Nintendo scores C$12.8m copyright win in Canada
Nintendo scored a C$12.8 million ($9.6 million) copyright infringement win last week, after a Canadian court backed the video games company against an online retailer in a precedential decision.
Go Cyber Shopping was ordered to pay the statutory maximum for infringement by Mr Justice Campbell in the Canadian Federal Court on Wednesday, March 1.
Nintendo filed its complaint in February last year, accusing Go Cyber of circumventing Nintendo’s technological protection measures (TPMs) and infringing copyright in certain works.
According to the video games company, Ontario-based Go Cyber has sold “game copiers” and “mod chips” since 2013.
The copiers and chips allow users to play unauthorised copies of video games on Nintendo’s DS, 3DS and Wii consoles.
Nintendo was awarded the maximum of C$20,000 for each of the 585 Nintendo video games in which the circumvention enabled access—this came to $11.7 million in total, in what the court said was a case of “high precedential value”.
It also awarded $20,000 for each of the three header data (computer codes and data) works infringed: Nintendo’s DS boot code, its 3DS startup sequence and its Game Boy advance boot code.
The TPMs contain code that represents Nintendo’s logos and is used by the Nintendo DS and 3DS consoles as part of the TPM system.
Nintendo was also awarded punitive damages of $1 million, granted an injunction, and received an order for delivery of the infringing goods.
In 2012, Canada’s Copyright Act 1985 was amended to add prohibitions against circumventing TPMs and trafficking circumvention devices.
“The present application engages novel issues arising from this important legislation,” said the court.
Law firm Smart & Biggar/Fetherstonhaugh, Nintendo’s representative, said: “This case will be of significance to copyright owners, particularly in the creative industry, who employ specialised platforms for distributing content.”
The firm added that the court has shown it is “willing to enforce TPMs” and will award appropriate damages to “recognise the severity of TPM circumvention in the digital age”.
Smart & Biggar/Fetherstonhaugh provided access to the ruling.
Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.
