DeNA ordered to pay GREE $2.9m in copyright case
Tokyo District Court rules in GREE's favour following long-running dispute
The Japanese online publisher DeNA will have to pay rival company GREE a fine following the conclusion of a long-running legal battle.
According to a report on IndustryGamers, the dispute started in 2009 when DeNA released a fishing game called Tsurige Town 2. GREE alleged that the title infringed the copyright of its game, Tsuri Star, and promptly filed suit.
Yesterday, a Tokyo District Court ruled in favour of GREE, demanding that DeNA pay the company a fine of $2.9 million.
The court was shown a number of screenshots illustrating similarities between the two games, and it was decided that one of the comparisons showed clear evidence of copyright violation. DeNA intends to appeal the ruling.
NimbleBit and Buffalo Studios have both accused Zynga of plagiarising their games, while Spry Fox has started legal action against 6waves Lolapps.
In November last year, GREE issued another lawsuit against DeNA, this time for failing to list games on Mobage Town if they were also offered through GREE's network.