Georgian Court of Appeals to Rule on Aviator LLC’s Trademark Dispute with SPRIBE
The Georgian Court of Appeals will hear the final arguments in the Aviator LLC vs. SPRIBE OU trademark dispute on February 14, 2025. The case follows a ruling by Georgia’s Court of First Instance, which invalidated SPRIBE’s trademarks. The court found that SPRIBE registered them in bad faith and infringed on Aviator LLC’s copyrights.
Origins of the Dispute
The Aviator brand first appeared in Georgia in 2018 under Casino Aviator, a land-based casino owned by Teumraz Ugulava. The casino, located in Stamba Hotel, used an airplane logo created by Giorgi Popiashvili in 2017. The same branding appeared in Adjarabet’s online roulette streaming, a platform owned by Ugulava’s company, Aviator LLC.
In 2018, the parent company of Adjarabet and Casino Aviator, City Loft LLC, registered four Aviator trademarks in Georgia. These registrations remain active and are accessible through the Georgian National Intellectual Property Center (Sakpatenti):
SPRIBE’s Involvement in the Dispute
SPRIBE OU was founded in August 2018, after the Aviator brand and trademarks had been in use for years. That same year, Adjarabet partnered with SPRIBE to develop a crash game, which launched in 2019. According to court documents, Adjarabet instructed SPRIBE to use the Aviator name and airplane logo in the game.
Aviator LLC argues that Adjarabet never gave SPRIBE a license to use the branding beyond its platform. In May 2022, Flutter Entertainment Plc acquired Adjarabet but did not obtain the Aviator trademark. The sale agreement confirmed that the brand remained under Aviator LLC’s ownership.
Legal Actions and Court Rulings
SPRIBE later registered multiple trademarks for Aviator in different countries, including Georgia. However, in August 2024, Georgia’s Court of First Instance ruled that these registrations were fraudulent and violated Aviator LLC’s copyrights. In January 2024, the court issued an injunction preventing SPRIBE from using the branding until the dispute is resolved.
A similar trademark dispute is ongoing at the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). The contested trademark, registered by SPRIBE in 2020, is identical to the one invalidated in Georgia. More details are available here: EUIPO Case.
Upcoming Decision and Industry Impact
The final hearing is scheduled for February 14, 2025, with a verdict expected soon after. Meanwhile, Aviator LLC continues to challenge SPRIBE’s trademarks in the EU and UK, citing bad faith registration and copyright infringement.
The case could set an important precedent for trademark disputes in the online gaming sector, particularly in cases involving shared branding in game development.