Lawyers in Canada: Davis LLP - Legal Advisors Since 1892

EA Activates Trade-mark Lawsuit

Electronic Arts has been hit with a lawsuit aiming to stop the release of the next version of its Sports Active game. The suit was brought by Active Network, Inc., who provides on-line sports and fitness programs and services and who claims rights in the ACTIVE trade-mark in association with those services.

Active Network did not object when EA released the first version of its Sports Active game for the Wii in 2009. However, EA's announcement that Sports Active 2.0 (slated for Q4 2010 release) will be available for the Wii, the PS3 and the iPhone, and will have various on-line features, prompted Active Network's lawsuit. Active Network claims that the on-line features will mirror the services it provides on-line in association with its ACTIVE mark.

Regardless of how this lawsuit ends, it demonstrates an interesting point about trade-marks: even if you are able to, and do in fact, use your trade-mark freely in one area, you are not necessarily free to do so in another. So if you are adding new products or services or features to your existing brand line, consider conducting new trade-mark searches to make sure you are not stepping on someone else's toes by doing so.

Coverage at GameSpot and at IGN; for a link to a copy of the lawsuit click here.

Differing views on Canadian copyright reform

Bill C-32, Canada's latest attempt to amend its Copyright Act, was introduced early this month. Generally the bill is seen as striking an acceptable balance between rights-holders and consumers. There is still substantial controversy, however, over the proposed "digital lock" provisions that give legal protection to technological protection measures.

Copy protection measures are well known to gamers (remember when you had to input a code from a PC game's manual to be able to play?), and not surprisingly there has been some recent public discussion of Bill C-32's digital lock provisions in the context of Canada's video game industry.

First, Danielle LaBossiere Parr of the Entertainment Software Association of Canada has published an opinion piece in the Calgary Herald titled "Why gamers should love copyright bill".

Second, well-known Canadian copyright scholar Michael Geist has responded to that piece on his own blog.

Given how important video games are in Canada (both to consumers and to Canada's economy and high-tech industries), no doubt there will be further discussions like this before Canada's copyright amendments are finalized.

CTA Regulation Unenforceable

Escapistmagazine.com has reported that the Entertainment Software Association ("ESA") obtained a permanent injunction over the Chicago Transit Authority ("CTA") after having been granted a preliminary injunction back in January of this year. Reportedly, the U.S. District Court ruled once again in favour of ESA by giving a permanent injunction blocking the enforcement of a new regulation that banned all adds for mature and adult-only videogames (such as Grand Theft Auto IV) on CTA's property.

The CTA has apparently agreed not to appeal this decision and was reportedly ordered to pay ESA's lawyers' fees.

Coverage here (escapistmagazine.com)

Submitted by Julio Mena

Yet another PS3 class action lawsuit

Submitted by Brigitte Lenis

ING reports that Sony has been hit with another class action lawsuits after having disabled the "Other OS" feature from the non-slim PlayStation 3 models on April 1st 2010. A fourth class action was reportedly filed on May 6th 2010 in California, with a claim alleging that Sony "unlawfully forced" PS3 owners to choose between features that were initially advertised, as many utilized the feature to install the Linux Operating System. Apparently, the feature was initially removed via an "optional" firmware update, but users who chose to not install it were locked out of other basic system functions. The suit reportedly seeks restitution, injunction relief and other damages.

A copy of the suit can be viewed here

Coverage at IGN

B.C. Introduces "Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit"

Submitted by David Beckstead

The Vancouver Sun is reporting that last week, British Columbia's legislature passed a bill which would create an 'Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit' in the province with the hopes of making B.C. a more attractive location for digital media companies, including video game makers. The tax credit is reportedly the result of lobbying efforts by the B.C. Interactive Task Force, a group which is comprised, inter alia, of leaders in the industry which had apparently been pressuring the B.C. government for nearly a year to implement a tax credit program in the province. It is reported that stakeholders in the B.C. video game industry are hoping that the tax credit will help make the province a more attractive location for video game studios and thus raise its competitive advantage in relation to other North American jurisdictions. According to the Sun, the legislation will offer a tax credit of 17.5% for B.C. labour to digital media companies, and is set to begin on September 1, 2010.

While many industry leaders seem to be viewing the tax credit as a positive development, there are reportedly some concerns that the level of support that the B.C. government is offering is not sufficient enough to keep pace with benefits offered by other provincial governments. By comparison, Quebec, which the Sun refers to as B.C.'s principal domestic competitor, reportedly offers a tax credit of 37.5% of labour. While the tax credit will likely make B.C.'s profile more attractive to video game developers, the concrete impact it will have on the industry remains to be seen.

German Ban on Violent Video Games Defeated

In 2009, a complete ban on the production and sale of violent video games was proposed by ministers in the German Parilament. An opponent of the proposed ban, however, collected sufficient signatures to sway the German State Secretary.

Instead of a ban, the State Secretary has called for a campaign to raise awareness of game rating standards.

Coverage at: FiringSquad