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Square Enix pwns counterfeit sword makers
I'm not sure why Square Enix felt the need to issue a press release for their victory against some dudes in Georgia making unlicensed Final Fantasy swords. I suppose toy swords are serious business. But after the Georgians were slapped with a $600,000 judgment, they arrived at an undisclosed settlement with Square Enix, who then issued a press release to guys like me who didn't even know there was a demand for Final Fantasy swords, authentic or otherwise.
Part of the settlement seems to involve making the fake swordsmiths apologize. The press release pointed out that the perps had this to say for themselves:We regret having sold unauthorized replica merchandise based on the FINAL FANTASY franchise to our customers. We would not have begun importing and selling these swords if we knew that Square Enix would respond so aggressively to stop us. We will never make this mistake again.
Square also revoked their TV privileges for a week.
By Halibut Barn at 11:56 AM ON 02/25/09
Hey, maybe they can do the same with fanfic authors.
"I'm sorry that I placed Square Enix's character Aeris in an unlicensed collaborative work with the intellectual property of Wizards Of The Coast in an attempt to justify her revival as my D&D character's indentured servant."
By Old Man Dotes at 12:56 PM ON 02/25/09
One wonders if litigation was the first resort of Square Enix, or did they attempt to arrive at a settlement in advance of the suit? If they are litigious first, I don't think it would be advisable to buy their games. They might sue you for letting your nephew play it without buying another copy first.
Sigh. I remember the day Dick Cheney shot a lawyer in the face. I was so proud of our Vice-President that day!
By Felipe 058 at 1:31 PM ON 02/25/09
Well maybe if the licensed swords weren't of such a poor quality, there would be no issue here at all.
By Evil at 1:38 PM ON 02/25/09
Litigation seems to be Square Enix's first resort on every situation. While admittedly a niche market, the replica sword industry thrives at conventions, swap meets, and carivals. I'm actually surprised that they haven't started attacking small businesses like this one beforehand, since so many people see the Final Fantasy series as a cash cow.
By Brinstar at 10:31 AM ON 02/26/09
There is actually a huge demand for replica swords based upon game and anime franchises in the fandom. Game/anime fans use the either as props in costumes or they just like to collect them. Almost any sizable anime convention in the US will have at least one or two vendors that only sell replica weapons.
By Akito38A at 6:12 PM ON 03/04/09
Square is a nazi company anyway. They are basically just the EA of Japan.
Akito38A:
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