Dispute between Shuffle Master and gaming equipment rival leads to confrontation at G2E Asia

Las Vegas-based gaming equipment provider Shuffle Master found itself in the middle of a controversy with a rival electronic table game maker during this week’s Global Gaming Expo Asia in Macau.

The dispute over the rights to an electronic baccarat game led to Hong Kong-based LT Game being threatened with ejection from the trade show by the conference co-organizers, the American Gaming Association and Reed Exhibitions.

In a report on its website, WorldGamingMag.com detailed the confrontation, which involved court injunctions, patents, the Macau Customs Service and threats.

The confrontation between Shuffle Master and LT Game is over an electronic table game for Macau’s lucrative baccarat market, where customers place wagers on electronic gaming terminals. Shuffle Master has a similar electronic table game product for roulette.

LT Game believes Shuffle Master has infringed on the company’s patents.

Shuffle Master CEO Gavin Isaacs told WorldGamingMag "this matter should be dealt with in court."

In a statement, Shuffle Master said the company “has always and will always comply with requirements of the regulatory authorities in Macau and to date, no court in Macau has found that we have infringed upon anyone’s patents. Therefore, we strongly believe in our lawful right to sell all of our products fairly and competitively in Macau and that no infringement of patents exists or will be found to exist.”