PokerChipper was not created to replace another guide's image library. Its stated purpose is to build a comprehensive historical reference for casino and gaming artifacts, expand historical research, preserve information that might otherwise be lost, encourage collector participation, and attract new people into the hobby. The existence of another historical reference does not necessarily mean the two occupy the same market in the copyright sense.

Historical reference works can complement one another. Multiple museums can display the same historical artifact. Multiple books can describe the same historical event. Multiple researchers can document the same casino chip. The existence of additional historical references can increase public knowledge and interest in the subject rather than diminish it.

It's not obvious that PokerChipper displaced a legitimate market for the copyrighted works or served as a substitute for them. To the contrary, PokerChipper's emphasis on historical research, education, preservation, and collector participation may expand interest in casino memorabilia as a whole.