$80,000 to use obvious web design

If you run a website, you’re probably unjustly stepping on the hard working toes of Webvention Company. They claim to own patents on such common website features as rollover images and hierarchical menus. Luckily, this deep injustice can be solved by paying up a mere $80,000 to license this tech.

Webvention bought up the vaguely described “rights” to these common web features and is now suing the likes of Dell, GameStop, and Visa to name a few. They have reportedly already made deals with Apple, Google, Sony, and more.

If you’re a webmaster and getting worried, there may be hope. The patents for these ideas were filed in 1990, and could have already expired on October 5 of this year. Some are speculating (and by some, I mean random commenters on the internet) that the hijinks listed above was a last ditch effort to get some cash for these patents.

“Patent trolling,” as its called, for obvious features of web, software, and tech design is becoming commonplace in the United States, posing a serious threat to innovation and rationality.

Source: ars technica
Image: Adapted from INTERNET STATEMENT by altemark under a CC-BY license.

American property rights under attack by software publishers

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has decided that, for Americans, you can’t resell software with licensing agreements which prohibit it. The finding came as a result of the Vernor vs. Autodesk case, in which a man had his eBay auction yanked when he attempted to sell a copy of AutoCAD. Up until now, it was believed the “first sale” doctrine allowed for the reselling of products. There is little doubt that this case will be appealed and appealed, with real potential for a Supreme Court showdown.

If Autodesk is found to be in the right here, it could have far reaching consequences for every business and person who sells used software (including games), and potentially even other types of copyrighted works. eBay, libraries, garage sales, and yes, GameStop could all be in trouble.

The court’s finding represents a serious threat to consumers in the United States. If it holds, individual rights enshrined in government law could be superseded by corporately dictated decrees. I’m no fan large gaming chains like GameStop offering up tiny sums for used games, and then turning them around for huge margins, but it’s one of the few things going to keep games affordable.

Source: The Dallas Morning News
Image: Adapted from We Are Geeks by doortoriver under a CC-BY license.

Modern Warfare developers file lawsuit against Activision

Following the recent news that Activision fired Vince Zampella and Jason West, Modern Warfare lead developers at Infinity Ward, comes word that the pair (hereafter referred to as Z&W) have fired back with a massive lawsuit alleging some pretty astounding things.

According to the suit, Activision promised Z&W control over Infinity Ward, creative control over post-Vietnam and Modern Warfare Call of Duty games, and royalties for Modern Warfare 2, then found ludicrous excuses to fire the pair in order to get out of making those payments. They say CEO of Activision Bobby Kotick and his evil minions launched an investigation of Z&W shortly after the release of the game, refused to explain the point of the investigation to the men, and gave about six hours for them to respond to the allegations.

Additionally, the plaintiffs allege they were threatened with insubordination if they were to console other employees brought to tears by investigators. Particularly startling is this excerpt from the suit, which alleges Activision interrogated Z&W for six hours in a windowless room:

Amazing, Activision, just amazing. The plaintiffs are seeking $36 million in damages, money for unpaid royalties and bonuses, control of the Modern Warfare franchise, and for Activision to be prevented from making further Call of Duty games set post-Vietnam.

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Crazed gamer Erik Estavillo drops all lawsuits

December 7, 2009, a date which will live in infamy. That’s when I named Erik Estavillo Shameful Human of the Week. He’s the guy who decided to try to sue Nintendo for blocking homebrew on the Wii, Sony for banning him from PSN, and Microsoft for the red ring of death. Somewhere along the way, this plaintiff gone mad apparently added the likes of IGN, NBC, Kotaku, SarcasticGamer, and many others to his list of sue targets for making fun of him. I guess Shufflingdead didn’t try hard enough.

Well, unfortunately, Erik has run into health issues due to all the stress from waiting for his various cases to be heard. He also discovered that his celebrity experts like Bill Gates and Winona Ryder cost too much to subpoena. For all these reasons, Erik has sadly decided to drop all his lawsuits.

Honourable Erik, unwilling to admit defeat, has come up with a wealth of excuses as to why he no longer needs to sue everyone in the games industry. Sony doesn’t need to get sued because he was only going after them in defense of the kids, but joining PSN requires a parent account, so he’s no longer worried. Microsoft doesn’t charge for RRoD repairs, so they don’t need to get sued (he claims to have just found out about this). Nintendo is okay too, because there are websites that Erik can get help from to reinstall the homebrew channel. Oh, and Activision Blizzard, who Estavillo was suing for slow-walking avatars, is okay because you move faster in ghost mode in WoW

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Shameful Human of the Week: Erik Estavillo

Erik Estavillo, figuratively pictured to the right, but not literally, is this week’s Shameful Human, although that title isn’t completely accurate. Erik is simultaneously shameful and awesome, and I feel kind of bad for calling someone so amusing “shameful.” Estavillo has no friends, no job, and nothing better to do than to sue game companies for hurting him in various ways.

This renegade plaintiff is suing Nintendo for preventing homebrew on the Wii, Sony for banning his online access on the PS3, Microsoft for the red-ring of death, and Activision-Blizzard for making characters in World of Warcraft run too slowly.

Estavillo revealed to Joystiq that “I told this other interviewer and it’s true — I actually have no friends. If anyone wants to test that, they can check my phone records — cell phone or home phone — and find out that I don’t call anyone and no one calls me. I rely on online gameplay for socialization. It’s why he has the time to launch his many lawsuits, and why it hurts him so bad to get banned from PSN. Without the ability to play online, Estavillo is unable to get any social interaction.

To help support his cases, Estavillo has subpoenaed celebrities rather than experts. This includes Wynona Ryder, for her deep knowlede of alienation stemming from her reading of Catcher in the Rye. In so doing, Estavillo seeks to bring greater awareness to the harmful effects of gaming.

Good luck Erik.

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