Activision's long-running Call of Duty franchise is known for its more realistic take on being a military combat first-person shooter — barring modes like Zombies in Call of Duty: Black Ops or titles set in the distant future like Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. This led to AM General suing Activision in 2017 for trademark infringement, false advertising, and the series' depiction of Humvees.
George Daniels, a United States District Court Judge from the Southern District of New York, filed his decision in the case Tuesday which granted Activision's motion for summary judgment; essentially agreeing that AM General has "no genuine dispute" before the issue had to go through a full trial. According to the decision, which was uploaded online by The Hollywood Reporter, Daniels looked at both state and federal trademark infringement law and found Call of Duty's use of the military vehicle has "artistic relevance" in evoking a "sense of realism" for simulated modern warfare.
Daniels calls back to a court decision in 2013 granting Activision the right to use NovaLogic's trademarked phrase "Delta Force" in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 both because of this realism and because it was a non-specific term protected by free speech. It was also found that Call of Duty's use of the Humvee is not "explicitly misleading;" in other words seeing the overpowered vehicles in Call of Duty: Warzone would not compete with Humvee sales or confuse consumers about the product's origins.
Other facets of the lawsuit, including claims of trade dress infringement, unfair competition, and false advertising were all waived in the summary judgment. AM General was unable to move any of its claims to trial against Activision, which recently banned over 50,000 cheaters in Call of Duty: Warzone.
While Activision has been the subject of a number of lawsuits, the company has also taken legal action of its own. Last month it filed a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) subpoena against the social media site Reddit to try and find out who leaked its latest battle royale game early.
Despite that, the Call of Duty franchise has continued to thrive, and yesterday put out a remastered version of Modern Warfare 2's story campaign. Luckily for Activision, it will be able to keep using the Humvee military vehicle going forward as a point of free speech.
Source: New York District Court Decision, Cornell Law School, NovaLogic Lawsuit