No Deal: Plaintiffs Lose Their Case

04/23/08

But the cost to call in was $0.99 per call. So a class action suit was filed in Georgia against NBC, alleging that the scheme was a gambling venture — you put up your $0.99 and you may (likely) lose it, but there is a chance you'll make lots of money. And NBC made a lot of money on the game.

The plaintiffs had tried to piggyback on a colonial era law that said gamblers could recover their losses via lawsuit.

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However, the Supreme Court of Georgia has now disagreed. In a unanimous opinion the court rejected their claim on the basis that there was no "gambling contract" supported by "gambling consideration."

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A gambling contract is one in which both parties are at risk. Take, for example, playing poker. Both you and the dealer put up some money, and both are at risk of losing said money.

In the Lucky Case game, NBC never was at risk of losing anything (aside from their agreed-upon prizes) — i.e., they never had a stake at risk. The $0.99 charge was not at stake for NBC.

So, good news for NBC and bad news for the lawyer, though credit should be given to him for an ingenious idea.