FanDuel Sued For Ripping Off William Hill Sports Betting Pamphlet

William Hill has filed a lawsuit against FanDuel in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, alleging that its sportsbook competitor has engaged in copyright infringement. The lawsuit, filed on October 23, claims that FanDuel’s sports betting pamphlet titled, “How to Bet Betting Guide” is a blatant infringement of William Hill’s preexisting “How to Bet Guide.”

William Hill, a prominent race and sportsbook operator, says that the company first discovered FanDuel’s pamphlet being distributed at The Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford, New Jersey. FanDuel is one of the companies licensed to provide sports betting in New Jersey since the repeal of the federal prohibition of sports betting in early 2018.

The biggest black eye for FanDuel is William Hill’s allegation that FanDuel failed to remove William Hill’s name when printing the pamphlet.

William Hill is also complaining that FanDuel copied language for FanDuel’s official website.

The lawsuit contains a single count for copyright infringement, and seeks an unspecified monetary award as well as injunctive relief to prevent FanDuel from further infringing on any of William Hill’s copyrights.

In August, FanDuel was sued by its founder and former CEO Nigel Eccles, along with three other founders of the company, based on a claim of unfair prejudicial conduct that allegedly left them with no windfall after the company combined with Paddy Power Betfair in early 2018. The transaction valued FanDuel at $465 million.