1809 replies to this topic

[slide]

evilauthor, on 13 April 2018 - 09:35 AM, said:

Wait... We've been over this on this thread before haven't we? Like right from the very beginning?

Basically, based on the FASA/Playmates lawsuit, the Unseen currently in MWO are sufficiently different from their Macross inspirations to not count as infringement. Hell, just being 3D models with modularized weapons instead of 2D is enough to make that difference big enough to beat a lawsuit.

Heck, when I look at MWO's Marauder and Macross Officer Pod, I see more design differences than between FASA's Timberwolf and Playmate's ExoSquad E-Frame. The MWO Marauder is much boxier for starters.

So even if HG does prove it has the right to sue (which I'm finding doubtful), that's only round 1. They still have to prove actual infringement is even happening

I agree and are well aware of the current standings. What I am not sure is how your above reply relates to the one of mine you quoted. I was simply informing Nomad that PGI can do what ever they want with our stuff because we all agree to it simply by playing the game. It is an issue entirely dependent on the outcome of this case. I wasn't speculating on it at all.

[Valdarion Silarius]

I'll repaste this from the bg.battletech thread that was posted today:
Credit to Horseman for posting this

Friday, April 13, 2018
116 order 2 - Minute Order

• ~Util - Set/Reset Motion Noting Date
  
• ~Util - Add and Terminate Parties
  
• ~Util - Set/Reset Deadlines

Fri 11:39 AM


MINUTE ORDER to

• RENOTE defendant Piranha games Inc's87 Second Motion for Summary Judgment: Noting date 4/20/2018;
  
• dismissing with prejudice and without costs Harmony's claims against Harebrained Schemes LLC, Harebrained Holdings Inc and Jordan Weisman;
  
• directing Harmony to SHOW CAUSE by 5/4/2018 why its claims against defendants Does 1-10 should not be dismissed without prejudice for failure to prosecute.

Authorized by Judge Thomas S. Zilly. (Jordan Weisman, Harebrained Holdings, Inc. and Harebrained Schemes LLC terminated.)(SWT)

Edited by Arnold The Governator, 14 April 2018 - 09:12 AM.

[Jay Leon Hart]

So... HG has until Star Wars day to prove they have a case, otherwise case dismissed? But dismissed *without* prejudice, as opposed to the desired *with* prejudice?

[Requiemking]

Jay Leon Hart, on 14 April 2018 - 09:11 AM, said:

So... HG has until Star Wars day to prove they have a case, otherwise case dismissed? But dismissed *without* prejudice, as opposed to the desired *with* prejudice?

That only applies to the Does 1-10 they listed on the original filing. It's mainly to prevent HG from having an excuse to drag this out longer.

Edited by Requiemking, 14 April 2018 - 09:33 AM.

[ShadoVulcan]

This is good news at least.

The Judge is not having HG trying to drag this out while still giving them a chance to make their case. If they don't then its dropped. Not ideal but it does open up something to PGI to protect themselves later on down the road.

[Valdarion Silarius]

I decided to make a meme out of this entire case (since in nature and in reality it's ridiculous). Since I have a feeling that the judge is losing his patience with harmony gold, have a high energy top quality meme right off the press from me.

[Zergling]

Arnold The Governator, on 14 April 2018 - 09:09 AM, said:

• RENOTE defendant Piranha games Inc's87 Second Motion for Summary Judgment: Noting date 4/20/2018;

What does this mean? Why is there a reminder of PGI's second motion for summary judgement with a date less than a week away? Didn't HG counter PGI's motion by making a reply to it?

[Requiemking]

Zergling, on 14 April 2018 - 09:54 AM, said:

What does this mean? Why is there a reminder of PGI's second motion for summary judgement with a date less than a week away? Didn't HG counter PGI's motion by making a reply to it?

They changed the date for the judge to review it, presumably to give the Honorable Judge Zilly time to go through the filing storm that just occurred.

Edited by Requiemking, 14 April 2018 - 11:37 AM.

[CMDR Sunset Shimmer]

Requiemking, on 14 April 2018 - 10:13 AM, said:

They changed the date for the judge to review it, presumably to give the Honorable Judge Zilly time to go through the filing storm that just occurred.

Hey I mean, the judge is dealing with so much man, let's give him some time to work through all this paperwork, am I right?

[CMDR Sunset Shimmer]

Pursuant to Federal rule of Civil Procedure 41(a) Plaintifff Harmony Gold USA, and Defendants Harebrained Schemes LLC, Hairbrained HOldings Inc, and Jordan Wiseman (Collectively the "Hairbrained Defendants") by and through their respective counsel of record, stipulate and agree that all of Plaintiff's claims against harebrained Defendants are Dismissed with Prejudice.


This is, literally, HBS's lawyers and HG's Lawyers agreed that HG has NO case against HBS... and why would they? HBS doesn't have any of the macross "unseen" in the game, nor did they use any in promotional material.


Like I said in an earlier post, no settlement, HG just had no leg to stand on trying to drag Wiseman into this!

[yodookie]

N0MAD, on 13 April 2018 - 03:00 AM, said:

And yet HBS has settled rather than take it to court, you dont settle if you think you have a chance to win, why would you?
I bought what they showed me and only what they showed me, no where did they state that they may change that mech for another otherwise i would not of bought them. Show me where it says that if you buy X mech pack it may be substituted for a different pack, it doesnt.

They didn't settle. The case between them was dismissed with prejudice, no settlement was reached.

[Chados]

The reason parties to a lawsuit stipulate to dismissal is because they’ve settled the dispute outside court. Judge Zilly did not administer any mushroom slaps to anyone, nor did he sua sponte throw HG’s case out. Weisman and HBS are out because they have come to some sort of agreement with HG. That is how stipulated dismissals usually work in civil cases. And the absence of the Unseen from HBS’s game probably is a part of that settlement. Why else would they not be there? The Marauder made appearances in the early alpha builds HBS showed in-progress game footage of. I believe the Warhammer did too, though I might be wrong about that. But they definitely are nowhere to be seen now. And Tatsunoko is backing HG to the hilt.

The only winner from all that is Harmony Gold. They get what they want: Tatsunoko’s open support, and No Unseen in Battletech. What does HBS get? HG leaves them alone and concentrates on trying to force PGI to disgorge profits on the Unseen and pony up substantial damages on top of that. Will HG succeed? Now, that is an open question, particularly after the FASA case involving the Timberwolf. HBS likely caved in because of Weisman’s old consent agreement from the 1990s. But PGI isn’t party to that and their Reseen have nontrivial differences from HG’s Unseen, plus there’s the whole derivative rights issue that’s not going to be as easy for HG to win the day on as their lawyers may claim, even with Tatsunoko in their corner-what Big West will do is anyone’s guess and that could make all the difference. The motion for summary judgment PGI filed will fail-not because it has no merit, but because with Tatsunoko’s help HG can bring enough of a factual dispute to force the case to trial. And that is when the sides will settle. There’s going to be another secret settlement, this time between PGI and HG. The only question is what that settlement will entail.

Edited by Chados, 14 April 2018 - 05:20 PM.

[Sigmar Sich]

CMDR Sunset Shimmer, on 14 April 2018 - 02:56 PM, said:

Does this mean we'll see Warhammer and Marauder in HBS BT on release?

[Shadowomega1]

Sigmar Sich, on 14 April 2018 - 05:25 PM, said:

Does this mean we'll see Warhammer and Marauder in HBS BT on release?

Not likely, PGI created the art and that art is still under a lawsuit.

[CMDR Sunset Shimmer]

Chados, on 14 April 2018 - 05:15 PM, said:

The reason parties to a lawsuit stipulate to dismissal is because they’ve settled the dispute outside court. Judge Zilly did not administer any mushroom slaps to anyone, nor did he sua sponte throw HG’s case out. Weisman and HBS are out because they have come to some sort of agreement with HG. That is how stipulated dismissals usually work in civil cases. And the absence of the Unseen from HBS’s game probably is a part of that settlement. Why else would they not be there? The Marauder made appearances in the early alpha builds HBS showed in-progress game footage of. I believe the Warhammer did too, though I might be wrong about that. But they definitely are nowhere to be seen now. And Tatsunoko is backing HG to the hilt.

The only winner from all that is Harmony Gold. They get what they want: Tatsunoko’s open support, and No Unseen in Battletech. What does HBS get? HG leaves them alone and concentrates on trying to force PGI to disgorge profits on the Unseen and pony up substantial damages on top of that. Will HG succeed? Now, that is an open question, particularly after the FASA case involving the Timberwolf. HBS likely caved in because of Weisman’s old consent agreement from the 1990s. But PGI isn’t party to that and their Reseen have nontrivial differences from HG’s Unseen, plus there’s the whole derivative rights issue that’s not going to be as easy for HG to win the day on as their lawyers may claim, even with Tatsunoko in their corner-what Big West will do is anyone’s guess and that could make all the difference. The motion for summary judgment PGI filed will fail-not because it has no merit, but because with Tatsunoko’s help HG can bring enough of a factual dispute to force the case to trial. And that is when the sides will settle. There’s going to be another secret settlement, this time between PGI and HG. The only question is what that settlement will entail.

Please prove all of this or try harder, because I've never seen one shot from the Battletech team with any unseen, and I backed it on Kickstarter ASAP... Also if you reference back to HG's original court documents for bringing HBS to court, the images used, were not at all any reprisentation of any of the Macross unseen, in fact, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they actually tired to use the ATLAS as one of the battlemechs they considerd as "infringing."

So no, they didn't "Reach an agreement." no agreement was made, the suit, was dismissed with predjuice... that's a BAD THING FOR HG, and A GOOD THING FOR US.

[Sigmar Sich]

Shadowomega1, on 14 April 2018 - 05:33 PM, said:

Not likely, PGI created the art and that art is still under a lawsuit.

Well, i hope HG will go down hard. Shame the system even allows such lawsuit trolls.. Should be treated as exploiters.
P.S. Not really happy with HBS stepping away.. I understand it isn't really their fight.. But feels bad to me.
Thanks for the info folks, anyway.

[Fleeb the Mad]

Just as a point here, one of HBS's early gameplay videos did show a Marauder.


It's rather sad to me that they've decided to pull those again from the release until the lawsuit mess is resolved, but I get the impression that de-tangling any of the old FASA hands from the current mess will make it much harder to muddy the waters.

[Shadowomega1]

CMDR Sunset Shimmer, on 14 April 2018 - 05:49 PM, said:

*snip*

The Marauder appeared in the early game play tests as it was part of the model package from PGI.



Check out what Mech Myrmidon is piloting in that video. The models was likely removed from the files just incase things don't go right for PGI.

The thing is they went after HBS because of this and Wisemen due to the 1990's case yet they failed to demonstrate they had anything to actually go on. Also they didn't step away, HBS and Catalyst games shouldn't have been part of the suite as they bought the rights to PGI's artwork. However, HG has yet to prove they have the rights to the artwork of the Macross unseen, and there has been plenty of evidence that shows Big West has it and there is no transfer of rights. That letter from Tatsu pretty much states that.

Edited by Shadowomega1, 14 April 2018 - 06:28 PM.

[Sigmar Sich]

Marauder and Warhammer were originally in the BT game.
They were removed from the game (due to lawsuit).
Instead Black Knight and Catapult K were added. (bad trade, but at least something).
Marauder in early videos mean nothing now. If there is no fresh info confirming them, Warhammer and Marauder are delayed (till lawsuit ends with HGs deserved defeat, hopefully)

[naterist]

Sigmar Sich, on 14 April 2018 - 06:33 PM, said:

Marauder and Warhammer were originally in the BT game.
They were removed from the game (due to lawsuit).
Instead Black Knight and Catapult K were added. (bad trade, but at least something).
Marauder in early videos mean nothing now. If there is no fresh info confirming them, Warhammer and Marauder are delayed (till lawsuit ends with HGs deserved defeat, hopefully)

if this gets settled on the 20th, maybe hbs could pull 1 or 2 all nighters and get them in at launch?