Bethesda Doesn't Enjoy Being "Forced" into Mojang Lawsuit

[Davih]

Because Mojang are trademarking Scrolls to make a game called "The Eldest Scrolls: Skyrings"...
Notch is deliberately trying to cause confusion rather than just have a game called Scrolls.

I'm pretty sure Quake and Doom and Rage are all trademarked. They are all single word titles for games. I fail to see the issue here. Especially since no one refers to TES as Scrolls.

 

[emeraldrafael]

I still understand how you can copyright elder scrolls and have it extend tot he word scrolls by itself. Do they own the world scrolls? do I have to pay them everytime I use it anywhere?

 

[VashtaNerada]

Makes me kind of sad knowing Bethesda thinks im so stupid that I cant tell the difference between "Scrolls" and "Elder Scrolls". Anyways, i'm off to play Modern Battlefield Warfare 3 demo!

 

[Ledan]

Now I can finally learn about what my homecountry does in cases like this!
I've heard that we are very..... hardhanded with cases like this. Should be fun! OH AND I CAN WATCH THE COURTROOM CASE (or can i?....).

Sounds like this is a bureaucratic thing though. If they don't take Mojang to court, then they cant complain the next time someone uses scrolls as a trademark. And if they do, they are likely to lose. I'm still on Mojang's side

(captcha: ulick! businesses.... no, no i don't.)

 

[maddawg IAJI]

Bethesda isn't being forced into anything. Who pays these lawyers? On whose behalf is the suit filed? What a steaming loaf. Seems Bethesda is just another little EA corporate factory in the making.

To answer both your questions, Zenimax, the owners of Bethesda.

 

[Furioso]

"We wanted to end things in a friendly way where we met them half-way," said Markus "Notch" Persson.

Ugh, no he did not, he offered to change it to "Scrolls: (insert subtitle)" which doesn't address the problem at all, Notch is being just as silly as Bethesda on this one

 

[Omnific One]

All of you are thinking about this as hardcore gamers. Oh course, *you* know the difference. Try to view this from the point of an outsider. The point Bethesda makes is correct.

 

[Enkidu88]

That's complete bullshit, it makes it sound like they're being somehow compelled to sue Mojang, like Lady Liberty has a gun to their heads. They could just as easily ignore the fact the title of Mojang's game has a single word from their title. If someone actually did come up with a game title named Eldest Scrolls: Skrying, they would have an actual case. One word, a common ordinary word in the english language, does not copy-infringement make.

Not suing Mojang over Scrolls would not, in anyway, impact any future lawsuits against someone who used Eldest Scrolls.

Sorry, Bethesda, these excuses aren't helping you.

Though I'm still totally buying Skyrim

 

[Kenjitsuka]

"but if Bethesda does not protect its copyright, other companies could produce deliberately-confusing titles like The Eldest Scrolls: Skyrings and leave Bethesda with no legal recourse."

Nonsensical, that to let something vaguely remotely get a free pass means you will then be unable to pursue action against clearly compromising others... Lawyers just want to get paaaaaid!

 

[Celtic_Kerr]

Kinda cliched response but Bethesda if your not happy back out- your being mildly ridiculous from where Im standing.

Actually Bethesda can't, because of what was said right here:

Mojang's desired use of the word "scrolls" seems innocent enough, but if Bethesda does not protect its copyright, other companies could produce deliberately-confusing titles like The Eldest Scrolls: Skyrings and leave Bethesda with no legal recourse. "Failing to protect a trademark could be damaging to an owner's rights," said Angela Bozzuti, a trademark law attorney. "Not only could it result in actual consumer confusion, but it could also weaken the strength of the mark in the marketplace. Furthermore ... it will likely weaken [Bethesda's] mark and make protection difficult and limited."

It's completely true. If Bethesda lets Mojang use "Scrolls" with the same trademark idea, then people WILL use "Eldest Scrolls" or "Eldarian Scrolls" or "Scrolls of the Elders" and the courts would simply say "Well this started with Mojang, and you let HIM"

It's a damned if you do, damned if you don't.

A lot of people don't understand that 80% of the outcome of a court case is "What precedent is this going to cause?" It's a lot more complicated than "You're being a whiny ***** Bethesda!"

 

[skorpion352]

couldnt this all be solved with a licencing agreement or something? heck, no money needs ot change hands, just reach a licencing agreement that allows notch to name his game scrolls.

or is that not possilbe with how copyright law works? please correct me if im wrong, which i probably am

 

[Celtic_Kerr]

"but if Bethesda does not protect its copyright, other companies could produce deliberately-confusing titles like The Eldest Scrolls: Skyrings and leave Bethesda with no legal recourse."

Nonsensical, that to let something vaguely remotely get a free pass means you will then be unable to pursue action against clearly compromising others... Lawyers just want to get paaaaaid!

Not nonsensical at al. Read my above post, but it sums it up. The moment ANY court case is settled, that court case can now be used as precedent in the next court case. If Bethesda lets Mojang go, but sues "Scrolls of the Elders", then "Scrolls of the Elders" will just say "You let Mojang's Scrolls go, and it had the same copy right definition" and the courts will say "You're right" and Bethesda would actually have no case.

 

[countzero1234]

I still understand how you can copyright elder scrolls and have it extend tot he word scrolls by itself. Do they own the world scrolls? do I have to pay them everytime I use it anywhere?

It isn't copyright. They don't own any words. What they 'own' is the ability to put the label Elder Scrolls on any item that would mark their particular trade. In other words Elder Scrolls is a useful way to determine the origin/maker of a game. Now if you made a game and called it Scrolls: ... would a common person (not a gamer but anyone off the street) be possibly confused by that name and think it might possibly be created by the Elder Scrolls people. If they would be confused it is a trademark violation as you are marking your product in a way that might cause people to assume it was made by another (hopefully trusted) entity.

Of all the IP in existence (trademark, copyright, patent, etc) trademark is probably the most intelligent. Its only concern is confusing consumers, no more and no less.

 

[Spencer Petersen]

Trademark Law is stupid. You want to trademark a phrase like Elder Scrolls fine, but then no-one can use any of the words in that phrase. Even though the constituent words are used in everyday language. No that's wrong.

Using this logic you now cannot name a game:
Gears
War
Bad
Company
Call
Duty
Elder
Scrolls
Grand
Theft
Auto
Need
Speed
etc

I could go on. Obviously it does not take long before most of the dictionary is gone.

I don't particularly blame Bethesda as they are doing what the law allows. This law needs reform quick as it is not moral to have ownership of commonly used English words. You make up a word, then fine. But otherwise hands off of corporate ownership of single words.

You can make games with those titles, but you cant trademark them for personal profit and expect to get away with it.

 

[Spygon]

So neither company want to be in a law battle but both are due to copyright laws.Well so glad laws pressure people into things they really dont want to do.

 

[Karlaxx]

We can only hope that this little kerfuffle will be smoothed out as quickly and painlessly as it can be, and then some eyes are opened to how absurd some of the laws and practices surrounding trademarks are.

I have only heard one person, a diehard veteran of the series, ever refer to The Elder Scrolls games as "The Elder Scrolls: Blank." People I know (cough not me cough) have owned and played the fourth installment and only ever known it as "Oblivion" with absolutely no other identification necessary. Not to mention things like, you know, packaging that make all of these things painfully and remarkably clear.

 

[Funcakes]

Lawyers are a silly people.

 

[Enkidu88]

"but if Bethesda does not protect its copyright, other companies could produce deliberately-confusing titles like The Eldest Scrolls: Skyrings and leave Bethesda with no legal recourse."

Nonsensical, that to let something vaguely remotely get a free pass means you will then be unable to pursue action against clearly compromising others... Lawyers just want to get paaaaaid!

Not nonsensical at al. Read my above post, but it sums it up. The moment ANY court case is settled, that court case can now be used as precedent in the next court case. If Bethesda lets Mojang go, but sues "Scrolls of the Elders", then "Scrolls of the Elders" will just say "You let Mojang's Scrolls go, and it had the same copy right definition" and the courts will say "You're right" and Bethesda would actually have no case.

Of course if Zenimax had never even bothered to make this a court case, that wouldn't be an issue. They opened this pandora's box by suing in the first place, when they didn't have to.