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Switch emulator creator settles Nintendo lawsuit for $2.4m (www.videogameschronicle.com)

submitted 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) by Robin_net@beehaw.org to c/piracy@lemmy.dbzer0.com

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https://web.archive.org/web/20240304185214/https://github.com/yuzu-emu/yuzu-mainline/releases

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[-] jjlinux@lemmy.ml 1 points 8 months ago

I'm not a leach (I think some people call them attorneys or lawyers), but if they stopped development, removed the repos and all the crap Nintendo got away with, why do they have to pay? Am I missing something? Again, I've no idea how that shit works, so I'm asking out of genuine sheer ignorance. And also, can't they just move all their shit over to an "arrrr" paradise and tell Nintendo of the US of A to go fuck themselves and all of their family and pets together at the same time?

[-] blindsight@beehaw.org 6 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

A few things:

First, the LLC settled with Nintendo. They do not have the funds to pay their debts, now, so they'll go bankrupt. The developers won't pay a cent, likely. Maybe a bit of cash left over after paying their lawyer, if there is any, but it won't amount to much.

Second, they were being sued for damages. Just stopping something after causing damages is insufficient.

Third, this isn't a judgment, it's a settlement. That means that it was their "choice" to negotiate with Nintendo instead of going to court. In the settlement, the group agreed to cease & desist and not work on Nintendo systems at all any more, basically. ~~I haven't looked into it, and I'm not as lawyer, but again I think this is just the LLC, not the individual developers? If so, this also means basically nothing at all.~~

Realistically, developers on this team likely won't continue working on Nintendo devices, because there's nothing stopping Nintendo from just using them again and facing "actual" penalties next time. But there should be very little harm to them individually for this.

And no, nothing is stopping them from continuing to work anonymously on this project on the dark web. Nintendo could never prove it, so long as they aren't so stupid as to announce it. It would take some pretty strong evidence of continued infringement to get a search warrant, I would think, so they're likely in the clear.

[-] etchinghillside@reddthat.com 7 points 8 months ago

Them being an LLC and the dev(s) not being forever in debt were the details I was looking for – thanks.

[-] 7Sea_Sailor@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 8 months ago

The settlement addresses any and all people who were ever involved in any fashion with the production or distribution of yuzu. Quoting the Settlement:

against Defendant enjoining it and its members, agents, servants, employees, independent contractors, successors, assigns, and all those acting in privity or under its control

So yeah, the devs are all individually targeted, not just the LLC as its own entity. And if any of the devs is ever caught doing anything like this again, they're gonna face charges much more serious than this i fear.

[-] jjlinux@lemmy.ml 2 points 8 months ago

Thanks for all these clarifications. This does make a lot of sense. This world is not going to shit anymore, it's already there 🤮

[-] Appoxo@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Not a lawyer but basically:
You make a bad thing (say burglary)
You are catched with red hands and immediatly bring it back and apologize to the owners.
You are being indicted.

In this case they admitted to be helping piracy of Nintendo games (no matter if it's actually true or not). They settled on a sum to pay back and were ordered to halt development work forever in their lives with anything regarding emulation, nintendo and their products.