Like under Shiggy's shoe, Nintendo squashes cyber squatters and makes more than a killing. News inside....
Cyber squatting doesn't pay. The winner is Nintendo! Have a look-see....
Nintendo Wins $560,000 in Mass Domain Name Lawsuit
Nearly 50 Domain Names Recovered in One Action
REDMOND, Wash.--Nov. 13, 2001--Nintendo of America Inc. today
announced a federal judge in the U.S. District Court in Seattle,
Washington, has awarded the company a complete victory in its suit to
recover 49 infringing internet domain names (including
POKEMON-TRADER.COM and GROWLITHE.COM).
The Court ordered all domain names be returned to Nintendo and
awarded Nintendo statutory damages ranging from $2000 to $30,000 per
name for 48 names -- for a total award of $560,000.
The suit, Nintendo of America Inc. v. Stefani Us et al, was filed
against 22 defendants under the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer
Protection Act ("ACPA") in October 2000. The judgement was issued on
October 12, 2001. This was Nintendo's first mass domain name suit
under the ACPA.
"Nintendo is pleased the Court recognized the company's
intellectual property rights and understood the damages that are
caused by cyber squatting," said Richard C. Flamm, vice president and
general counsel, Nintendo of America. "The anti-cyber squatting
legislation is an effective tool to recover domain names in a single
lawsuit."
As the worldwide leader and innovator in the creation of
interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co. Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan,
manufactures and markets hardware and software for its popular home
video game systems. The systems include Game Boy(R), Nintendo(R) 64,
Game Boy Advance and the upcoming NINTENDO GAMECUBE(TM). Since the
release of its first home video game system in 1985, Nintendo has sold
more than 1.4 billion video games worldwide, creating enduring
industry icons such as Mario(TM) and Donkey Kong(R) and launching such
franchises as Zelda(TM) and Pokemon(R). As a wholly owned subsidiary,
Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as
headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere.