The lock-out of third party memory units was first disclosed by Microsoft’s Major Nelson back in October and was met with overwhelming disappointment.  Microsoft’s official line regarding the lock-out was that third party memory devices have the “primary purpose” of facilitating cheating on the Xbox Live service, a problem that Microsoft seeks to eliminate.  However, Datel argues that “Microsoft’s purpose in disabling Datel’s memory cards is to prevent consumers from choosing a Datel product that offers far better value for the price.”  The firmware update also purportedly disables a wireless controller developed by Datel but not yet on the market.  Datel alleges that it is “Microsoft’s anticompetitive conduct, including tying and predatory design, such as the erection of technological barriers to third party accessories and the disabling of otherwise functional third party accessories, not consumer loyalty or esteem, that primarily drives Microsoft’s accessories attach rate.”

Microsoft has yet to comment on the impending litigation.

A full copy of the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California can be found here, courtesy of TechFlash.

LoP commentary and Microsoft’s official response still to come.

The asserted patent involves technology used to create a “Human Movement Measurement System” comprising a hand-held tracking device in communication with a base station that can be used to create an interactive gaming experience, among other capabilities. Nintendo’s Wii video game system uses an interactive hand-held remote in communication with a base station to reproduce users’ movements on televisions and other display screens.

I will be interested to see how this one pans out. Honestly, Nintendo has made enough money off of the Wii that settling this case would be wise. The full press release is available here.

On Thursday, October 23, THQ filed suit in the Central District of California for trade dress and copyright infringement. THQ alleges that the box art for Activision’s SCORE International Baja 1000 The Official Game infringes the trade dress and copyright of THQ’s Baja Edge of Control.

As you can see from the picture above, the similarities are quite striking. THQ alleges that both the front and back packaging of the games in question are “virtually identical,” including the color, position, and appearance of the vehicles as well as the environments depicted on the box.

THQ is concerned that Activision will benefit from the millions invested in marketing Baja Edge of Control.

While there are only so many ways you can make a video game about the Baja 1000 look exciting, the similarities here are substantial. THQ also previously contacted Activision and requested that they create alternative packaging for SCORE International Baja 1000.

Patent Arcade and Laws of Play will be closely following the case, which is docketed as: THQ Inc. v. Activision Blizzard, Inc., case number CV08-06999. The full complaint can be download on the Patent Arcade website.

[via Patent Arcade]

Gerald Willis, a high school music teacher and conductor for the Truckee Meadows Community College orchestra, filed a lawsuit against Electronic Arts to enforce his 1990 copyright on the University of Las Vegas fight song, “Win With the Rebels”. Willis claims that Electronic Arts used the song without permission in 10 of it’s popular NCAA video games — NCAA Basketball 09, NCAA Football 06-09, NCAA March Madness 06-08, and NCAA Baseball 06-07.

The suit, filed on September 29, seeks up to $150,000 for each copyright violation — not bad for a high school music teacher. UNLV, which holds a limited license to use the song, is not named in the suit.

[via Las Vegas Review-Journal]

While you may not recognize his name, there is no doubt that you know the voice. John Facenda became known as “The Voice of God” through his work as a narrator for NFL Films. John Facenda passed away in 1984, but his son, John Facenda Jr., is now entangled in a lawsuit to protect the use of his father’s voice.

Facenda’s son is headed to trial over the use of his father’s voice in an NFL Network program about EA’s Madden NFL football game. Though NFL Films holds the copyright to the voice clips, Facenda Jr. argues that the NFL Network program was a commercial and violates a clause in Facenda’s contract that forbids the use of his voice in product endorsement.

The NFL Network and NFL Films allege that the program was actually a documentary or, in the alternative, that federal law trumps state contract law and Facenda’s clip is protected under the First Amendment.

While it’s unclear whether the program was a commercial, documentary, or “documercial”, U.S. Circuit Judge Thomas Ambro stated, “I put it on last night, and I have to tell you I thought it was hawking a product.”

[via Davis Law Blog, USA Today]

New York litigation boutique Shalov Stone Bonner & Rocco recently filed a class action lawsuit against NVIDIA Corporation for alleged securities fraud. The complaint alleges that NVIDIA lost more than $3 billion in market value due to a “series of misrepresentations and omissions that actively concealed and failed to disclose the unusually high failure rates of Nvidia’s mobile video adapters.” The class action covers November 8, 2007 through July 2, 2008 and names NVIDIA Corporation, CEO Jen-Hsun Hunag, and CFO Marvin Burkett as defendants.

Hewlett Packard and Dell previously acknowledged the problems with the NVIDIA cards in 2007 and began offering BIOS workarounds, however it took NVIDIA until July 2, 2008 to institute a nearly $200 million warranty and repair program for the defective chips. Apple recently acknowledged the problem with NVIDIA chips in their previous MacBook Pro line and is offering to reimburse customers that have already paid for a fix.

You can download the full complaint here.

[via cnet]

It’s no secret that Microsoft has had it’s share of problems with the Xbox 360 console. At launch, the biggest problem was console availability. However, Microsoft has faced a number of hardware issues since launch, most notably the “Red Ring of Death“. Despite numerous other Xbox 360-related lawsuits, Microsoft — perhaps to its own surprise — has yet to face any litigation related to the Red Ring issue.

That has recently changed. A class action lawsuit was recently filed in Sacramento Superior Court on behalf of all Xbox 360 purchasers and owners that experienced hardware malfunction, often accompanied by the “Red Ring of Death”. The complaint alleges that Microsoft engaged in unfair business practices by selling inherently defective consoles that are “unreasonably prone to malfunction”. The complaint further alleges that Microsoft concealed knowledge of the defects and otherwise engaged in fraudulent business acts.

The complaint seeks, among other things, equitable and injunctive relief in the form of an order requiring Microsoft to publicly announce and implement a program to refund the price of malfunctioning Xbox 360 consoles; restitution, disgorgement, and/or a constructive trust on profits attributable to any unjust enrichment; and any interest and related costs.

The full complaint can be downloaded from Laws of Play here.

[via DailyGamesNews.com]

Twenty-five year old Tim Reid of New Zealand was recently on trial for his December 29, 2007 assault on a police officer followed by the theft of the officer’s car. What makes Reid’s case interesting is that his attorney, Chris Nicholls, claimed that Reid’s actions were the result of his upbringing, which included compulsively playing Grand Theft Auto.

Reid pleaded guilty to “aggravated wounding, escaping custody, reckless driving, dangerous driving, unlawfully taking a motor vehicle and two charges of failing to stop, breach of supervision orders and being an unlicensed driver.” A New Zealand District Court judge sentenced Reid to five years in jail and disqualified him from driving for two years. The judge reportedly said that “Reid was hardwired for violence and anti-social behaviour and programmed by his recreational pursuits.”

New Zealand’s Family First national director Bob McCoskrie, spoke out concerning the case, stating his belief that violent video games pose a far greater threat than violent television shows and films:

Rather than observing the law breaker you take on the role of the lawbreaker …we think it desensitises certain people.

It is interesting to see the media jump on video games as the main culprit in this case, particularly when Reid’s upbringing also included sexual and physical abuse, marijuana use at the age of five, and chronic alcohol and substance abuse.

The Internet has been rife with Grand Theft Auto IV stories as of late. It seems as though any website with a merely tangential relationship to video games has mentioned Rockstar’s blockbuster and many gaming-centric sites have turned into little more than Grand Theft Auto RSS feeds. With record-breaking sales, unprecedented critical acclaim, and GTA’s uncanny ability to agitate pundits and parents alike, it is no wonder that people are finding plenty to talk about.

Laws of Play has been laying low and avoiding most of the hype because all that has really happened is a lot of political posturing. Or, at least, that was the case. Yesterday, Reuters reported that Grand Theft Auto publisher Take Two Interactive filed suit against the Chicago Transit Authority (“CTA”) earlier this week. Take Two alleges that by pulling advertisements for Grand Theft Auto IV from public transportation and bus terminals, the CTA has breeched contract and violated the company’s First Amendment rights. The suit seeks an order for the transit authority to run the ads as well as monetary damages of at least $300,000.

A Fox News broadcast (below) condemning the CTA for promoting the “unapologetically violent” video game is reportedly the cause for the recent action.

What’s interesting is that the CTA is not the only public transportation authority to pull ads for the controversial video game. Late last April the Miami-Dade transit authority similarly pulled GTA IV ads from its buses and stations after attorney Jack Thompson complained about them to Miami Mayor Carlos Alvarez.

There is no word whether Take Two Interactive will pursue any sort of legal action against Miami-Dade Transit. However, GamePolitics conducted a brief interview with Miami-Dade Transit Deputy Director Hugh Chen and Marketing Director Michael DeCossio concerning the pulling of the ads:

[GamePolitics]: The GTA IV ads themselves are inoffensive. Is Miami-Dade Transit making a value judgment as to the underlying product? If so, this judgment is based on…?

[Miami-Dade Transit]: The Miami-Dade County Commission has adopted three resolutions in the last five years dealing with violent video games — R-1447-03, R-248-04 and R-573-06. You may look up all three at www.miamidade.gov/govaction/searchleg.asp?Action=searchleg.

The first resolution specifically condemned the “Grand Theft Auto: Vice City” video game for its “hate-filled messages” and for appearing “to encourage or condone violence against ethnic minorities” and called on retailers to remove the game from their shelves. The other two condemned violent video games in general and urged retailers not to make such games available to minors.

Miami-Dade Transit is a department of Miami-Dade County and as such follows the policies set by the Miami-Dade County Commission and Mayor.

After inquiring into the organization’s administrative decision-making process, GamePolitics continued:

GP: Is MDT familiar with Change the Climate vs MBTA, in which the US First Circuit Court ruled that a quasi-governmental transit agency could not restrict ads based on viewpoint?

MDT: Miami-Dade Transit is a department of Miami-Dade County and as such is a unit of County government, not a quasi-governmental transit agency.

As GamePolitics astutely points out, this is a very curious answer. Miami-Dade Transit seems to believe that, as a governmental transit agency, they may be held to a lesser standard than a quasi-governmental transit agency — an odd conclusion when one considers the fact that First Amendment protections are held against state governments and not private parties.

Laws of Play will continue to cover both of these situations as they develop.

If there exists a segment of the population more vocal and protective of their hobby than gamers, I would love to meet them. No longer content with complaining on forums and signing meaningless Internet petitions, Antonio Hernandez, a former Orlando-area video game store assistant manager, has taken his grievances to court.

Hernandez, an avid World of Warcraft player, has filed suit against Internet Gaming Entertainment, Ltd. (“IGE”) in Fort Lauderdale, FL.  Hernandez claims that IGE’s practice of gold farming diminishes the enjoyment and satisfaction of consumers and violates the World of Warcraft Terms of Service.  Hernandez ultimately argues that gold farmers damage the game’s economy by forcing legitimate players to spend more time earning the virtual currency that is necessary to improve their in-game personas.   Hernandez’s suit claims that “[t]his loss of time, conservatively, amounts to hundreds of thousands of hours of subscriber time and causes the irreparable harm of driving subscribers away from ‘World of Warcraft’ . . . .  The economic harm incurred by this loss of time is in the millions of dollars.”

In response, IGE claims that:

Hernandez and other players have no standing to sue because they have no ownership or property rights within “World of Warcraft.” Hernandez’s lawsuit fails to show how he suffered actual damages[.]

Interestingly, if IGE is correct and World of Warcraft players have no ownership or property rights within World of Warcraft, one must wonder how IGE is able to sell in-game assets for real-world currency in the first place.

What makes this case interesting is that it’s the first time a player has filed a lawsuit in response to “real money trading” in a virtual world.  Hernandz also hopes to make this the first class-action lawsuit involving online role-playing games.

When asked about the litigation, Paul Sams, Blizzard Entertainment’s Chief Operating Officer, commented:

We believe that shutting down gold farming and real-money transfer is in the interest of all ‘World of Warcraft’ players and that a victory in this case would have a positive long-term effect on the online gaming industry as a whole.

For more about this pending litigation:

Sarasota HeraldTribune
Justia