Bodog Falls on Hard Times
Just like any other business industry, the online gaming industry maintains a cut throat existence. Websites form virtually overnight and immediately enter into a ‘make or break’ scenario once the website goes live online. Sometimes a lack of player loyalty can be the downfall of a gaming website. Sometimes a lack of funding is to blame. For a select few online gaming websites, it appears that the legal world has constructed barriers that may be impossible to overcome.
One such online gamer experiencing the blows of the legal world are Bodog.com. This popular online gamer has been plagued with numerous legal problems since the middle of 2007. A recent legal drama between Bodog.com and the Nevada District Court took centre stage this week.
A judgment was handed down requiring Bodog.com to pay $50 million in a lawsuit settlement to 1st Technology LLC. This relates back to Bodog.com violating software contact agreements with 1st Technology LLC. The online gaming giant was given the opportunity to have their day in court. However, there were no representatives for Bodog.com in the courtroom. Therefore the judge was left with no choice but to automatically find in favor of 1st Technology LLC.
In addition to the large scale judgment amount, the two main operating domain names of Bodog.com and Bodog.net were ordered to cease operations as well. Bodog operations responded by creating a new domain name from which to continue daily operations. The new domain name of bodoglife.com was launched and an appeal of the judgment was filed.
At the central core of grounds for an appeal was insufficient notification of legal proceedings and a limited United States staff base to cover such events. Nevada District Court Officials were not moved with the appeal. It was quickly dismissed and the $50 million dollar judgment upheld.
This latest legal judgment places another negative mark on what has been a disappointing year for Bodog.com. It once found itself placed at the top of many online gaming popularity lists. This and other legal problems have resulted in a steady fall from grace for the online gamer.
Earlier in the year, federal authorities gained access to an approximate $24 million dollar pot from Bodog.com. Access was granted due to the belief that these funds were directly linked to various money laundering accounts created by players on the gaming website. Bodog.com immediately disputed any relationship between those accounts and its organization.
Although no physical evidence was ever found linking the two parties together, the damage was already done. Bodog.com has steadily fallen out of player and industry graces. Only time will tell if they are able to make the long climb back up to the top.
