Caliplay launches legal action against Playtech
Grupo Caliente’s subsidiary seeks to annul its legal relationship with the provider.
Mexico.- The casino operator Grupo Caliente’s online gambling subsidiary Caliplay is taking legal action to annul its relationship with the supplier Playtech. The two companies operate the joint venture Caliente.MX but have been involved in contractual disputes over an option to redeem an additional service fee.
Caliplay says that Mexican Courts have accepted jurisdiction over its claim and called for Playtech to act on interim orders to continue to provide software and services pending a final resolution. The interim order would prevent operations from being disrupted.
Caliplay said it was “keen for this matter to be resolved quickly, and is committed to maintaining a channel of communication with Playtech through which any disputes can be discussed and resolved”.
Playtech argues that the question of whether Caliplay should receive an additional service fee up to December 31, 2034, should be agreed upon mutually or should be decided by an independent investment bank. It says that as of June 30, 2022, the fee was €34.4m, up from €22.3m in the previous year.
Playtech, which has been Grupo Caliente’s lead interactive platform and technology partner since 2014, argues that the option to redeem the fee expired. However, Caliplay says the option should remain available and had expressed surprise when Playtech sought court clarification in the UK without giving notification.
Playtech said in a statement “Caliplay is a highly valued customer and partner of Playtech and this has been an extremely productive relationship for both parties. Whilst Caliplay has stated that the Mexican courts accepted jurisdiction on 28 August 2023, Playtech only became aware of the issuance of proceedings today.
“Playtech has not yet had access to the court filings in Mexico and, to the best of its knowledge, has not yet been served with any proceedings. Playtech is therefore only aware of the matters in Caliplay’s announcement. Once Playtech has had access to Caliplay’s court filings and has been able to review the substance of any proceedings, the company will update shareholders further as necessary.”
