Marvel Comics sues creators of "City of Heros"...

[slick230]

Only a matter of time before this happened

With all the 13,000 Wolverine copycats, the 23,000 Hulk wannabe's, and all the other unoriginal asshats who can't create their own characters in this game, it was inevitable that the crackdown would happen.

 

[xSkyDrAx]

doubt they will win that one(Marvel that is) :thumbsdown:

 

[Apathetic]

Marvel needs to be smacked for this. I can make a drawing of the Hulk (not a very good one, mind you) with a green crayon. Does this mean all green crayons should be banned?

Dave

 

[Schadenfroh]

i knew this was coming.........

 

[mundane]

Immitation is the sincerest form of flattery?

 

[Czar]

http://pvponline.com/archive.php3?archive=20041112

 

[BlueWeasel]

I saw this one a few days ago...rediculous. :thumbsdown:

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Um, they've got a point. If your livlihood was based on the exclusive distribution of certain characters, I doubt you'd like companies skirting around the legal issues of having your characters in their game by giving players the ability to create characters just like yours.

Of course, that then begs the question, how do you run a super hero game and NOT infringe on superheroes? Good question that NCSoft should have thought of. It also begs the question, are sword and sorcery fantasy characters currently infringed on in those kinds of MMOs.

 

[BlueWeasel]

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
Um, they've got a point. If your livlihood was based on the exclusive distribution of certain characters, I doubt you'd like companies skirting around the legal issues of having your characters in their game by giving players the ability to create characters just like yours.

Of course, that then begs the question, how do you run a super hero game and NOT infringe on superheroes? Good question that NCSoft should have thought of. It also begs the question, are sword and sorcery fantasy characters currently infringed on in those kinds of MMOs.

I definately see your point, but I personally don't see how the use of names in COH affects Marvel from a business (ie, profit) standpoint. Actually, it kinda seems as though it's free marketing.

This same discussion was on another board I frequent, and here's what a friend of mine had to say:

The problem is that copyright is so messed up in the U.S. these days that if you don't enforce every possible infringement then you could lose your rights in future. This is why Disney has sued daycare centers and the Tolkien estate has sued fan groups. If they didn't then someone could make an unauthorised movie/ book and say that copyright had already lapsed due to prior non-enforcement... and get away with it.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: BlueWeasel

Originally posted by: HeroOfPellinor
Um, they've got a point. If your livlihood was based on the exclusive distribution of certain characters, I doubt you'd like companies skirting around the legal issues of having your characters in their game by giving players the ability to create characters just like yours.

Of course, that then begs the question, how do you run a super hero game and NOT infringe on superheroes? Good question that NCSoft should have thought of. It also begs the question, are sword and sorcery fantasy characters currently infringed on in those kinds of MMOs.

I definately see your point, but I personally don't see how the use of names in COH affects Marvel from a business (ie, profit) standpoint. Actually, it kinda seems as though it's free marketing.

Well, as I see it, it's not so much about the names as it is the representations. I saw two guys in Beta dressed up EXACTLY like Ace and Gary the Ambiguously Gay Duo. Now, that took some talent, but looking JUST like Ironman in that game is easy to do.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Seriously this is ridiculous. You would have to sue the people that have no imagination and make lame rip-off characters of fairly lame characters. Next fan fiction writers will get sued too. Blah.

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: n0cmonkey
Next fan fiction writers will get sued too. Blah.

They all have to get licenses to use the characters. That's how George Lucas affords to keep food on the table.