Sportradar and Genius Sports face patent infringement suits in the US

Sportradar and Genius Sports have had complaints filed against them by sports technology company SportsCastr regarding infringement on patents.

SportsCastr, which trades as Panda Interactive, has filed the complaints in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

The complaints centre on Panda Interactive’s claim on its patented development of “multiple video streaming products”.

These include the SportsCastr mobile app, which evolved into Panda Interactive’s B2B Watch & Bet platform, according to the company.

Watch & Bet allows customers to watch live streams of events and place bets at the same time.

The complaint lodged against Genius Sports in Texas reads: “Genius Sports is a direct competitor of [Panda Interactive] and provides video streaming software and systems that, without authorisation, implements [Panda Interactive’s] patented technologies.

“Through [Genius Sports’] illegal and unauthorised use of [Panda Interactive’s] patented technology, [Genius Sports] has earned significantly increased profits, revenue, market capital and market share.”

Panda Interactive is seeking damages as a result, claiming it had suffered “irreparable harm, including lost market share and goodwill”.

According to Panda Interactive’s website, the company launched in 2016 before being awarded its first patents in 2019.

The group counts SGI Merchant Banking and the NFL Players Association as investors, while it is licensed in a series of US states including New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Both Sportradar and Genius Sports declined to comment when approached by EGR.

A Sportradar spokesperson told EGR “our policy [is] not to comment on pending litigation”.

Kevin April, Panda Interactive CEO, said: “The confluence of media and sports betting is essential to the future of the fan-viewing experience.

“Panda developed its pioneering technology long before online sports betting was even legal in the US. Sportradar and Genius Sports are infringing on our patents and capitalising on our groundbreaking work.”

Donald Schupak, Panda Interactive chair, added: “We have made substantial investments in the development of our technology and cannot tolerate having our patented technology used unfairly by others and against us.

“No one wants to see their own arsenal used against them in battle.”