UK Appeal Court overturns Aviator ruling in Spribe dispute

A High Court ruling involving a copyright dispute between Aviator LLC and Spribe has been overturned by the UK Court of Appeal. The ruling was made on October 2 and is unanimous and relates to earlier court proceedings in Georgia. It does not rule on whether Spribe violated Aviator LLC’s copyright or on the importance of the Georgian court decisions for the UK court. The Court of Appeal quashed a May ruling that had regarded the Georgian court’s decisions as relevant for Aviator LLC’s claim of copyright. It had given Spribe an advantage in this matter and had denied Aviator LLC’s request of a preliminary hearing on the issue of ownership before the broader case is reviewed. The UK case relates to the design and name of Aviator crash game. Aviator LLC claims that Spribe has copied its unique design, which includes an airplane and the Aviator name. Spribe denies the accusations and claims that it developed its own graphics without reference to any other company. The sides also differ on the question of similarity of their products and their brands. The dispute has produced different outcomes elsewhere. In Malta, the First Hall of the Civil Court issued a provisional ruling in Spribe’s favour, finding that Aviator Studio’s branding resembled Spribe’s European Union trademarks closely enough to create a risk of confusion. In Curaçao, a Court of First Instance invalidated Aviator LLC’s local trademarks. Aviator LLC did not send a representative to defend the case, so Spribe won by default.