Papaya Gaming ordered to pay $420m in landmark false promoting verdict

• The case included allegations of undisclosed bot use in money tournaments.
• The court docket has awarded $420m in damages and a $719m disgorgement.
• Skillz claimed Papaya misrepresented video games as honest and skill-based.

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Papaya Gaming has been ordered to pay $420 million in damages following a US jury verdict that discovered the corporate accountable for false promoting in a case introduced by Skillz Platform. 

The ruling, delivered by a jury within the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, additionally included an advisory disgorgement award of $719m.

A decide will overview the report and subject her personal disgorgement determine, after which the plaintiffs will select between damages or disgorgement.

Unfair practises 

The case stemmed from allegations that Papaya misrepresented its skill-based cell gaming merchandise as honest. A criticism was filed in March 2024, alleging that Papaya used bots to simulate actual gamers and manipulate ends in cash-based competitions whereas advertising and marketing its video games as purely skill-driven.

Skillz argued that these practices allowed Papaya to inflate engagement metrics, management win charges and encourage increased person spending by deceptive claims about equity and competitors.

The jury discovered Papaya Gaming Ltd and Papaya Gaming Inc accountable for false promoting and unfair enterprise practices below the Lanham Act.