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Interplay/Bethesda Legal Drama Continues
The Fallout MMO in development at Interplay has already seen a fair share of legal trouble, and it isn't even a full game yet. In response to a new claim from Bethesda last month, Interplay is firing back in order to continue using the Fallout brand.
After buying the Fallout IP from Interplay, Bethesda subsequently licensed the brand to Interplay so the company could make its Fallout massively multiplayer game. However, Bethesda recently claimed that it only licensed to Interplay the name "Fallout," and not any of the characters, story, or settings associated with the franchise. If Bethesda's stance is upheld, Interplay's game could be called Fallout, but would have essentially no relation to the Fallout we know and love.
This sounds like a bad deal, which is the gist of Interplay's response to the claim, which reads (in part): "Bethesda's interpretation requires Interplay to develop and release an MMOG under the Fallout name, but unrelated to the Fallout brand...It was not the parties' intent that Interplay create, for example, an online baseball game or poker game called 'Fallout.'"
As fun as Fallout Baseball could be, it seems pretty obvious that Interplay wouldn't have wanted to license the rights to the Fallout name alone. But, hey, I'm no legal expert. I'm sure we'll hear more as Interplay and Bethesda continue to bicker about the subject through court filings.
(Source: Gamasutra)
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