Gibson Sues Wal-Mart for Selling Guitar Hero

BWS1982 - 655 days 18 hours ago

they meant Mel Gibson at first....Never even heard of that company...I thought 'oh great Mel, how does Guitar Hero violate Christianity somehow'....

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steeldragon - 655 days 18 hours ago

That is crazy. Can they really sue companies for selling a product that they had no idea was breaking a patent? I wonder why they are only asking those 5 to stop and not other stores too.

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agent864 - 655 days 17 hours ago

Actually, Walmart has some pretty progressive environmental initiatives as well. Now only if they'd pay their workers a living wage / benefits. Costco has proven that you can.

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JoelR - 655 days 17 hours ago

Nov. 23, 1999. patent
"simulate participation in a concert by playing a musical instrument and wearing a head-mounted 3-D display that includes stereo speakers."

sure sounds like guitar hero...this case is complete crap - more patent reform fodder! I have yet to wear a head-mounted 3-D display to play a simulated musical instrument.

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spec_ops_comm - 655 days 17 hours ago

Isn't the Guitar Hero guitar an officially licensed 'Gibson' replica?

*runs to check my GH3 guitar*

LOL yup - it says Gibson right at the top of the neck. Wtf then.. Activision had to pay Gibson for the use of their name, so why is Gibson being such greedy pricks about some conceptual game that has nothing to do with Guitar Hero?

If I was Activision, I'd countersue Gibson for bringing the retailers into this. All Gibson is trying to do is intentionally hurt Activision's sales now - royalties can be paid out separately (if Activision somehow loses); there's no need to threaten a law suit on the retailers as well.

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Torch - 655 days 17 hours ago

that in some strange, ironic twist of fate, this compels Activision to see the light, and shed some of their own corporate greed and madness...

...and finally allow the release of the glorious PS3 patch which will finally allow the GH3 guitar to work with Rock Band.

(Sue me for dreaming.)

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TheExodus - 655 days 17 hours ago

I wonder why Gibson isn't suing US for playing Guitar Hero? Frankly, companies that draft vague patents to twist our legal system into a corporate lottery make me sick.

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jadenkorri - 655 days 15 hours ago

if he was partnered, he probably didn't negotiate too much, now that guitar hero is selling billions...he now wants his cut...i say too late

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essien - 655 days 8 hours ago

this is just gibson trying to make money off activision. if they actually cared about their patent, they would have sued harmonix for guitar hero and guitar hero 2 - they just didn't want to because harmonix isn't the megacorporation that activision is. the second it went to activision, gibson saw the potential to sue and make a bunch of money because of a stupid patent they went no where in developing.

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CurlUpAndDie - 655 days 6 hours ago

i was always an Ibanez fan anyways.

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DwightOwen - 654 days 20 hours ago

They've had an ambiguous "patent" for 9 years and have done nothing with it. I say tough. Get rich some other way and quit wasting the taxpayers' dollars.

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