World Games Inc. (WGI), a loosely-based international company that has been on the run from legal authorities around the world for several years, was found to be in violation of the 1974 Trade Practices Act by the Australia Full Federal Court for organizing an international lottery pyramid scheme.

The court's ruling was directed at Gold Coast company Worldplay Services Pty. Ltd., a corporate entity that is tightly coupled with WGI.

The decision also upheld that Greg Kennedy, the company’s director and founder of the international pyramid scheme, was found to be knowingly concerned in the contravention.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission began proceedings in December 2003 alleging that WGI, which operated internationally using a website, was an illegal pyramid scheme. The ACCC alleged that people became members in the hope that they would receive rewards when they signed up others to the scheme.

Worldplay Services provided administrative, IT support and member support services, among other services, to the scheme.

The scheme is fragmented, with a company in the British Virgin Islands having

overall control, and service companies contributing to the scheme operating from Britain, Gibraltar, the Netherlands Antilles and Australia. Consumers recruited into the scheme came from a number of countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom, and Norway.

On 2 September 2004 Justice Paul Finn of the Federal Court found that World Games Inc. scheme was a pyramid scheme and declared that Worldplay Services Pty. Ltd. had breached section 65AAC of the Act and that Mr. Kennedy was knowingly concerned, and a party to, the contravention.

In their unanimous decision, Justices Ryan, Tamberlin and Kiefel of the Full Federal Court dismissed the appeal by Worldplay Services and Mr. Kennedy and ordered them to pay the ACCC’s costs of the appeal.

"This finding by the court upholds the ACCCs view that the new pyramid selling provisions of the Act will have effect no matter how fragmented the scheme to avoid jurisdiction", ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, said today. "If you are an Australian company taking part in a pyramid scheme you will be caught by the Act.