Who knew that online multi-user interaction could be patented?
In fact, there is one company that does own such a patent, and now they're taking legal action to enforce it. Worlds.com, a virtual worlds developer, has filed a civil lawsuit against South Korean MMOG developer NCsoft. They argue that NCsoft has infringed upon U.S. Patent #7,181,690, which lays claim to an online avatar-based method of user interaction in a virtual world. The suit cites several of NCsoft's online games, including Lineage and Lineage II, Guild Wars, and City of Heroes and City of Villains, just to name a few.
This case reeks of a financially struggling company looking for a last ditch effort to save itself from bankruptcy. When your stock is trading at 15 cents a share, I suppose you have to do something to turn things around.
In any case, this lawsuit could have an interesting impact on online gaming. How many online games have you played that don't use avatars for interaction? Just about every MMOG under the sun, from Aion: Tower of Eternity (another NCsoft RPG, interestingly enough) to World of Warcraft, uses avatars. And what about the New Xbox Experience? What about Playstation Home? What about Phantasy Star Online and Phantasy Star Universe (this is a PS-themed blog, after all)?
It also strikes me as strange that the patent was just issued last year, long after MMO games had made their way into ubiquity. Several avatar-based MMOGs also predate the patent's filing date of August 2000 (for example, Lineage) so I doubt Worlds.com was the first company to come up with the idea. Makes you wonder why the patent was issued at all?
Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what happens as this case makes its way through the legal system. A copy of the civil complaint is available for viewing here.
Original story: Worlds.com Files Suit Against NCsoft for Patent Infringement
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