Mikey Campbell
A class action lawsuit filed on Tuesday targets Apple for hosting and profiting from casino-style apps through the App Store, specifically titles developed by Zynga.
Lodged with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Columbia, the suit takes issue with free-to-play games that offer micro-transactions, or in-app purchases, for digital currency or other forms of digital goods.
Plaintiffs name "Zynga Casino Apps" as violating a number of state statutes related to gambling, saying Apple is culpable in the scheme by providing iOS development tools, hosting the titles on the App Store and profiting from their sale. As the sole administrator of the App Store, Apple allegedly "permits and facilitates illegal gambling by operating as an unlicensed casino," allowing users to buy "coins" or "chips" for use in Las Vegas-style games like blackjack, roulette, poker, keno, bingo, and other card and gambling games.
Most games mentioned in the suit present a limited number of chips to start, but users must purchase additional virtual funds once that pot is exhausted. The consumer will ultimately run out of coins or chips and "will be prompted to use real money to purchase additional coins or chips for the chance to continue playing the game," the suit alleges.
Importantly, according to plaintiffs, users are unable to collect actual cash in the casino games, but they do have the ability to win and therefore acquire more playing time. This system — paying money for a chance to win more playing time — allegedly violates anti-gambling laws in the 25 states at issue in the case.
Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia are named in the suit.
Causes of action include violation of the Civil Remedy Statutes for Recovery of Gambling Losses and unjust enrichment. Plaintiffs seek an injunction, damages, restitution, and legal fees.
The suit is nearly identical to a case filed in October that claims gambling apps violate state laws by prompting users to pay real money to acquire more playing time. A more recent complaint, filed in January, takes issue with the addictive nature of casino-style games.
AppleInsider Staff
Malcolm Owen
Oliver Haslam
Andrew O'Hara
Wesley Hilliard
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
18 Comments
Who’s spouse racked up a hefty bill?
Yet another bogus lawsuit, they basically pointed out the difference between a Casino and the games, which will be their downfall.
A casino you exchange cash for chips, but you can also exchange those chips back for cash. These games utilize the pay to play structure. A good majority of games use this structure and because of that, this suit holds no merit. The people who play, are literally paying to kill time.
If someone could exchange their “winnings” for a monetary value then I could see this going someplace.
Does this product already exist on the web? Could users access this product today via Safari on iOS?
Is this product available on any PWA like Stadia? Would the plaintiffs then also sue the PWA providers?
Despite the previous poster saying this lawsuit bogus, and I see his point, I can also see the plaintiff's point that Apple is taking a percentage of the income. Gambling is entertainment, and this app is entertainment, and as it works now, the app rewards you with more entertainment for your money. Hence Apple is taking a share in the winnings of a gambling/entertainment enterprise. I see that side too.
I think the obvious solution is that Apple will simply remove these apps from their store.
Here's what the App Store Guidelines say about gambling:
I think the solution here will involve Apple modifying section 5.3.3 to say the following. Otherwise there will be a lot of bad press for Apple, especially if the plaintiff loses the case above.
Then I guess I’ll start a class action suit against Apple for having apps that let you invest in the stock market. What’s the difference?
The fact they are casino style games is the thread they are hanging on. It is going to break because there are plenty of other games that allow you to pay to keep playing.
Didn't Google just add a bunch of actual casino gambling apps to their store? Oh yeah;
https://www.macobserver.com/analysis/google-play-store-allows-licensed-gambling-apps/
So they are suing Apple for things that require tortured logic to construe as "gambling". Meanwhile Google put flat out casinos that make no bones about it being gambling and they get a pass.