Nintendo’s fiscal year has been off to a somewhat slow start, with no major first party releases from the company in the year’s first quarter. Luckily, Animal Crossing: New Horizons looks to be a game changer for the series, and will likely sell extremely well on Switch as its predecessors have done on previous consoles.
While the Switch has gotten off to a slow start this year, the coming months look somewhat promising despite the current drought. Additionally, more good news for both Nintendo and the Switch comes in the form of a legal victory for Nintendo after being sued over the Switch’s design.
This story actually began to take shape all the way back in 2017 when the hardware developer Gamevice sued Nintendo over the Switch’s design. Gamevice initially claimed that Nintendo had infringed on a patent it owned for a gaming device called the Wikipad. Hardware patents are common occurrences in the gaming industry, like the PlayStation 5 controller patent featuring new accessibility features for a new generation of DualShock controllers.
It’s important to note that many of the filed patents rarely ever see the light of day or are even implemented into a company’s hardware. Often times, companies will patent ideas simply to get ahead of the competition. Gamevice’s 2017 lawsuit was originally dismissed a few months later. However, Gamevice again requested legal action when it requested the US International Trade Commision to investigate the Switch’s Joy-Con controllers in hopes for another lawsuit.
Unfortunately for Gamevice, the investigation concluded and found no substantial basis of infringement with the Switch’s unique tech and hardware. Gamevice’s claims are made off the basis that the wording in its patents sound similar to how the Switch works. However, the actual hardware of the Gamevice’s Wikipad and the Switch have many notable differences. This was likely the reason why the Patent Trial and Appeal Board dismissed a majority of the claims Gamevice made against Nintendo.
This legal victory for Nintendo may currently be a positive light in a somewhat unsettling moment in time for the company. With the industry currently struggling over concerns surrounding the coronavirus, Nintendo has also had to make compromises. Additionally, a Nintendo employee recently tested positive for the virus. The employee in question is a staff member for Nintendo of America located in Richmond, Washington, resulting in self-quarantining.
Source: The Verge