Amazon settles lawsuit over social casino apps; players can claim money
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21 Jul 2026 •
Reading time: 3 minutes
Amazon has reached a remarkable settlement in a US lawsuit concerning social casino apps. The technology company will not pay any compensation itself, but is giving players the opportunity to recover over 201 million dollars from the developers behind the apps.
The proposed settlement was filed with a federal court in Seattle and is yet to be approved by a judge. The case centres on social casino apps that were offered via the Amazon Appstore and which allowed users to buy virtual chips to play casino games.
Amazon avoids paying compensation itself
The lawsuit was brought in late 2023 by Steven Horn from the US state of Washington. According to the claimants, Amazon facilitated payments for apps that contravened Washington’s gambling legislation.
Although players could not win real money, they did have to pay real money for virtual chips with which casino games could be played. According to the claimants, such social casino apps fall under Washington State’s legislation on illegal gambling.
Unusual legal arrangement
The settlement has a striking structure.
Amazon has agreed to a $201 million judgment being recorded, but the claimants will not seek to recover that amount from the company. Instead, Amazon is transferring any legal claims it may have against the developers of the apps in question to the group of claimants.
This will allow players to seek compensation directly from the developers behind the social casino apps. According to the court documents, the amount represents approximately 30 per cent of all in-app purchases made by members of the class action. This calculation is based on transaction data provided by Amazon during the proceedings.
Amazon denies liability
Despite the settlement, Amazon does not accept any liability.
The company states that apps in the Amazon Appstore, as well as those on META, must comply with applicable legislation, and describes the agreement as a practical way to bring the legal proceedings to a close, whilst ensuring consumers continue to have access to a wide range of apps.
New step in the fight against social casinos
According to the plaintiffs’ lawyers, the agreement forms part of a broader legal campaign against providers of social casino games.
They point out that previous settlements with developers of similar apps have already yielded more than 650 million dollars for consumers in Washington and other US states. If the court approves the new agreement, any compensation recovered from the developers will be distributed amongst the participants in the class action.
The case demonstrates that not only the providers of sometimes secret social casino apps, but also the platforms on which these apps are offered, are increasingly becoming the subject of legal proceedings. Although Amazon’s arrangement avoids a direct financial payment, the legal pressure now shifts entirely to the app developers.