Aristocrat Technologies is taking Ainsworth Game Technology to court in Australia, alleging breach of intellectual property law regarding Aristocrat’s Lightning Link slot machine.
Aristocrat said in a statement: “This case goes well beyond simple copyright infringement and concerns allegations of extensive and deliberate misappropriation of trade secrets, confidential information and intellectual property.
“Upholding appropriate standards is part and parcel of ensuring ongoing trust in our business and industry, and is an important part of Aristocrat’s high compliance culture.”
In response, Ainsworth said it intended to “vigorously defend” the claims.
Aristocrat claims that an employee of Ainsworth joined Aristocrat as a game designer for less than a month before returning to Ainsworth in April, 2017, where he was employed as a senior game designer.
Aristocrat alleges that the individual accessed the Lightning Link game mathematics through an Excel spreadsheet, which he downloaded onto a USB, and took back to Ainsworth.
Aristocrat added: “[The company] will always aggressively defend our assets, including our IP. Upholding appropriate standards is part and parcel of ensuring ongoing trust in our business and industry and is an important part of Aristocrat’s high compliance culture. We won’t be commenting further while the case is on foot.”
The initial hearing in the lawsuit will take place on July 17.
