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Notch offered to not (tm) Scrolls etc, but Bethesda sue ahead anyway
- FredBrach 15y agoWhat would happen if the first company which has used "war" in a video game title sue the other ones...
- masklinn 15y agoIt's important to note Notch not only offered dropping the trademarking of "Scrolls", he also offered adding a subtitle or new words to the game title to not make it just "Scrolls" (on top of the non-trademarking stuff). Bethesda/Zenimax essentially sues to prevent Mojang from using the word "Scrolls" at all, in a game which is all about, well, scrolls.
- zerostar07 15y agoWhy would anyone want to make such a compromise, build a brand, make money, and then risk a lawsuit that will lead to a massive settlement. alternatives: "Scrollings", "Scrollables" etc...
- masklinn 15y ago> alternatives: "Scrollings", "Scrollables" etc... That does not make much sense, it's not a game about scrolling it's a game about scrolls. As in rolls of parchments with words on them.
- norova 15y ago> rolls of parchments with words on them I truly believe that Mojang could change the name to this and it would still be a smash hit.
- blackiron 15y agoI don't know the game, but "papyrus" sounds like a nice alternative to me.
- kaddar 15y agohttp://penny-arcade.com/comic/2011/08/19 http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2011/08/19
- pbhjpbhj 15y agoI think the point is that scrolls is a generic term describing an artefact commonly found in adventure games and so should not be seen as bearing the distinctiveness needed of a trademark to indicate the origin of goods/services in the field of computer games.
- smackfu 15y agoNotch and company showed weakness by immediately offering concessions, so Bethesda probably figures if they push harder they will drop Scrolls entirely. Which is probably true.
- TheCapn 15y agoI'm just surprised there's no PR group talking with legal. This is a nightmare for Bethesda as Minecraft (and by extension Notch) has an extremely loyal and, dare I say, vocal following. Win or lose Bethesda comes out looking like a evil group and probably will leave a sour taste in a few thousand gamer's mouths once it is all said and done.
- smallhands 15y agoi think it is time to create a different court system for silly law sues like this
- Symmetry 15y agoThis has nothing to do with the laws, and everything to do with the lawyers.
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]
- pestaa 15y agoHas anybody at Bethesda considered that nobody actually calls their games "Elder Scrolls"? I've seen pretty much all the footage on Skyrim, and I don't recall I've seen the series title once. In their nonetheless strong position I'd try to create a culture where gamers point out, when talking about Notch's Scrolls, that this is not that scrolls; I see this as an opportunity for cheap marketing. And what happened to the Quake 3 duel? It'd have been a win-win PR maneuver too. Unless they plan to play it in front of the judge.
- masklinn 15y ago> And what happened to the Quake 3 duel? It'd have been a win-win PR maneuver too. The Bethesda/Zenimax lawyers "declined"
- pestaa 15y agoThought so. It's a pity because that unusual move alone would worth a couple of bucks in terms of advertising. At least they didn't sit down to play AND sue Notch at the same time. Thanks for the update.
- TheCapn 15y ago>Has anybody at Bethesda considered that nobody actually calls their games "Elder Scrolls"? I've seen pretty much all the footage on Skyrim, and I don't recall I've seen the series title once. That is "sort of" the point... when someone goes to Google and mashes in "Scrolls" Bethesda wants "Elder Scrolls" to fill the 10,000 pages of links, not Notch's "Scrolls". Unfortunately at this point going to Google and typing in "Scrolls +game" you get a mishmash of the two and a trickle of the lawsuit in the middle of it all.
- pestaa 15y agoJust because they want to dominate Google result pages on keywords of questionable relevance, it doesn't make a good lawsuit. I'd like to represent these different search terms ("Elder Scrolls", Oblivion, Skyrim), but Oblivion is too broad to be of any use.
- felipemnoa 15y agoI wonder if they are looking to extract some money out of notch.
- bluelu 15y agoEven if Notch doesn't register Scrolls, he is still violating their trademark. That's what trademarks are for, ensuring that nobody else uses your name.
- maximusprime 15y agoScrolls is just an English word. You shouldn't be able to trademark it in the first place.
- masklinn 15y agoTrademark law is not patent law, it tends to be stricter, more restricted and much harder to abuse (although it can be abused, see Tim Langdell).
- coob 15y agoApple.
- pestaa 15y agoIt is trademarked within context, it is violated in its own context (video games).
- latch 15y agoThat's exactly how trademarks don't work. Windows. Apple. McDonalds (a proper name!). Name combinations: Pizza Hut, Quaker State, Bank of America.
- maximusprime 15y agoYes I know how it works. I was commenting that I find the current system of being able to trademark English words like "orange" a pretty silly system.
- latch 15y agoYou really don't see a problem with someone other than Microsoft selling an operating system and calling it Windows? What about a company that does mail delivery calling itself the "United States Postal Service" ? An airline called "Virgin"?
- grimen 15y agoI heard Bethesda's next version of the game will be titled "The Elder Patent Trolls". I also heard they are sueing all patent trolls for being patent trolls, as they consider themselves have (TM) on that in the current game industry. Will be interesting to follow. :)
- StavrosK 15y agoYou can't sue someone for being a patent troll just because you have a trademark on a game called "Patent Trolls"! Just like Bethesda can't sue scrolls for being scrolls now.
- lawnchair_larry 15y agoYou can sue for whatever you want. If you are a rich bully, you'll almost always win one way or another. The law is barely relevant.
- zerostar07 15y agoThey kind of have to, protecting your trademark is part of your obligations. They seem to have a good case for it too, it s not like their claim is unsubstantiated.
- masklinn 15y ago> They kind of have to, protecting your trademark is part of your obligations. Their trademark is "The Elder Scrolls". Not "Scrolls". Yet they're refusing that Mojang use the word "scrolls" at all, whether as the game's sole name or as any subset of the game's name.
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]
- zerostar07 15y agoThe court will decide if they are confusable. I bet I couldn't name my game "Angry windows" either
- metachris 15y agoThere is no shortage on other "Angry X" games in the Android market, for instance. https://market.android.com/search?q=angry&so=1&c=apps https://market.android.com/search?q=angry&so=1&c=app...
- zerostar07 15y agoi bet if they were as successful as angry birds, rovio would (rightly) have asked them to change their name
- mentat 15y agoThe Scrolls game hasn't been release. You can't argue that it's been "successful" and that's why they're being sued.
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- vlad99 15y agoYou fucking Bethesda bastards, leave notch alone. * chris crocker
- maxklein 15y agoRead the article linked: http://kotaku.com/5846111/mojang-v-bethesda-or-i-hate-it-when-mommy-and-daddy-fight http://kotaku.com/5846111/mojang-v-bethesda-or-i-hate-it-whe... Notch is trying to own the word "scrolls" in all media. This has implications not just for that single company, but every gaming company that ever wants to use the word "scrolls". To me, that's scummy behaviour. People should not be able to trademark single words across all forms of media. It does not matter if they made minecraft or not, they do not deserve to own the word 'scrolls'. It's an english word, it belongs to all of us.
- masklinn 15y agoHave you read TFA? Notch offered to drop the trademarking entirely. And while their attitude could (of course) change in the future, so far Mojang has only used trademark law in a single case: against a fellow selling a minecraft ripoff as "Minecraft" in the AppStore (which is about as clear-cut as you can be for trademark infringement). Not even FortressCraft[0], a blatant ripoff of the game using a very similar name structure and reusing half the trademark, has triggered any giving of fuck from Mojang (as far as I know, I might be wrong) although it has drawn the ire of the community. [0] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHdWswvezds&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHdWswvezds&feature=mfu_i...
- WizKid 15y agoNotch even congratulated them: https://twitter.com/#!/notch/status/115752966702628864 https://twitter.com/#!/notch/status/115752966702628864 . And people didn't believe him so he posted: https://twitter.com/#!/notch/status/115753196785381376 https://twitter.com/#!/notch/status/115753196785381376
- officemonkey 15y agoYes, because clearly the world ended when Microsoft trademarked the common English word "Windows". You clearly don't understand the concept of "trademark". It isn't going to prevent you from having a rock-and-roll band named "Scrolls." Or writing a book called "Scrolls." Or doing a movie called "Scrolls" (provided it isn't based on Notch's game.) Getting a trademark for "Scrolls" isn't even going to prevent you from making a computer game with the word "Scrolls" in it.
- jjm 15y agoWell since Notch has TM'd Scrolls he in fact might be in a better position than if he TM'd XYZ Scrolls or Scrolls XYZ. Either way this will be thrown out and Notch will win, but only after spending 6-7 figures on defending it. :-(
- quadhome 15y agoBethesda suing over "Scrolls" when their trademark is for "The Elder Scrolls," even in the light of notch's offer to relinquish his trademark seems irrational. But, they're still doing it. So, what are some rational alternative reasons? One conspiracy theory immediately comes to my mind: they want Mindcraft. They can't buy it; but, they sure as hell can "settle."
- Havoc 15y agoBethesda makes awesome games, but their legal dept is clearly full of industrial grade a-holes. Notch has clearly show he is willing to back down. Get that in writing & call it a day. Instead they decide to take it to court. Sounds like lawyers trying to justify their existence.
- mcantor 15y agoSerious question: Have we heard from a human [1] in Bethesda's ranks about this issue? Or are they just playing the silent giant? If I were the head of Bethesda's PR team and I saw this post, I would be having conniptions. Footnotes [1]. "human", that is, an individual person speaking on-the-record, having identified themselves by their name and position within Bethesda. Not a legal team, committee or any other culpability-diffusing vehicle.
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]