perry_m Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 (edited) Atari legal actions against emulators continue On August 31, 2011, seanbajuice.com received a cease and desist letter from Atari claiming copyright infringement by various Atari emulators for the Sega Dreamcast. This was mentioned in the long thread started by pps. On December 21, 2011, the site admin of dcemulation.org posted that he recently received a similar letter from Atari: http://www.dcemulation.org/phpBB/viewtopic.php?p=1029848 Atari is also continuing their legal attack on remakes of classic games: http://www.joystiq.c...on-hundreds-of/ http://venturebeat.c...-zone-heats-up/ Edited January 9, 2012 by perry_m 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 The current Atari is pure evil garbage. You can't win a lawsuit against a modern game based on classic game elements. If anyone ever figures out how to get back at them, I'll gladly donate the cause. 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Boycott! Boycott! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amiman99 Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Emulators are exempted, they should be safe. ---------------------------------------------------------------- As a result of the Register's recommendation in 2003,the Librarian of Congress decided that four classes of works should be exempted: (1) Compilations consisting of lists of Internet locations blocked by commercially marketed filtering software applications that are intended to prevent access to domains, websites or portions of websites, but not including lists of Internet locations blocked by software applications that operate exclusively to protect against damage to a computer or a computer network or lists of Internet locations blocked by software applications that operate exclusively to prevent receipt of email. (2) Computer programs protected by dongles that prevent access due to malfunction or damage and which are obsolete. (3) Computer programs and video games distributed in formats that have become obsolete and which require the original media or hardware as a condition of access. A format shall be considered obsolete if the machine or system necessary to render perceptible a work stored in that format is no longer manufactured or is no longer reasonably available in the commercial marketplace. (4) Literary works distributed in ebook format when all existing ebook editions of the work (including digital text editions made available by authorized entities) contain access controls that prevent the enabling of the ebook's read-aloud function and that prevent the enabling of screen readers to render the text into a specialized format. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 It might not be the emulator itself that's the problem, but the fact that it's packaged with hundreds of game ROMs. Many (most?) emulator authors are careful not to package any game ROMs with their emulators, and authors of computer emulators often (usually?) don't package OS ROMs with their emulators. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 The real problem is that the hobbyists who write them will take them down because they can't afford to fight. Plus, with the explosion of software patents just about any piece of non-trivial software violates a patent of some sort. We're losing the technology war to large corporations on all fronts. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Yes, the OS roms are a delicate issue, unless they are truly classed as PD or permission given then anyone passing anything on with games or OS are looking for trouble especially with the new Atari people. The most likley offenders are indeed the console port people who are already pushing it as normally the port is built with the use of a dev kit in the first place so I guiess adding the roms isn't that much different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sack-c0s Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 If I had an old Atari game I'd coded to offer up through emulation I'd just do what I did to get my old Archimedes games running on the PC - just write hosted versions of the tiny handful of system calls I use. Then Atari could go sing for it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w1k Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 today atari is ..ah, my english is to bad, then i cant write it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bombidragon Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Complete BS, who owns atari now anyway??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ransom Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 The Atari of today is like a nightmare -- imagine your best friend dies, and then a powerful demon rips your friend's flesh off and wears it around town, claiming to be your friend while raping and pillaging. It's obvious it's not your friend, but there's nothing you can do to the demon to make it stop sullying the memory of your friend. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Gemintronic Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Companies hire firms that shoot first to defend their trademarks/IP. Only when bad publicity bites them in the ass do they take back their actions. Look at World of Starcraft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R6502A Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 They are almost behaving exactly like the Atari of old. It's called recycling. Atari of today is so conerned about copyright issues because they (Atari) want to force people us, the guys & girls that were around when Atari was king, to buy the same games we already own, but this time we can play them on our new smartphones. Atari of old had a revolutionary machine in the late 70s and flogged it to us (without any major update that addressed it's shortcomings - Changing the housing is not an update really) until the early nineties. Recycling! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puppetmark Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 (edited) What is baffling to me, is the fact that Atari is killing off their core market by ticking off the commuinty that has kept their name alive when there was no Atari! Edited January 9, 2012 by puppetmark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emehr Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Doesn't Atari have better things to do? Like fall asleep at the wheel? Oh, wait they're doing that already. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marius Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Let me summarize this: When your name is Atari and you hunt for copyright violators you are evil? When your name is <certain atariage visitors> and you hunt for copyright violator KJMANN you are behaving normal? I do not get that. Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashjazzcat Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 (edited) I think the distinction can best be summed up by the phrase "shitting in your own nest". (The "nest" is the community, by the way - for the benefit of more literal readers). Edited January 9, 2012 by flashjazzcat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Let me summarize this: When your name is Atari and you hunt for copyright violators you are evil? When your name is <certain atariage visitors> and you hunt for copyright violator KJMANN you are behaving normal? I do not get that. Seriously. Here's the big difference: Atari is going after people who don't infringe. Have you written a game from scratch that's kinda similar to Battlezone but uses no Battlezone code and isn't called Battlezone? Atari says you infringe. Have you written a game from scratch where you shoot rocks in outer space but is not called Asteroids? Atari says you infringe. Have you written an emulator but include no copyrighted ROMs? Atari says you infringe. That's the problem. 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marius Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 @bryan That was a fabulous reply! I was not expecting that when I posted my contribution. Must I must say +1 for your explanation. Atari is acting evil indeed by doing that! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Philsan Posted January 9, 2012 Share Posted January 9, 2012 Have you written a game from scratch that's kinda similar to Battlezone but uses no Battlezone code and isn't called Battlezone? Atari says you infringe. Have you written a game from scratch where you shoot rocks in outer space but is not called Asteroids? Atari says you infringe. Have you written an emulator but include no copyrighted ROMs? Atari says you infringe. Bryan, you infringe! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perry_m Posted January 9, 2012 Author Share Posted January 9, 2012 On December 22, 2011 the site emulator-zone.com removed all Atari emulators due to a legal threat: http://forums.emulat...ead.php?t=18880 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lynxpro Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 (edited) I can understand 2600 emulators being an issue but unless the current Atari is seriously considering selling 8-bit or ST game ROMs as part of future updates to their Atari iOS and Android apps, I don't see this being an issue on their part unless they truly are trying to retain their IP. As a company, if you don't make the moves to protect your IP, you do lose it. I wonder if their legal department is aware of Atari Teenage Riot and The Ataris musical bands... I doubt you'll see similar actions committed by Warner Bros. Interactive concerning Atari Games Corp. arcade ROMS since Atari Games did license the rights to lots of their ROMs [including pre-1984 ROMs] to various ROM sites not to mention the company that was marketing through Costco a MAME machine in an arcade cabinet with hundreds of ROMs [Atari Games Corp, Capcom, and others] a few years ago. As for companies trying to make modern games that harken back to Atari properties such as Black Powder Media, I don't really have any sympathy. They even acknowledge they wanted to make an updated version of Battlezone but Atari didn't respond. That's like the filmmakers who created Nosferatu by ripping off Bram Stoker's estate. Plus, Activision updated Battlezone in the 90s, and it was officially licensed. If anything, Atari has been rather lax with people borrowing their IP's gaming elements but that goes all the way back to the Tramiel era with various public domain knock-offs. Warner owned Atari Inc. was the exact opposite of that. Edited January 10, 2012 by Lynxpro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
svenski Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Atari are wanting to protect their IP especially now they've signalled the end to big budget game releases and a focus on mobile and social gaming. At the moment they're focusing on remakes of 2600 classics for iOS...... who says they won't then turn their attention to other Atari platforms. I'm holding out for a 2012 1450XLD that comes with flash drives and SD cart slots. If they see a big chunk of revenue coming their way in the future from iOS then you can bet they'll continue as they are with their current policy. They aren't the only ones doing it though. Ain't pretty I admit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atx4us Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Yes, the OS roms are a delicate issue, unless they are truly classed as PD or permission given then anyone passing anything on with games or OS are looking for trouble especially with the new Atari people. The most likley offenders are indeed the console port people who are already pushing it as normally the port is built with the use of a dev kit in the first place so I guiess adding the roms isn't that much different. I wish I could remember where I've seen it. But, I recall that the xf25.zip file which contains all the Atari 800 ROMs were distributed under permission from Atari! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloopy Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Yes, the OS roms are a delicate issue, unless they are truly classed as PD or permission given then anyone passing anything on with games or OS are looking for trouble especially with the new Atari people. The most likley offenders are indeed the console port people who are already pushing it as normally the port is built with the use of a dev kit in the first place so I guiess adding the roms isn't that much different. I wish I could remember where I've seen it. But, I recall that the xf25.zip file which contains all the Atari 800 ROMs were distributed under permission from Atari! That file is usually easy to find... here: http://www.zophar.net/a5200/pc-xformer-classic.html among other places... if roms are outlawed, only outlaws will have roms? sloopy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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