Aristocrat and Ainsworth Forge Patent Licence Agreement, Ending Long-Running IP Dispute

Aristocrat Technologies and Ainsworth Game Technology have put an end to a long-running patent standoff, announcing a new licensing arrangement that lets the two Australian gaming-machine manufacturers use each other’s protected game features going forward. The agreement, effective immediately, centers on Aristocrat’s Hold & Spin patent family, one of the most widely used mechanics in modern slot design.

Under the deal, Aristocrat is granting Ainsworth a royalty-bearing licence to its gameplay patents in Australia, including Hold & Spin, while Ainsworth receives a royalty-free licence to Aristocrat’s responsible gaming patents in return. Both companies have also released each other from any claims tied to past use of the licensed technology and agreed to a mutual non-challenge covenant, meaning neither side will contest the validity of the other’s covered patents going forward.

How the Dispute Got Here

The arrangement caps off a patent fight that stretched across nearly a decade of Australian court proceedings. The core question was whether Aristocrat’s game feature patents, covering how electronic gaming machines deliver bonus mechanics like Hold & Spin, qualified as a patentable “manner of manufacture” under Australian law. The Commissioner of Patents initially invalidated the patents in 2018, arguing that abstract game rules alone weren’t eligible for protection. That call bounced through the courts for years: a Federal Court judge sided with Aristocrat in 2020, a Full Court reversed that in 2021, and the High Court weighed in with a split decision in 2022 that sent the matter back down for further review. A primary judge ruled against the remaining claims in 2024, but Aristocrat appealed again, and in September 2025 the Full Court of the Federal Court finally ruled in Aristocrat’s favor, confirming the patents were valid.

That ruling set the stage for the negotiations that produced this week’s agreement. Ainsworth will pay Aristocrat AU$8.5 million (roughly US$6 million) in instalments over the three-and-a-half-year term of the deal, though the remaining financial terms are confidential.

What It Means for Both Companies

For Ainsworth, the agreement removes a significant cloud of legal uncertainty that had been hanging over its Australian operations. “The agreement we have entered into with Aristocrat, which is effective immediately, provides us with the certainty required to confidently implement our strategic growth initiatives in the Australian market,” said Ainsworth CEO Ryan Comstock. He added that the deal covers game features including the Hold & Spin family and ensures the company can keep incorporating those mechanics as it makes, sells, services, upgrades, and converts Ainsworth-branded machines and mobile games in Australia, including through third-party manufacturing and servicing arrangements.

Comstock also pointed to pass-through rights built into the agreement, which automatically extend licensing coverage to Ainsworth’s customers, distributors, and venues for units supplied during the contract term. That gives operators running Ainsworth cabinets continuity of title without needing to negotiate separately.

Aristocrat framed the resolution as a natural extension of protecting its own intellectual property rather than a punitive move against a competitor. “We welcome this arrangement with Ainsworth. Innovation and creativity sit at the heart of what we do. We are committed to protecting the great work of our dedicated creative and technical teams,” said Aristocrat chief product officer Matthew Primmer.

Industry Context

Hold & Spin has become one of the most recognizable bonus features across land-based slot floors, letting players lock winning symbols in place for a set number of re-spins. Aristocrat’s aggressive defense of the mechanic underscores how valuable core game features have become as intellectual property in a highly competitive slot manufacturing market, where operators and players alike gravitate toward proven, familiar bonus structures. Manufacturers looking to stay current on casino gaming trends will likely see more of these cross-licensing arrangements as companies work to avoid protracted litigation while still protecting flagship innovations.

The agreement comes shortly after Ainsworth announced changes to its board of directors earlier this summer, part of a broader push by the company to reposition itself in the Australian gaming market now that the patent question has been settled.