Evolution AB, the world’s largest B2B provider of online casino gaming solutions, has accused Playtech Software Limited — a subsidiary of Playtech Plc — of orchestrating a damaging defamation campaign through the private intelligence firm Black Cube.
According to new court filings, Playtech allegedly paid more than £1.8 million to commission Black Cube to produce and circulate a 2021 report that contained “highly inflammatory and knowingly false claims” about Evolution’s business practices. The intent, Evolution says, was to damage its reputation and disrupt its market position.
“It is deeply disturbing to learn that one of our competitors has gone to such extraordinary lengths to damage our business and reputation by hiring Black Cube and paying them over 1.8 million GBP to fabricate a report they knew would have extremely harmful repercussions,” Evolution stated. The company added that the report, later ruled “untruthful” by the New Jersey Superior Court, caused “multi-billion dollar damage” to its business.
The 2021 report was submitted to regulators by the law firm Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP and leaked to the media, prompting misleading coverage by Bloomberg and others. Two U.S. regulators—the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (NJDGE) and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) — found the allegations unsupported by evidence.
Covert Tactics and Legal Battles
Black Cube, previously linked to controversial corporate smear campaigns, allegedly employed deceptive techniques to obtain material for its report. The firm is said to have used false identities, disguises, and secret recordings in meetings with current and former Evolution employees and board members. Many of those individuals later claimed their comments had been taken out of context or misrepresented entirely.
Evolution filed suit in December 2021 against Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP and anonymous defendants—now known to be Black Cube and Playtech—on counts of defamation, trade libel, fraud, and tortious interference. In early 2025, the New Jersey Superior Court determined that the defendants “prepared and disseminated false allegations about [Evolution’s] business practices that were designed to harm, and did harm, [Evolution’s] business.” The court also ordered the defendants to reveal who commissioned the report.
Court Orders Reveal Playtech’s Involvement
After multiple appeals, Playtech was identified as the client behind the smear campaign in 2025. Evolution subsequently amended its lawsuit to include Playtech as a defendant, alleging it funded and directed the defamation effort for competitive advantage.
The court found Black Cube’s report “objectively baseless” and its supporting 2025 affidavit “self-serving.” Attempts by Black Cube to overturn the disclosure order through the appellate and supreme courts of New Jersey were denied.
Throughout the litigation, regulators confirmed that Evolution had not accepted illegal wagers or violated gaming laws. The NJDGE explicitly concluded there was “no evidence … showing that Evolution took illegal bets from New Jersey, another state, or any other prohibited jurisdiction.”
Evolution said it will continue pursuing legal action against both Black Cube and Playtech: “We will continue to hold Black Cube, Playtech, and all the other players in this defamatory scheme responsible for their misconduct. We are confident in our legal position and look forward to finally holding Playtech and its accomplices to account for the significant harm they have caused.”
The ongoing case is expected to proceed through 2026.
Source:
“Playtech Unmasked as Black Cube Client Behind Defamatory Smear Campaign Targeting Evolution AB”, news.cision.com, October 21, 2025
The post Playtech Exposed as Backer of Defamatory Campaign Against Evolution AB first appeared on RealMoneyAction.com.