The Gamer's Quarter

[FortNinety]

I hate to cross post a topic I already started somewhere else, but I just wanted the Gamer's Quarter folks 2 cents on this one. So yeah, I got a cease and dessit letter from Nintendo about an hour ago. For this image...



Its from the very first i am 8 bit show, circa 2005. Some might recall seeing it, along with several others pictures of numerous other pieces over at my site (which coincidentally gave my site a ton of attention and visitors) and which I also passed along here at the time.

The image has been there since last spring and I haven't head anything about it, at least from Nintendo. But earlier this evening, I got the following email...



So its not directly from Nintendo, but some outfit called Cyveillance, an "internet monitoring agency". Anyway, let's break down the image.

First and foremost, its a piece of art. I'm no lawyer, but as far as I know, at least from what I recall from art school, artists do have some breathing room when it comes to depicting fictional characters, even those that are trademarked and copy-written, such as in the instance of parody or satire.

Second, and I'm not saying this to pass along any blame, but I didn't create the artwork, some other artist did. One that I originally credited in my overview, but a friend of mine now feels may not be the proper one identified (hence why I am not passing it along here, though for anyone who's curious, I guess its pretty easy to check who I listed).

I am willing to bet that the correct name is listed in the art book that was published not too long ago which compiled all the pieces from the show (as well as the second one from this earlier year as well I believe). So that same offensive image might possibly in print... is Nintendo going to go after the publisher or the folks behind the show as well? And the artist?

Thirdly, it's a photograph of a piece of art. It's not even the original, just a reproduction (and not even the best one possible). Also, I didn't even take the picture, a friend of mine in LA did! Once again, I'm not saying this to pass along any blame, I'm just pointing out how silly this is! One more thing... take a look at the picture... is it that obvious that it's Mario and the princess? Okay, I know that's totally up to interpretation, but that's the thing: it's up to interpretation!

And how is this image any different from all the wacky Photoshops that you see on gaming message boards across the net, which as we all know, have far harsher depictions of Mario and company.

My reaction might seem a bit silly... maybe I should oblige and take it down. After all, I didn't even create the piece, and this point, I'm not even totally sure who the original artist is! But I just have to wonder, given how ridiculous it is, if Nintendo, and the company representing them, as any legal ground to make a request. And not to be dramatic, if so, then what's next?

[dessgeega]

i don't know much about law, but this seems pretty sketchy. it's a photograph of a painting of a nintendo character. and you're not charging the moneys for it. this is silly.
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[friedchicken]

Very silly. But maybe they're going after I AM 8-BIT in general, which would be unfortunate. You might want to consider dropping an email to Gallery 1988 to see if any action has been taken with them-- iam8bit.net hasn't been updated since May. But beyond that I don't know what to suggest.

Ugh. How shitty.

[helicopterp]

You should scan that letter one more time to make sure it doesn't say "nintondo."
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Like you thought you'd seen copter perverts before. They were nothing compared to this one.

[Harveyjames]

If you read it, they're not asking you to take down the image, just the references to Nintendo IP in the page code. It's a big month for Nintendo and they don't want that showing up when people Google them. It's really not a big deal.

[Swimmy]

Yeah, Harveyjames is right. Comply with that, but don't take the image down, because your use of it is totally legit. (Well, maybe if you get an email from the person who drew it. . .)
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"Ayn Rand fans are the old school version of Xenogears fanboys."
-seryogin

[FortNinety]

UPDATE: So the artist cited on the original page was indeed correct. It's Jason Sho Green alright.

Anyway, here's the confirmation, as well as a better look at the piece, via the i am 8 bit art book, courtesy of Amazon. And as you can all see, the image is copy-written! Hey Nintendo, time to give the lawyers a call.

[Harveyjames]

Calm down, Pheonix Wright. All they told you to do was take down the references to Nintendo IP in the site code, which they're well within their rights to do. It's kinda funny that you've done all this research but you still haven't read the letter properly.

[Shapermc]

[FortNinety]

Hey, I got a tag!

[dhex]

yeah, just edit the meta and you'll be betta.

or something like that.

still the shit magnet, man.
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[Mr. Mechanical]

[dessgeega]

[Harveyjames]

Nope, a different one... but with the Suicide Girls debacle it was a user who wrote that he liked Metroid in his profile, not one of the models. When this was pointed out, Nintendo actually apologised and offered both Suicidegirls.com and the user a free Nintendo video game system and game of their choice.

Anyway, it's the same deal- they didn't want pornography popping up when people searched for their stuff. Which does seem a little silly. Also they might want to think about wording their letters a little more nicely.

[dessgeega]

por nintendo
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[dhex]

[kirkjerk]

On the painting, what's on Mario's glove? Some kind of instructions?

[dessgeega]

i believe it's the konami code.
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[friedchicken]

Yeah, it's the Konami code. Surprisingly funny, I think.

[dessgeega]

it'd be better if it was something actually relevant to mario. but what codes does mario have? "hold A while pushing start"?
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