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Company that told Sony "go ahead, sue us" pulls replacement PS5 plates from sale, says Sony threatened to sue them
Topher
Identifies as young
Derktron disapproves of Sony?
I'm just playing....kinda
Defending trademarked design is ridiculous? So which companies don't do that?
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You gotta be kidding
8bitdo controllers are Bluetooth... they don't use anything SONY MS OR Nintendo...
Obviously you don't know what you are talking about. If you think they need a license for SNES or NES shaped earlier stuff.... those patents from Nintendo expired after 25 years...
Nintendo is the first one to sue/send CnD clauses.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Topher
Identifies as young
Give examples....
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
cireza
Member
Tuning cars should also be forbidden.
Topher
Identifies as young
Bad example. You can modify your own PS5 all you want. Want to 3D print some plates? Go for it.
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cireza
Member
We have been able to buy replacement shells for all consoles for decades. But for Sony PS5, nope, this is illegal
And not even shells in this case, but two plastic rectangles.
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Topher
Identifies as young
We have been able to buy replacement shells for all consoles for decades. But for Sony PS5, nope, this is illegal
Yep. That is what licensing is for.
MasterCornholio
Member
We have been able to buy replacement shells for all consoles for decades. But for Sony PS5, nope, this is illegal
And not even shells in this case, but two plastic rectangles.
There's apparently a patent on those rectangles. I don't know what a company like Dbrand can do with a patent that Sony has. Not sure what's considered legal here if a patent is involved.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
cireza
Member
Unlicensed accessories and games have always existed. Codemasters used to released unlicensed games on MegaDrive.
Elbow Identity Shallow
Member
Not really sure why this thread was tagged with the Drama and Cringe tags, it's difficult to imagine that people outside of insular gamings communities would really find anything dramatic in this. Well, I suppose there is certainly something melodramatic about the way that Dbrand responded.
As a business this really is an incredibly undramatic, happens every day, it's barely noticeable apart from the infantile response which coincidentally does seem extremely forum like.
Nothing against Dbrand, maybe they'll learn from their mistakes here and maybe they'll do better in the future but they really are the only people that they can blame here and I'm still shocked by how badly they handled the entire thing. Whoever made the decisions in Dbrand that got them into this mess would certainly not be somebody that I'd consider employing as they've shown a distinct lack of judgement in how to run a business.
As a business this really is an incredibly undramatic, happens every day, it's barely noticeable apart from the infantile response which coincidentally does seem extremely forum like.
Nothing against Dbrand, maybe they'll learn from their mistakes here and maybe they'll do better in the future but they really are the only people that they can blame here and I'm still shocked by how badly they handled the entire thing. Whoever made the decisions in Dbrand that got them into this mess would certainly not be somebody that I'd consider employing as they've shown a distinct lack of judgement in how to run a business.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Are you just trying to be a contrarian, or?
Welcome to 2021.
I think sometimes the tags represent the comments brand wars draw.
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ResilientBanana
Member
Gamepass, Mod support, Cross-buy, Backwards compatibility all the way to the OG consoles, Xbox and PC same day release, allowing small developers to use their IP like Installation 01 and Project Contingency. I'm sure there are more examples.
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cireza
Member
You don't even realize that you own unlicensed accessories for many things you use in your daily life.
Topher
Identifies as young
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DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Yep, figured you were as much.
baphomet
Member
Amazing how little some of you guys understand about what's going on.
It doesn't infringe on any of Sony's patents/copyrights to make modified replacement panels.
They think dbrand's Illuminati pyramid, biohazard, skull, etc infringe on their copyrighted shapes logo.
It doesn't. And this will end with them either removing them, or taking it to court which will end in Sony paying for the entire ordeal on both sides.
It doesn't infringe on any of Sony's patents/copyrights to make modified replacement panels.
They think dbrand's Illuminati pyramid, biohazard, skull, etc infringe on their copyrighted shapes logo.
It doesn't. And this will end with them either removing them, or taking it to court which will end in Sony paying for the entire ordeal on both sides.
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
ethomaz
Banned
Man that bacl looks way worse than the official design… I thought it was really black and not that grayish.My inbox...
One of their Darkplate emails...
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Elbow Identity Shallow
Member
You're partly correct, I have been saying this all along.
Using Circle, Cross, Square and Traingle in itself is not really an issue as say you but when you use publicly recognised branding on something that directly relates to where it's already a part of a publicaly recognised brand then you're already treading on very dangerous ground but when your company straight up announces that the reason they are doing it is because it;s part of teh publicaly recognised brand, tha's it, it's already over.
You've moved from a difficult to win situation to killing any chances that you ever would have had, you've essentially done the very worst that you could do to protect yourself. This is entirely their own doing and this is what really surprises me a business owner. If you're running a business you have a responsibility to that business and if you ever aren't sure about something like this then you make damn sure that you do discuss it with people who are experts because not knowing something will not stand up if you're unfortunate enough for it to reach the legal system.
Ghekkus
Member
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cireza
Member
Both grips I use for Vita and Switch are not licensed.
The defense force in this topic is reaching never seen before heights. Don't forget to double check that your glass protector and phone cover have been properly licensed.
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MasterCornholio
Member
Are we talking about stickers?
Those are allowed.
Plate Station Legally Forced by Sony to Cancel PS5 Faceplate Pre-Orders and Change Name
Now called CustomizeMyPlates.
hypebeast.com
I think it's the plates and the patent that's the issue.
Topher
Identifies as young
My phone cover isn't part of the trademarked design of the phone. The PS5's side plate is.
If you need to point at a "defense force" to make you feel better then do what you need to do.
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bushwookie
Banned
Yeah, there's a difference between plates and stickers.Are we talking about stickers?
Those are allowed.
Plate Station Legally Forced by Sony to Cancel PS5 Faceplate Pre-Orders and Change Name
Now called CustomizeMyPlates.
I think it's the plates and the patent that's the issue.
What many aren't considering though is how actual patent law works, it's uses, and it's limits.
At the most basic level. If I place the factory Sony plates down on a table, and right next to them do the same with Dbrand's plates. Would the average consumer assume both plates were made by Sony? Or would they be able to reasonably differentiate between the two?
That's really all there is to It. If the court believes that people would assume they were both made by Sony... Sony wins the case. If not, Dbrand wins. All sorts of companies make aftermarket wheels for cars. When you see a car on the road with aftermarket rims. Regardless of their size and finish, most times people can reasonably tell that, that car has aftermarket wheels on it. The exception being factory replica wheels such as Chevrolet's IROC wheels or Ford's Cobra R wheels. Those would require a patent license as they're too similar to the factory wheels to distinguish between the two. That's a pretty accurate description of the threshold for design patents.
Business
Member
I found myself starting my playstation after only staring at this pizza for a few seconds.
Sony should wage war on personal pan pizzas next. Damn them for using those shapes.
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thismeinteil
Member
Why does the poster make it look like a more recent film, but the gif looks like the movie was filmed in the 70s?Elite Yankee Saburo
Kiddo Cabbusses
Member
Man, I might have had respect for these guys if they didn't run at the first sign of things getting real. Someone needs to avenge Bleem.
01011001
Banned
yeah how dare they not go bankrupt!
MasterCornholio
Member
If color was the only thing that was different then people could assume the plates were made by Sony for the PS5. That's assuming that color is the only thing that differentiates Dbrands plates from Sony's.
Topher
Identifies as young
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BlitzerRadic
Member
What? MS collects $5 - $15 per device from every android manufacturer. If they don't pay MS will sue them.
BlackTron
Member
What about the 8bitdo dongle with the proprietary Nintendo port to fit the SNES Classic?
I still have in my possession old third party SNES controllers from the 90's that could be bought off the shelf at retail. You know, the ones that had turbo and shit.
Third party memory cards were very common. Think brands like Nyko and Mad Katz. They made SO MANY unlicensed accessories that could just be sold at a big box store, Toys R Us or EB.
Neither of us are lawyers but I'm just repeating what I see in reality. You have some blinders on.
Edit: More recent example of the same thing, this Xbox controller rips off the shape of the real one EXACTLY, and it's Amazon's Choice item! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WD4TSNQ/?tag=neogaf0e-20
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Kiddo Cabbusses
Member
Honestly may had been preferable to having their "edgy" rep tarnished by turning chicken, really.
Topher
Identifies as young
Well then shouldn't anyone be able to copy any design? If Ford wants to make an exact duplicate of a Ferrari then they can do that? I don't think so. You make a good point about the Xbox controller and no, I don't know what makes it different, but Nintendo has indeed taken action about 8bitdo in the past:
Kotaku | Gaming Reviews, News, Tips and More.
Gaming Reviews, News, Tips and More.
www.kotaku.com.au
So yeah, none of us are lawyers, but I find it interesting that newer consoles seem to be stricter in the IP protection. And yeah, Xbox isn't taking action against that controller maker, but could they? Possibly. Don't you think these companies would make unlicensed Xbox Series X controllers if they could? Yep. Do they? Nope. Don't you think MS lawyers would descend with a vengeance? I do.
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Only in america, where justice doesn't actually exist which is terrifying. Anywhere else, dBrand would not even bother since noone can prevent them from selling replacement part especially for cosmetic purpose.
BlackTron
Member
Well then shouldn't anyone be able to copy any design? If Ford wants to make an exact duplicate of a Ferrari then they can do that? I don't think so. You make a good point about the Xbox controller and no, I don't know what makes it different, but Nintendo has indeed taken action about 8bitdo in the past:
Kotaku | Gaming Reviews, News, Tips and More.
Gaming Reviews, News, Tips and More.
So yeah, none of us are lawyers, but I find it interesting that newer consoles seem to be stricter in the IP protection. And yeah, Xbox isn't taking action against that controller maker, but could they? Possibly. Don't you think these companies would make unlicensed Xbox Series X controllers if they could? Yep. Do they? Nope. Don't you think MS lawyers would descend with a vengeance? I do.
Those unlicensed controllers already exist. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0972KV5NX/?tag=neogaf0e-20
There are plenty for all platforms. PS5 is lagging behind because it has so much new proprietary tech.
Anyway, I wasn't saying that you don't require a license to make a controller that doesn't use bluetooth. I was saying you don't automatically need it to make an accessory. There are so many of them, and always have been.
I think that 8bitdo got in trouble because they too closely copied Nintendo's original design, down to "trade dress". For example you can't patent the shape of a phone as a rectangle. But you can patent specific design elements, contours, edges, branding, font, colors etc. Copying the color scheme and look/feel so carefully was a no-no. This is why many old controller came in more unusual or wacky shapes. I have an old SNES pad with a jagged ribbed design. They are unintentionally different to avoid infringement. Of course many companies might not bother changing the design because the IP holder tolerates it.
Look at this unlicensed PS4 controller. Notice that it has no labels on the face buttons. There's a reason, there is a smart way and a dumb way to sell unlicensed accessories. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08JP63559/?tag=neogaf0e-20
Dbrand reveals new PS5 Darkplates days after pulling the originals
They’re available to preorder now.
www.theverge.com
MasterCornholio
Member
Dbrand reveals new PS5 Darkplates days after pulling the originals
They’re available to preorder now.
Well Sony doesn't have a patent for that design.
ReBurn
Gold Member
Didn't Microsoft release those patent royalty obligations when it joined OIN? i don't think they've enforced that in several years. They've been making investments in open source operating systems and have been integrating Linux into Windows for some time. Docker with WSL is running a lot of open source stuff on Windows now.
Topher
Identifies as young
Ah.....ok. Bad assumptions on my part on the controllers. So there is a lot more to this. I imagine both Microsoft And Sony could threaten to sue those companies if they wanted. So I guess what it comes down to is that Sony feels dbrand went too far in copying their side plates. That and dbrand's cockiness about doing it certainly didn't help.
Dbrand reveals new PS5 Darkplates days after pulling the originals
They’re available to preorder now.
Makes me think this whole thing was planned out from the beginning. "No such thing as bad publicity".
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