Original URL: https://www.theregister.com/2010/07/28/nintendo_ds_r4_banned/

UK bans Nintendo DS homebrew code installer

King R4 uncrowned

By Hard Reg

Posted in Personal Tech, 28th July 2010 12:02 GMT

The R4 card, a Nintendo DS add-on that allows users to transfer Rom code to the handheld, has been banned in the UK.

The high court in London ruled that the gadget may not be imported into the UK and sold here, and it must not be advertised here either.

The court agreed with Nintendo's claim that the device contravenes laws that make illegal any attempt to bypass a copyright protection system.

It ruled that since this is the case, even the defendant's statement that the R4 allows DS users to install code they have created themselves, the device falls foul of the law.

Unfortunately, the R4 has found favour not only with users keen to run alternative operating systems and software on the handheld console, but also with users who want to run pirated games.

Nintendo has brought similar actions against R4 suppliers in other European nations where the European Union Copyright Directive (EUCD) - Europe's answer to the US' Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) - has been enacted locally. ®

Via: MCV