DraftKings Battles Lutnick Over Geolocation Patent
Jesse M. Cox Published 08/10/2026
DraftKings has filed an administrative challenge to an online gaming patent owned by a Cantor Fitzgerald unit that lists U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick as its lead inventor. DraftKings is asking that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board review U.S. Patent No. 12,406,284. The company is seeking to have this claim declared unpatentable.
The patent relates to geolocation software owned by Interactive Games. It is among five separate patents that Interactive Games named as part of an April 2026 lawsuit it filed against prominent sports betting sites DraftKings and FanDuel. Lutnick founded Cantor Games in 2006. Interactive Games is an affiliate of Cantor Fitzgerald.
DraftKings is challenging the validity of these patent claims
In seeking to have the patent claims invalidated, DraftKings is arguing that a patent examiner didn’t apply “prior art” during prosecution of the case. They allege that this would render all of the claims unpatentable.
“During prosecution, the Examiner did not apply the material prior art or straightforward combinations presented here, which render every challenged claim obvious,” reads the DraftKings filing with the patent office.
Companies sued for patent infringement frequently petition the Commerce Department's U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to review patents they are alleged to have infringed. If the patent agency finds during its review that the patents are invalid, it could open the door to DraftKings having the lawsuit thrown out of court.
Cantor Fitzgerald sued DraftKings and FanDuel in April
The filing of the April lawsuit by Cantor Fitzgerald on behalf of Interactive Games alleges infringement by DraftKings and FanDuel on patents that are the creation by the now-defunct gambling technology company Cantor Gaming. Cantor Fitzgerald wound up folidng that company into its operation. The filing of the lawsuits was taking place in New Jersey and Massachusetts federal courts.
A total of five patents are part of the lawsuit. Lutnick is showing as co-inventor on two of the five patents in the suit. At the time, he was serving as CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald.
Lawyers representing Interactive Games argue that the patents named address technical problems that came about as sports betting and casino operations progressed from land-based operations to mobile apps on smartphones. These patents helped to solve the geolocation problems created by the usage of smartphones to gamble.
That Lutnick's former company is part of the suit is creating an odd scenario. As U.S. Commerce Secretary, his portfolio oversees the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
It should be noted that Lutnick isn't part of the lawsuit. Since the Trump Administration was naming Lutnick Commerce Secretary, he was stepping down as CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald. The company reported that Lutnick divested from all of his Cantor business interests.
"Secretary Lutnick has fully complied with the terms of his ethics agreement, including all divestiture and recusal requirements, and will continue to do so," a Commerce Department spokesperson told Reuters.
Geolocation software is a vital component of online sports betting
The ability for sportsbooks to geolocate customers is a necessary component of legal and regulated sports betting in the U.S. market. State regulators control all sports betting operations. Customers open accounts with sports betting sites in the state and can only place bets when physically located within state boundaries.
The design of geolocation software allows identification of a person's location. Its purpose is to ensure that bettors are following the state regulations. They must be present in the state when placing a bet.
Online sports betting sites generally rely on third-party vendors to create and supply the necessary geolocation software.
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