BodogFight Returns to Russia as Patent Fight Wages On

This time the MMA organization, BodogFight, comes to Moscow.  Founder, Calvin Ayre, and his gang are making a big name for themselves in the country. 

"Our last event in St Petersberg, Bodog Fight: Clash of the Titans, was a huge success," Ayre says. 

BodogFight Moscow took place this past Friday and featured some of the best fighters in Mixed Martial Arts today (minus Fedor Emelianenko, who fought in the last Russian bout for Bodog).   Outcomes of these fights have not been publicized and are anticipated out on DVD soon.

BodogFight has been working hard to secure a new US television deal. 

Ayre has been embroiled in a "domain name" suit for some months now.  The Bodog.com domain was ordered down by a US judge after Bodog failed to respond to a patent matter.

Bodog defense lawyers have stated that as there is no record of established case law which outlines that domain names can be seized, that the action taken by the court under Washington law is unsupported.

In addition, they argued that if trademarks cannot be seized then it makes no sense that treatment of domains should differ. It was suggested that Virginia law should be noted. Laws there have established that domain names should not be seized.

The prosecuting company First Technology has also been described as a “patent troll” due to previously similar activities which resulted in companies losing their domains.

First Technology's Scott W. Lewis tells Gambling911.com he wants to settle this matter outside of court but Ayre wants nothing to do with such a settlement and has even gone as far as to challenge Lewis in the ring with Gambling911.com Cuban transgender reporter, Sparky Collins, as referee. 

"I’m the sole inventor for all of our issued patents some of which we license to leading companies, involved in high performance multimedia entertainment products and services, who respect intellectual property rights," Lewis insists.  "Licensing helps 1st Tech invest in new innovations and software development efforts – and reflects decades of effort and the greater part of my life’s work."

Ayre continues to blast Lewis on his own personal blog CalvinAyreLife.

Lewis insists that Ayre had been given ample time to reply to the initial complaint.

"After not getting any reply, we finally as a last resort filed suit in September 2006, and then called Bodog's customer service group (who said they would be sure to pass the message to you legal department) and called Calvin's legal man Jimmy Nguyen several times both before and after serving Bodog at your San Jose Costa Rica office in November 2006."

Attempts to have Nguyen clarify Bodog's position in this matter to us have not been successful. 

"He (Lewis) is clearly only in the business of litigation and is a classic patent troll," Ayre insists.  "We have nothing to negotiate, he lost his attempt to extort money, so its over."
 

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Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher CCostigan@CostiganMedia.com

Originally published December 3, 2007 9:21 am EST