Gaming Nintendo of America being sued for patent infringement

[PWNED]

[URL=http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/resources/2006/12/InterlinkvNintendo.pdf]See the document here[/URL]


Well, isn't this the proverbial kick in the pants. In the shortest way of explaining it, A company called Interlink Electronics is sueing Nintendo because they reckon that the Wiimote is a copy of something they were making at the time. The company is pissed and what reimbursment as what I found on IGN today.


[QUOTE] From IGN.com

The complaint demands that Nintendo be enjoined and restrained from further infringing on the patent, presumably by taking the Wii off the market. Furthermore, the filing demands that the court order Nintendo to pay Interlink three times the assessed damages, including prejudgment interests and attorney fees. Additionally, the plaintiff is demanding a jury trial of any and all issues pertaining to the case.

[/QUOTE]

Your thoughts?

[eleanor]

[color=dimgray] I doubt that the Wii will be taken off the market, but that's the only thought I have over the matter because we don't know enough about the matter. Unless someone here has an extensive knowledge on wireless point navigation. P:[/color]

[Ikillion]

[color=#d2b43b][SIZE=1][FONT=Trebuchet MS]Meh, the Wii has already become such a mainstream product that it is very doubtfull that they will be taken off of the shelves. This is more than likely some company trying to whore themselvs for the mainstream sucess of the Wii. I wouldn't be suprised if something similar happens to the PS3[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Solo Tremaine]

[COLOR=#503F86]I don't really understand the legal system that much, but surely they should be sueing Nintendo of Japan for developing it, rather than Nintendo of America for distributing it?

Either way, I seriously doubt they'll get anywhere much. If anything, it's just going to boost Wii sales as people start worrying that it'll get taken off the market.[/COLOR]

[eleanor]

[QUOTE=Solo Tremaine][COLOR=#503F86]I don't really understand the legal system that much, but surely they should be sueing Nintendo of Japan for developing it, rather than Nintendo of America for distributing it?

Either way, I seriously doubt they'll get anywhere much. If anything, it's just going to boost Wii sales as people start worrying that it'll get taken off the market.[/COLOR][/QUOTE]

[color=dimgray] Actually, I doubt that this will even get much media. But I didn't understand why they were suing Nintendo of America rather than NoJ... maybe it has to do with nation borders or something.

At most, Nintendo will hush them up with money.[/color]

[AzureWolf]

[COLOR=maroon]There's only two possible scenarios: Nintendo goes to court and makes them look like idiots, or Nintendo shuts them up with some cash they have lying around on the floors of their workplace.

Either way, Wii will rock you.[/COLOR]

[DeadSeraphim]

[size=1][color=indigo][font=arial]It's obviously just trying to get money out of Nintendo. Nintendo had patents on the tech. used in Wii as far back as 1999, and if this company had a legitimate case they would've sued much earlier for an injuction, before the product's release. This'll go nowhere fast.[/font][/color][/size]

[Semjaza]

If you really sit and read their allegation, they're only suing over one real thing: the button on the underside of the remote.

They're not going after its 3D applications because their device has none. It's a mouse you can carry around. It's not even gyroscopic; moving the pointer onscreen actually requires you to use a d-pad of sorts.

Considering the button idea was nothing amazingly novel when they applied it to their item, I don't think they have much of a case here. All the other applications involving the Wii controller are barely comparable.

If it was a major issue, you'd think they'd have sued the many other companies with similar button layouts before. The thing is, none of them were as big as Nintendo. If nothing else, I think they're just hoping for some out of court settlement... but chances are Nintendo is going to trounce them.

[Venge]

[quote name='DeadSeraphim][size=1][color=indigo][font=arial]It's obviously just trying to get money out of Nintendo. Nintendo had patents on the tech. used in Wii as far back as 1999, and if this company had a legitimate case they would've sued much earlier for an injuction, before the product's release. This'll go nowhere fast.[/font][/color'][/size][/quote]

I agree. Nintendo has the patent on the Wii-Mote, hence, this other company can't do crap. Unless it can pull files on how IT owns the patent on the idea out of their arses, then Nintendo will win and shut them down. And since Nintendo already has patents on the Wii's technology since back in '99 like Sera said, then Nintendo will go on being the king of video games like its always been. HAIL NINTENDO!

[PWNED]

Yeah, when I looked over the document It seemed so obvious that the company had a design that was just barely close to the Wiimote and want a quick buck. Nintendo will just slip some change that they found in their proverbial back-pockets into their hands and It will all blow over.

[John]

If anything, Initech from [u]Office Space[/u] should be suing this Interlink company for infringement of their ****ty name rights.

[Gavin]

[SIZE=1]Interesting, most interesting.

I think everything that can be said has been said already, either Nintendo will go to court and make Interlink look like a crowd of morons, or they'll just avoid court altogether by giving the beggars some money to do with what they please. Chances of the Wii being pulled off the shelves just two weeks before Christmas is about as likely as George Bush sending Saddam a nice Christmas present.[/SIZE]

[The13thMan]

[quote name='Gavin][SIZE=1']Chances of the Wii being pulled off the shelves just two weeks before Christmas is about as likely as George Bush sending Saddam a nice Christmas present.[/SIZE][/quote]
[COLOR=DarkOrange][FONT=Century Gothic]I wonder what he'd send him....

Maybe a fruit basket? Nah, too cliche. ...hmmm, maybe a strand of the smallpox virus? Nah, Saddam got that on his birthday last year. Gosh, what [B]can[/B] you give a guy like Saddam? Ahhh, ef it, i'd just send him some money, can't go wrong with money.

I personally think it's a little silly for a company to sue Nintendo on something like this. I mean c'mon, how stupid would Nintendo have to be to steal an idea so crucial to its system as the controller and then put out there for the entire world to see? Common sense would tell you Nintendo is innocent and Interlink are a bunch of money whores. Oh well...it's a shame in this day and age things like this are common.

If only that old lady didn't get burned by some McCoffee...
[/FONT][/COLOR]

[DeadSeraphim]

[COLOR=Indigo][SIZE=1][FONT=Arial][quote name='The13thMan][COLOR=DarkOrange][FONT=Century Gothic]If only that old lady didn't get burned by some McCoffee...[/FONT'][/COLOR][/quote]
While that case brought up a lot of scam cases, it was actually pretty legit. The coffee served in that McDonalds was FAR above the generally accepted heat for instant coffee, hot enough to cause almost-instant 3rd degree burns when it had soaked into her clothing. People bring it up as an example of a scam case all the time, but it's not really. While the circumstances weren't ideal, the company really [i]was[/i] at fault there.[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[black rurouni]

Honestly i think that this is just a company low on money so that try to sue a rich company to make a little money.