UPDATE NOTE
There seems to be some (understandable) confusion in regards to where the lawsuit is coming from. To clarify, "Bethesda Softworks" (publisher and developer of game titles) and "Bethesda Game Studios" (Creators of games like Oblivion, Skyrim etc.) are not the same entity. BGS is an in-house game-making team led by Todd Howard which is one part of Bethesda Softworks, and has no direct connection to the lawsuit in progress by Bethesda Softworks. Unless further specified by the acronym "BGS", any references to Bethesda in the following article assume "Bethesda Softworks". Sorry about the confusion!
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Mojang has been in development of another project (which we went over in our last installment), which bears the working name "Scrolls". Bethesda has expressed concern that players could mix up this new game with their own "Elder Scrolls" series, although the two seem to share no noticeable similarities beyond the word "scrolls".
Notch said that their office received a 15-page cease-and-desist letter, claiming that Mojang would be sued for rights to the word, along with formal requests for legal fees. He went on to say that they are attempting to establish talks with Bethesda regarding the word, to find an amicable solution for both parties. At the time of this writing, there was no available response from Bethesda.
We will continue to update this article as information becomes available.
Notch said that their office received a 15-page cease-and-desist letter, claiming that Mojang would be sued for rights to the word, along with formal requests for legal fees. He went on to say that they are attempting to establish talks with Bethesda regarding the word, to find an amicable solution for both parties. At the time of this writing, there was no available response from Bethesda.
We will continue to update this article as information becomes available.
"Try not start blaming Bethesda and telling No.....
-snip-
... and themes are way different."
Well, actually its quite simple.
Mojang AB owns the copyright to the intellectual property name "Scrolls".
Bethesda Softworks does not.
Bethesda Softworks owns the intellectual property name "The Elder Scrolls".
Seeing as "Scrolls" is not the same as "The Elder Scrolls", there is no copyright violation.
END.
I have copyrighted the letter E©. Please cease and desist using the letter E© in any and all communications/programs/game titles... without proper authorization (and royalty fees to myself).
- Wildcat
(note: this is a serious question, not sarcasm.)
I heard about scrolls long ago. And besides, that would be a terrible marketing scheme. It might last a week at most before Bethesda found out, and then there would be a lawsuit that Mojang couldn't get out of.
Mojang can handle this. They're doing it right now.
And enforcing "Minecraft" is different. "Minecraft" is copyrighted. But nowhere does it say that "Scrolls" is copyrighted other than by MOjang itself. Sure, Bethesda copyrighted "Elder Scrolls" but that's different. You don't own every word in a copyrighted title, just the whole title.
TL;DR
I don't get it.
:huh.gif: I always refer to it by "The Elder Scrolls: Arena", "The Elder Scrolls II:Daggerfall" "The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind", "The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion", and "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim".
Why? Because The Elder Scrolls are my favorite game series, and (to me) it shows respect to say all of it's name instead of just Oblivion, Skyrim, ect.
1. This is NOT a copyright issue. It is a TRADEMARK issue. The laws regarding trademarks are different from laws regarding copyright, and are much more vague.
2. The laws regarding trademarks require that you actively defend your trademark or risk losing it. Even if Bethesda doesn't want to sue Mojang, they HAVE to, or they risk weakening their trademark and possibly losing it entirely.
3. Notch is not some perfect little angel in this case. HE TRIED TO TRADEMARK THE WORD "SCROLLS". This is what Bethesda has a problem with. If Notch (Mojang) successfully trademarks the word "Scrolls" in a video game context, someone could try to trademark a game titled "Fantasy Scrolls", or even "The Ancient Scrolls" and point to this case as a precedent.
If Notch hadn't tried to trademark the word "Scrolls", Bethesda may not have threatened to sue at all. However, because he did try, Bethesda is forced to defend their trademark if they believe there is any chance of it affecting them in a future. What happens if, 5 years from now, Bethesda decide to make a CCG based on their popular Elder Scrolls franchise?
And here I was thinking, that the minecraft forums were full of 14 year olds that didn't know anything about the law system. I thank you, sir.
SRSLY?
I LOVE 'The Elder Scrolls', but come on.....
I'm betting that they ran out of money for Skyrim and are trying to get more by sueing random companies with any relation in the name.
They're gonna pull a duke, and over-advertise skyrim because it'll be crap.
Can't wait till my pal hears this.