Pokemon company sues the game’s NFT creators, Kotiota Studios and Pokemon PTY
The official Pokemon company has initiated a lawsuit against two game developers, Kotiota studios and Pokemon PTY, for launching an NFT play-to-earn game using the company’s comic characters, including Pikachu. Legal proceedings are already underway as the accuser claims copyright and trademark infringement.
Legal battle ensues
The Pokemon Company filled Nintendo-focused legal publication documents earlier this month with several accounts of trademark infringements and the launch and advertisement of a new NFT game dubbed PokeWorld NFT game.
The accuser claimed that Kotiota studios have been advertising the game for several months using Pokémon’s official fictional characters. Kotiota studios reportedly announced the PokeWorld NFT game as a Play to Earn game that allows users to collect different Pokémon characters as pets.
During the commercials run by the game developers under siege, imagery included Pokemon 3D models and 2D animations ripped from official sources from the accuser’s profile. In defense, Kotiota claims to have partnered with Pokemon in working on the past model names, including Scarlet and Violet characters. However, the company has denied these claims stating that none of the developers has ever formed an alliance or become a contractor for the company.
Other examples of Pokemon NFTs
This is not the first NFT technology that has been used by pokemon fans. Youtuber Logan Paul had previously turned one of the most expensive Pokemon cards, featuring an exceedingly rare Pikachu Illustration worth roughly $5 million, into an NFT.
Legal filings intended to cripple the project
The filing intends to penalize the two game developers for continuously using Pokémon official’s trademarks and copyrights to market their product. According to sources, Pokemon has officially refrained from launching Non-Fungible Tokens of the character models to protect the brand’s reputation. The game’s official website continues to run. However, the advertiser’s Twitter account seems suspended due to the ongoing feud.
As part of the anti-crypto campaigns ongoing in the UK, the county’s regulators are on a crackdown on NFT-related projects. The UK advertising authority recently suspended an NFT ad from crypto.com that directed users to purchase Non-Fungible Tokens using the platform’s mobile application. The regulator claims the platform failed to mention that trading NFTs is risky and highly volatile.
In response, crypto.com stated that NFTs were not recognized as investment vehicles. In addition, the commercial was intended to show users how to purchase NFTs, not financial advice. On a lighter note, NBA legend Scottie Pippen took netizens by surprise after debuting an NFT collection of virtual sneakers that sold out in 77 seconds. Pippen’s collection currently holds the title of the fastest NFT sell-out on the OpenSea marketplace, beating the previous record held by Hollywood actor Anthony Hopkins.
As the year ends, investors and NFT enthusiasts remain bullish on NFTs. Although the year has been rough for NFT-savvy investors, experts believe the NFT world can potentially disrupt the art industry. However, it’s advisable to be critical when dealing with the industry as it’s young and thus highly risky.
