Horse Racing War Gets Acrimonious

MINEOLA, N.Y. (CN) - The President of the New York Racing Association says the president of an Off-Track Betting regional office defamed him in the New York Post as a "liar and a thief." The OTB office accused the NYRA of defamation this summer.

In his complaint in Nassau County Court, NYRA President Charles Haywood says the feud began when the Nassau Regional OTB illegally broadcast live simulcasts of horse races over the Internet.

The OTB claimed that a previous agreement allowed it to transmit the footage to a branch offices and cable TV, but Haywood says the NYRA board never approved the deal, making the agreement "not valid or unenforceable." He also says the agreement never included rights to Internet streaming video.

Haywood say Nassau Regional OTB president Dino Amaroso sought the help of two other defendants to transmit the broadcasts illegally: software maker Scientific Games Racing and media provider Roberts Communications Networks.

Haywood says the three companies allegedly illegal broadcast races from Jan. 29 to April 15 this year.

The NYRA terminated the simulcast signal in June and issued a press release explaining why.

In response, NROTB sued the racing association for breach of contract, and claimed that the press release defamed the company.

A month later, Amoroso told a New York Post reporter, "Mr. Haywood is a liar and a thief," this countersuit claims.

Haywood and the NYRA accuse Amoroso of defamation, and accuse NROTB and third-party simulcast providers of conversion, unfair competition and unauthorized use of communications.

Haywood is represented by Robert Connolly with Bee Ready Fishbein Hatter & Donovan.

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