A series of lawsuits filed by Activision has led to speculation that the world's biggest video game publisher is now employing tactics similar to those employed by the RIAA to crack down on file sharers. However, Karin Pagnanelli, Activision's lead attorney, has denied that the
lawsuits had anything to do with file sharing. More after the jump.

With so much riding on Alone in the Dark (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, PC), Atari seems to be doing all it can to ensure that the game becomes a success. But has the company really resorted to firing off lawsuits in order to quash negative reviews of the game's Xbox 360 version? More in the full article.

Another lawsuit has been filed against 3D Realms, this time over the first-person shooter Earth No More (Sony PlayStation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, PC) whose original idea was allegedly stolen from Cinemagraphix Entertainment. 3D Realms' CEO, however, seems confident that the company will be able to prove its full innocence. Check out the full article for more details.

Long-standing lawsuit filed by WWE against THQ and Jakks Pacific concerning racketeering and bribery was finally put to rest by a US district court judge last December 3rd. More details about  the allegations made by WWE against THQ and Jakks Pacific and the lawsuit in general at the full article.

Remember that guy who sued Microsoft because his Xbox 360 got bricked when he downloaded the Fall 2006 software update? The lawsuit is over and done with, with the software mogul and plaintiff Kevin Ray agreeing to dismiss the case. Ray's lawyer confirmed that the the case had been settled, but the terms are confidential.

Microsoft's decision to extend the warranty may have helped, as evidenced in this quote taken from Microsoft's motion:

Microsoft's customer service records show that on January 10, 2007, Plaintiff called Microsoft again, after Microsoft announced the new one-year warranty... The next day, Microsoft shipped a box with prepaid postage to Mr. Ray to use to send his Xbox 360 console back to Microsoft for repair... On January 28, 2007, a replacement console was shipped back to him... Microsoft did not charge Mr. Ray any money for replacing or shipping his Xbox 360 console... He has not contacted Microsoft with any further complaint...

The quoted paragraph above refers to the time when the initial 90-day warranty was extended to a full year, which could have been a result of the class action lawsuit. With the warranty now extended to three whopping years, there's now less reason for people to cry foul and throw lawsuits at Microsoft.

For other people who had problems with the Fall 2006 update, don't think that Microsoft will have something special coming your way - even though the case started out as a class action suit, it was eventually settled as an individual action suit between Microsoft and Ray.

So that's one lawsuit down, and more to go. There's still that second lawsuit about the Xbox 360 scratching discs, and we certainly hope everything gets settled as peacefully as this Fall 2006 software update lawsuit.

Apophis, a German Xbox modder has accused Microsoft of stealing his idea for preventing the dreaded red ring of doom. MaxConsole received emails from Apophis regarding this allegations, and has also posted a link to his website.

We peeked into Apophis' German language website, and we found quite an in-depth explanation (though our weblator didn't help much for us to fully understand), and what we gathered is that he and his friends checked out the guts of his Xbox 360 after hearing about numerous reports of people getting the red ring of doom symbol.

What the modder found was, in our weblator's terms, a "stupid constructional defect". Apophis found out that the cooling system of the GPU, or Graphics Processing Unit, was totally insufficient, and provided pretty pictures to prove it. He then declared that every Xbox will get the red ring of death eventually, especially if graphics-crunching games are played on it more frequently and in long periods of time.

Apophis also noted that the solution is applicable to Xboxes released recently. First-generation units, he said, were built a little differently than the rest of the other units in such a way that they have better ventilation.

The modder, however, noticed that the Xbox 360 is recently using the method that he posted on the web, which he wants to be credited for. He even sent an email to MaxConsole, in mangled English:

Hi,

i am the mean that found the fail with overheating GPU. Now i see on you page that MS put the the new cooling in the x360.

I find that not ok anybody take my things and nobody say thanks to me

http://lordzipacna.lo.funpic.de/

MS steel my concept and nobody say tank you

Cu

Apophis

Currently there are no reports of any lawsuits to be filed, which we aren't really expecting. But, just in case Microsoft considers to credit him, will they give him an Xbox Elite? Or even due credit if his claims are true?

   

From the old 16-bit days to the current generation of gaming, the quest to make games more realistic has been the golden fleece of just about every developer. Game makers, however, need to slow down as an article in Game Daily warns that lawsuits can arise from this aspect of creative exploration.

The First Amendment has recently been put to the test against laws barring the emulation of people and landmarks for commercial use. Lawsuits have been filed against Sega and Rockstar Entertainment for alleged violations of identities and trademarks. Courts ultimately decided to favor the developers, but not without a heated court debate for each case.

In the litigation involving Rockstar, East L.A. strip club PlayPen complained that the makers of the Grand Theft Auto series depicted a very similar club in a very similar location with a very similar name in one of their titles. The club in the game? The PigPen.

In the same manner, Sega got into a bit of trouble with Kierin Kirby of the 80's pop group Dee-Lite. Kirby claims that the Japanese publisher created a game called Space Channel 5 with a main character that resembled her. The Space Channel 5 heroine, Ulala, has a similar dress motif, hairstyle and dance repertoire to the real-life performer, thus ushering a litigation.

Sega won by the power of freedom of expression. The court ruled that there were substantial differences between Ulala and Kirby in terms of hair arrangement, dresses and body frame, ending the dispute.

Lawyers assured the public that this isn't the last of these cases and offenders will be taken to court whenever the need arises for litigation.

Jack Thompson and Take-Two Interactive have reached a settlement on two pending legal actions in Florida. The lawsuits began last month with Take-Two Interactive filing one against Thompson based on his threats to sue the company in order to prevent the release of Manhunt 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV. Thompson filed a counter-suit against Take-Two citing the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) act.

The recent settlement was filed with Federal District Court Judge Cecilia Altonaga which had both parties agreeing to drop the lawsuits they filed against each other. In addition, Take-Two has also agreed to drop the contempt of court case which happened in the hearing for Bully.

Thompson, on the other hand, will never sue or threaten to sue Take-Two or any of its subsidiaries to block sale or distribution of any game the company is publishing. He is also barred from communicating with any of the company's business associates with allegations that selling Take-Two games is illegal or wrong. He is not restricted from criticizing Take-Two games and is still allowed to act as counsel in lawsuits against Take-Two filed by other parties. Any future contact of Thompson with Take Two will have to be coursed through Take-Two's attorneys.

So does this mean that Jack Thompson is out of Take-Two's hair forever? We can't say for certain, but the settlement might be enough to stop him from harassing the company.

You can find a copy of the entire settlement documentation here.

American lawyer and critic Jack Thompson has mailed yet again threats of lawsuits to Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar Games for the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto IV for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game consoles.

Thompson is recognized for his work as a "public guardian" against sex and violence in the entertainment industry. He has had run-ins with past GTA games and distributors of the material. The most notable of which is a lawsuit on the subject of the game Bully bearing a Teen rating and being sold to minors. Thompson lost that case.

In a letter to Take-Two interactive CEO Paul Eibeler, Thompson wrote that he will file a suit on March 9 unless the company agrees to write a written agreement that it will not sell its flagship title to minors. He also said that Take-Two Interactive was able to "dodge that bullet (Bully lawsuit) by having Take-Two employees lie to Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Ronald Friedman."

For parting shots, he said he is looking forward to seeing Eibeler win the "Worst American CEO" award from MarketWatch again. Eibeler first won it in 2005.

How the activist lawyer will win this next case remains to be seen.  Take-Two has not issued a response to the letter.

Lawsuits bring nothing but trouble, so it's good that some companies fighting have stopped duking it out in the legal arena to have a spot of tea and some scones. This week, the companies chit-chatting  are RedOctane and The Ant Commandos, both members of the illustrious industry of videogame guitar heroics.

So what do these companies have to do with each other? Both of them make guitar controllers for the Guitar Hero series of games. RedOctane and Activision sent a suit to TAC for trademark infringements (on their PS2 guitar controller), while TAC decided to file a counter-suit alleging that RedOctane stole the guitar controller plans of TAC's parent company, which were used to make controllers for the earlier Guitar Freaks games.

Instead of starting a full-fledged court battle, however, the two companies asked the judge if they could talk it over first. RedOctane and The Ant Commandos are apparently trying to compromise. Their joint motion states, "The parties are currently negotiating a potential settlement of this matter and have a reasonable, good faith belief that settlement may be reached within the next seven to ten days." Whether that means we'll have a meeting of the minds, healthy competition, or one less company making guitar controllers, there's one thing you can be sure of.

"RedOctane and The Ant Commandos" sounds like a great name for a band.