sponsorship after the United States passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in 2006, effectively removing themselves from the United States poker market. Everest Poker does not accept United States players, which is why it ranks eighth in the industry with a seven day average of 2,100 cash game players.
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[...] admin wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptUltra Internet Media S.A., the owner of internet poker room, Everest Poker, has filed a lawsuit for breach of contract against Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., the owner of the World Series of Poker. The lawsuit filed by Everest Poker … [...]
[...] Administrator wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptUltra Internet Media S.A., the owner of internet poker room, Everest Poker, has filed a lawsuit for breach of contract against Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., the owner of the World Series of Poker. The lawsuit filed by Everest Poker … [...]
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