Nintendo is facing a ban on selling controllers for the Wii after failing to overturn a $21 million patent-infringement verdict.
A Judge in Texas has rejected Nintendo's request for a new trial in the case won by Anascape Ltd. He said that it would stop sales of the Wii Classic Controller, WaveBird controller and Nintendo GameCube.
The band will be put on hold whilst Nintendo appeals the verdict, according to Bloomberg.
Anascape Ltd holds a patent on certain remotes configured to control six types of motions at the same time. The inventor, Brad Armstrong, developed game controllers in his garage after ``he became fascinated with computers including video games'' in the 1970s.
Both Sony and Microsoft have licensed the patent previously. Nintendo has said it didn't use Anascape's technology.
see i still think this is dodgy. If they infridged on the technology with the gamecube pads then why didn't they sue them then? It's clear now with nintendo raking it in with the wii they've decided to cash is on it's success and do what the americans do and sue sue sue!
see i still think this is dodgy. If they infridged on the technology with the gamecube pads then why didn't they sue them then? It's clear now with nintendo raking it in with the wii they've decided to cash is on it's success and do what the americans do and sue sue sue!
I do kind of feel the same but as much as I love Nintendo they have been utter ruthless bastards when the shoe was on the other foot in the past. Getting a taste of their own medicine perhaps?? Your comments re gamecube are right though; would be interested to know what exactly has been broken patent wise re this 6 way motion thing.
It's interesting to note that this Brad hasn't actually tried to do anything with the patents. Why haven't we seen Anascape controllers being sold as a gamecube pad, or the like, alternative? Probably because that would invovle a lot more effort then sitting on a patent until a company actually makes something successful, then suing.
The courts should really take into account what the company has done with the patent other then the intial 'stuck together with sticky tape' prototype.
see i still think this is dodgy. If they infridged on the technology with the gamecube pads then why didn't they sue them then? It's clear now with nintendo raking it in with the wii they've decided to cash is on it's success and do what the americans do and sue sue sue!
Agreed.
The only reason I can see for this not coming to light earlier would be previous unresolved and ongoing trials.
...I know its very speculative... but does anyone get the feeling that Nintendo will in a few more years go the way of Sega?
I miss Sega, the Dreamcast was largly under-rated and the first 128-bit console, though this second opinion has no relevance or similarity with the Nintendo situation present day.
The courts should really take into account what the company has done with the patent other then the intial 'stuck together with sticky tape' prototype.
You patent something for copyright, regardless of what you do with it. If you brought something and didn't use it, it is still yours.
...I know its very speculative... but does anyone get the feeling that Nintendo will in a few more years go the way of Sega?
I miss Sega, the Dreamcast was largly under-rated and the first 128-bit console, though this second opinion has no relevance or similarity with the Nintendo situation present day.
No, I might have thought that if the Wii was an even bigger failure than the GC. But it wasn't like they were really losing any money with the GC. Plus they are still dominating the handheld market and have been for decades.
With the huge success of the Wii now, I can't see them going the way of sega in the next 1 or 2 console generations.
It's interesting to note that this Brad hasn't actually tried to do anything with the patents. Why haven't we seen Anascape controllers being sold as a gamecube pad, or the like, alternative? Probably because that would invovle a lot more effort then sitting on a patent until a company actually makes something successful, then suing.
The courts should really take into account what the company has done with the patent other then the intial 'stuck together with sticky tape' prototype.
agreed! these patents are getting as ridiculous as this country and what you can and cant do / say, cant say. this means we could all club together on c&vg, invent all kinds of controller we think will be used over the next ten years, patent the ideas, wait a few years without taking the idea any further and then sue nintendo, microsoft and sony for using a similar idea. crazy.
Patents are really important because it evens the balance out between huge companies and individual inventors.
Try this scenario.
The current patent laws don't exist- some much more lenient ones do. This guy has invented a revolutionary new controller to Nintendo. They really like it and have a look at how it works. They then turn him down and produce something identical themselves. What does he do? Nothing. He's one man, Nintendo are a multinational...
Patents are really important because it evens the balance out between huge companies and individual inventors.
Try this scenario.
The current patent laws don't exist- some much more lenient ones do. This guy has invented a revolutionary new controller to Nintendo. They really like it and have a look at how it works. They then turn him down and produce something identical themselves. What does he do? Nothing. He's one man, Nintendo are a multinational...
You clearly have not been following the patent farce of recent years. There are many companies now setup as dedicated "Patent Trolls". These companies make use of the ridiculous patent laws to file vague patents which they have no understanding or any physical way of manufacturing let alone finding a valid use for (in fact most of these companies have never produced a single product at all). They then wait until they see a device that infringes their very vague patent and then instead of going to court right then and there they wait until the device makes a load of money. They then file a huge patent infringement suit in order to recoup "losses" based on how much the device has sold. The problem here is that they never had any intention of using their patent for any physical sale, so in my mind they have not lost a penny! The other problem is that the patent office is allowing such vague patents to go through that it is inevitable that some device somewhere will fall foul of it. I have no problem with patents being protected to allow innovation, but the current system is the complete opposite and is stifling innovation. Amazon for instance have patented "one click" shopping! It is litterally that broad! They have not patented a specific way of dealing with one click shopping but the entire concept! This is like Dyson being able to patent the "Bagless Vaccuum" entirely rather than a specific way of storing dust without a bag. Thankfully they did not otherwise we would not see other bagless designs. However at least Amazon use their patent in a product. Which is more than can be said for the patent trolls.
How on earth do the classic controller and the gamecube controller infringe on the patent for 6 way movement?
Patents are really important because it evens the balance out between huge companies and individual inventors.
Try this scenario.
The current patent laws don't exist- some much more lenient ones do. This guy has invented a revolutionary new controller to Nintendo. They really like it and have a look at how it works. They then turn him down and produce something identical themselves. What does he do? Nothing. He's one man, Nintendo are a multinational...
You clearly have not been following the patent farce of recent years. There are many companies now setup as dedicated "Patent Trolls". These companies make use of the ridiculous patent laws to file vague patents which they have no understanding or any physical way of manufacturing let alone finding a valid use for (in fact most of these companies have never produced a single product at all). They then wait until they see a device that infringes their very vague patent and then instead of going to court right then and there they wait until the device makes a load of money. They then file a huge patent infringement suit in order to recoup "losses" based on how much the device has sold. The problem here is that they never had any intention of using their patent for any physical sale, so in my mind they have not lost a penny! The other problem is that the patent office is allowing such vague patents to go through that it is inevitable that some device somewhere will fall foul of it. I have no problem with patents being protected to allow innovation, but the current system is the complete opposite and is stifling innovation. Amazon for instance have patented "one click" shopping! It is litterally that broad! They have not patented a specific way of dealing with one click shopping but the entire concept! This is like Dyson being able to patent the "Bagless Vaccuum" entirely rather than a specific way of storing dust without a bag. Thankfully they did not otherwise we would not see other bagless designs. However at least Amazon use their patent in a product. Which is more than can be said for the patent trolls.
How on earth do the classic controller and the gamecube controller infringe on the patent for 6 way movement?
Man that is really messed up! Goes to show that there are so may people out there out to make a quick and easy buck.
MS and Sony have both had to pay for the tech they needed to make stuff,check out rockband or guitar hero who are been sued for infringments?Today it's all about money.Nintendo have had a good turn for once and now here come the vultures for there fill.It may make them or break them be carefull,give the dude some cash get him off your back and get back to selling more gimicky crap to idiots with to much money and not the same in brain cells.
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