Gibson and Activision duel over Guitar Hero
Wah-wah
Publisher Activision has asked a US court to reject a claim made by legendary guitar manufacturer Gibson that the hugely popular Guitar Hero game - even Bill Gates likes it - spanks a software patent owned by the plank producer.
Gibson has yet to file a formal complaint of its own, but it says it contacted Activision in January to show how it believes Guitar Hero violates a patent it filed in 1999. The patent details a way of using virtual-reality hardware to simulate participation in a musical concert.
Gibson wants Activision either to license the patent or to halt sales of all Guitar Hero games, of which there are already numerous versions.
In a statement, Gibson said that it has tried to resolve the problem company-to-company. For its part, the games publisher said in a statement of its own that it disagrees with applicability of Gibson’s patent and so is seeking legal clarification.
Guitar Hero was first released in 2005. Activision claims that by waiting so long before voicing a complaint, Gibson tacitly gave the publisher a licence for its technology.
Ironically, the two companies already have an agreement allowing Activision to model Guitar Hero's electronic guitar controller, and virtual ones used in the game, on Gibson’s real-life instruments.
Last year, US rockers The Romantics sued Activision for use of the band’s hit What I Like About You in game sequel Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s. The lawsuit claimed the game used a sound-alike imitation of the song and not the band’s master recording.
COMMENTS
@the other steve
I was thinking Steve.
I'm off to re-interleve my ST225's thanks to spinrite.
Bemani?
So why hasn't Konami (Bemani) been sued over Guitar Freaks? That came out years ago on foreign soil alongside all the other beat-related games (that are now being copied...)
Jeeeez
Oh my GOD..
I'd better stop playing my air guitar.. they might have patented that too. <Gulp>
Judge John. The Sherif of Ward
> Guitar Hero was first released in 2005. Activision claims
> that by waiting so long before voicing a complaint, Gibson
> tacitly gave the publisher a licence for its technology.
I imagine this is assuming that the company had access to the codes?
As for such things being patentable: I gather there is no such thing outside the USA. And even there it only got out of hand because a patent trolling attorney is the son of a local judge in some god-forsaken town in Texas.
Gotta be a John Travolta film in that scenario. Or maybe Al Pacino?
Title: The Man From the Eastern District of Texas.
Tit II: The Hangin Patent Judge.
