Worlds.com Files Suit Against NCsoft - Every Other MMO Company To Follow?

Patents last for 20 years. You can't update them, you can't renew them, all you can do is add an "innovative step" on top of the old, but this protects only the "step" not the old patent.

The two patents appear to me to be different things too. The first describes client-server interaction, the second appears to be graphics culling for network optimisation. Now it is possible that the 2nd is their attempt at adding an innovative step in the client-server chain however they are still to a large degree trying to patent an idea, and an idea which was a natural progression of the technology at the time.

To review this idea versus technology requirement.
Worlds.com cannot put forward a patent that says, we cull the redundant faces to make the network run faster. This is an idea.
Worlds.com must say x software, program/interface/technology culls the redundant faces in x (specific) fashion which does x and y and z and makes the network run faster because of this.

Remember also that it must be an INNOVATIVE step. This is a real key that applies in all systems regardless of whether they are first to file or first to invent. This is supposed to stop things such as breathing from being patentable. Text-2D-3D was a natural progression, therefore only technology which does 3D graphics in innovative ways is patentable.

Assuming that the patent is valid (which I have my doubts) then Worlds.com will need to prove that NCSoft is using the SAME TECHNOLOGY, involving the same steps, reasoning and resulting in exactly the same results to win the case. I really don't see this happening unless NCSoft have been using an engine developed by Worlds.com.

I have a consiracy theory for all of you, and I know that people love good (i hope it is) conspiracy theories

(and let's keep it humorous)

Worlds.com has already settled with some unspecified yet big MMO company on the market (you guess that company).
Worlds.com is motivated by that company not to settle directly with their competitor NCSoft but instead starts a long term non ending pointless lawsuite fight that eventually damages NCSoft financially.

NCSoft in turn is forced to either vaporize ongoing projects (you guess which favorite of yours project) and/or even move their bussiness to ... Mexico.

In addition, some game studios (guess your favorite game sudio/company) facing the uprising bottleneck due to the lawsuite against NCSoft breaks their collaboration with NCSoft and go in bussiness with NCSofts competitor which it turn ends up controlling two of the most popular MMO's on the market, turning your favorite MMO into a monthly fee plus adding maddening EULA rules like "by agreening to this EULA you permit us to install software on your PC that will be able to check other running programs on your PC that may in turn violate the EULA of our game" (in other words you agree to let them run software that may retrieve any kind of information from your computer without your knowledge)

If this "patent" had any legal ground at all, why did it take Worlds.com 8 years to file a law suit? A judge WILL ask that question. Secondly: There were plenty of MMO's long before the patent was filed in 2000.

I think this is more of collaberation between Worlds.com and another big name mmo to harass the big mmo's competition.

This case won't go anywhere. Play on.

By the way I'm going to patent the use of all shades of brown being used on web sites.

No. There is no rule that says that you must sue everyone who has violated your rights in order to sue anyone who has violated your rights.

Blizzard et al could petition the court to accept amici curiae briefs from them, or even to be joined to the case as additional defendants (that would be an interesting move!), but they have no right to have anything to do with this case. It would be up to the judge's discretion.

Also, just for the sake of education, a wee bit about precedents in US law:

First, the strength of a precedent depends upon which court issued it. The only precedents that a court must obey are those from higher courts in their direct path of appeals. Each court is free to reverse its own precedents at any time, though they rarely do (because, cynics would say, it's usually the same judge who set the precedent in the first place). Courts are supposed to give deference to precedents from lower, parallel, and especially diagonally higher courts, but they often give only lip service, if that.

What that means for this case is that a precedent in favor of Worlds.com set in this case would not have the OMFG-all-MMOs-are-destroyed effect that some people seem worried about, since it's only a trial-level court in Texas.

Second, precedents are legal conclusions, not factual conclusions. That the Second Amendment creates a right to bear arms independent of service in a state militia is a legal conclusion, which becomes a precedent. That Booth shot Lincoln is a factual conclusion. A factual conclusion in this case that other uses of Worlds.com's "invention" did or did not pre-date their patent filing could not become a precedent because it's not a legal issue.

There's a different mechanism for preventing re-litigation of factual issues called res judicata, and it works a little bit differently from precedent. To oversimplify only a little, res judicata prevents the loser of a case from re-litigating the same factual issues in a different case. That is, if you sue me for causing a traffic accident, and I lose, I can't turn around and sue you for causing the same accident -- the factual conclusion that I caused the accident is res judicata... against me. A key difference is that someone else can still sue you for causing the traffic accident.

When you think about it, this rule makes a lot of sense. Perhaps you really did cause the accident, but I picked an bad lawyer, or I can't afford a good lawyer, or I really don't care to defend myself because I have no money for you to take, or I want to lose because you're secretly paying me off in hopes that your victory over me will insulate you from liability to a third party who was hurt badly in the accident. Why should anyone else who was hurt in the accident lose their chance to sue you because I did a bad job of proving the facts of my case? They shouldn't. That's why res judicata only applies to me, and leaves the rest of the world free to do a better job if they can.

In the case at hand, Blizzard et al have nothing to lose if NCSoft loses the case on a factual basis. They would be free to try to do a better job of proving facts about the state of the art of online world-making at the time of World.com's filing than NCSoft did. Worlds.com has more to lose. If they lose this case on the facts,* their patent is dead and they can't use it against anyone.

(*I mean the facts underlying the validity of the patent. They could also lose on the fact that NCSoft's technology is not the technology that's described in the patent. In that case, they could still sue other people who have other technologies.)

I think its more of a I AM KING OF THE VIRTUAL WORLD, now, lets find a dodgy company that has filed an idea and make it big, and sue the hell out of EVERYONE. In this case the vehicles is Worlds.com and the person driving the vehicles is The Virtual Worlds and Multiuser Online Games Committee (VWMOG Committee) whose member including one Sean Kane who is representing Worlds.com, if they win this case, not only will MMORPG gets shut down it the whole internet they are after, they are trying to own the virtual world.

This is probably very easy lol. guild wars does not happens in virtual world. all they have to do is rename the world they are in? because virtual world does not exist, right? proof that it exist. it doesn't but Tyria exist. and its play across the internet, not virtual world? lol

$50k rewards for Proof of prior art.

Actually this isn't quite right. An infringement only has to prove only one portion of the whole is like the patent orgionally patented. A case I just got off of as a juror had over 37 sub catagories to the origional patent and only ONE of those had to show infringement in which it did. So, the patent doesn't have to be exactly the whole process just a portion of it being used by someone else can cause infringement.

as reprted by Joystiq.com reporter Richard Mitchell. I've come to believe that he is just looking for attention.

Uh...what? This Eric Krangel is a joke. The article that pumpkin pie posted just lost any and all credibility.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0139809/

Hollywood invented Virtual worlds first!

Any news about the case btw?

ripple in the pond has become a tidal wave :P and tusnami

it seems, worlds.com has gotten another patent approval recently

major trolling



boy do i hate them

I'm with you, pumpkin. Idiots and their lust for money, good luck to them suing every company that's ever developed an MMO or 3d chat/community program like the Playstation 3 thing.

Violators of the laughably broad patent include...

Linded Labs
NCsoft
ArenaNet
NetDevil
Sony Online Entertainment
Mythic
Blizzard
Pentavision
Cartoon Network
Grigon Entertainment
Virgin Interactive
PlayTechTonics
Walt Disney Internet Group
Wizet

Please don't make me go on...

I think it's funny that people like Forrest Gump, Bubba, and Earnest T's are the ones that are going to decide the fate of NCsoft et al. You see Harrison County where this case will be tried is one of the largest red neck counties in Texas. It's farm country for the most part and lotsa Bubba's here. lol So, the side that is going to win this is the side that can present their case in a Bubba sort of intelligence. If they try to get too complicated for them then they will lose. I don't know why and how Marshall, Texas got to be so popular for Federal Patent cases, but, that's the facts today. Good luck NCsoft, the fate of your company is in Bubba's hands now. Suuuuueeeeeeeeeeee lol

Do keep in mind it's 2009 and not 1960. Texas holds a lot of gamers, and more than one game development team has made it's home in Texas. Gearbox and 3D Realms just to name two. In any case I don't know why I'm even worried about them winning, because they're not going to. Not when they'd be able to sue literally anyone that's ever made a game with online capabilities.

Do keep in mind it's the residence of Marshall Texas that will decide this case should it come to Marshall not the whole of Texas. For much of Marshall it's still 1960. This area is also a bible belt area and many of the residence here don't even like video games that present violence and would do most anything to take them off the market. So, Bubba, and Forrest and Earnest T's are still alive and well in Marshall Texas.

Great... Having a bible doesn't give you an excuse to hate video games, or anything. Oh well, I still think they'll lose the case. If they don't Blizzard and NCsoft will hire assassins to take care of worlds.com (you totally know they would).

Now he is going to sue everybody!!!!!

http://www.businessinsider.com/world...arcraft-2009-3

In Western Europe countries (which I know best), the government would make sure that the "local" court wouldn't make a stupid decision that would globally impact the country's situation (economy, a sensible topic at the moment). Laws are interpreted by the judge and a high-ranked person could make sure he "understands" the case a particular way(?).

And even if worlds.com trolling is successfully acknoledge by this Marshall Texas, don't you have appeals that ultimately lead to the Supreme Court? (maybe not for patents? my knowledge of Law is very limited and I won't try to pretend I understand the grounding or ramifications of this case)

updated with info about them filing now against WoW and Second Life.

All MMORPG company should have a sit down and go against this together.

OK so I will get a patent for BREATHING..

Everyone PAY UP

Yes, there are many examples of prior art, especially in the unix world, long before the Internet became popular. I think it certainly can be challenged.

I worked for SCO for six years and I remember it was about something else. Xenix was their first OS, I wonder if that's what you're thinking of. I very vaguely remember all this, it was going on when I worked there but that was a long long time ago. I just don't remember all the details but it was bullpucky IMO. SCO went down the tubes a long time ago, although at the time it was fun to work there. It's funny that my son's prep school is in the old SCO coporate building. It's still kinda freaky to walk around in there and remember the good old days.

Truthfully, I don't think this lawsuit is going to go anywhere. My hubby's name is on a lot of software patents and he thinks they're lame in general. I don't remember why. He's the genius engineer and I'm the ditzy artist. I'll have to ask him later.

I now have the patent for sneezing.... Time to bulk buy pepper

If only I could get a patent on the word 'noob', I would be pretty rich by now.

Worlds is fathoming the depth of the lawsuit to see how they can go after blizzard by trying NCSoft first. If they see any possibility of going after blizzard, they will probably do an easy settlement w/ NCSoft to get the "precedence".

Hope, my taxpayer dollars don't fund any of this crap.

Won't happen.Not when half the world plays either GW or WoW or other games that use this virtual world

Welp there it is I told ya so. East Texans just love to give money to suers not sueeeeees lol.

It would be wise if Blizzard would team up with Arenanet, or to make it clear Blizzard Activision backing up NCSoft. I hope both companies started negociations and strategy already. Maybe contact some of the other big players in the industry too.

Or is that utopia?

bit of a coincidence, I rather enjoy the webcomics work of a vidio game playing "ditzy artist" who's husband maintains the website.

back on topic:

I'm not legally trained and his patent makes no sense to me, but he talks to much. It seems to me if he had a solid case he would have a laweyer (even if it was pro bono) and a court date by now. He is threatening to sue a lot of people but not actually sueing anyone. It like one of those guys who brags that he can do anything then runs when challenged.

More news regarding Worlds.com pursuing Blizzard and NCSoft

http://www.maximumpc.com/article/new...tent_d ispute

Forgot if I have posted this link before. (curtesy of the Internet Archive)

1996 interview in a cybercafe and demonstration of a software that lets use create 3D Avatars for communicating in a community online come together from all over the world.

at time 4:10 the creator of this programs says its free for the download, and they created a "quick" version of this program in 1994. A guy name Mark Pesci.

heres another archived of a video showing 3D avatars of users communicating online from everyone of the world, that has a mention of the time being in the 1993.

Funny how it's always some nobody the holds the patent. Funny how they file a patent in 2000, AFTER Ultima Online had already drawn thousands upon thousands of gamers into the new world of MMOs.

Actually Nuclear, their first patent was earlier then 2000 (1995??). 2000 was just the year they updated it with some unrelated language.

reminds me of the lawsuit Creative won over Apple a few years back. They actually had a patent of a "user interface allowing navigating music sorted by artist, album, publishing year, etc". Apple shelled out 100mil I believe.

Now, I do hate apple with a passion, but still, the guys that gave that patent are the biggest jokes walking on the planet earth. Its hillarious with what kind of patents one might walk away..

It really looks like this company is just run out of some guy's house.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sour...01727&t=h&z=19

A rich guy, though.

Another lawsuit for NCSoft: http://kotaku.com/5241911/richard-ga...t-for-24000000
Federal District Court filings: http://dockets.justia.com/docket/cou...ase_id-363445/

Garriott probably needs money to startup his own company.

Someone go find Garriott and kick him in the nads. Do it a few times, just so he gets the message. Hasn't he screwed NCsoft enough yet?

This is insane.

Found this comment on the kotaku site:
Can it be? 24mil for a space flight??

wow.....

Richard Garriott is an ass. Also Tabula Rasa sucked... Big time.