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'Doom' co-creator John Carmack ends legal fight with ZeniMax
The messy legal battle between Id Software co-founder and Oculus CTO John Carmack and ZeniMax is over. Carmack tweeted that his "personal legal disputes" had ended, with ZeniMax having "fully satisfied their [sic] obligations" to him. Consequently, the pair have dropped their lawsuit and countersuit between each other, although the courtroom drama between Oculus and ZeniMax rages on.
Oculus CTO John Carmack reveals what's next for Oculus Go
Oculus CTO John Carmack is known for giving an unfiltered speech on day two of Oculus' annual Connect conference, and this year is no different. Today, he talked extensively on the trials and tribulations of making Oculus' latest slate of standalone headsets, and more intriguingly, gave a sneak peek as to what expect in the next generation of the Oculus Go. He also said that current Go headsets will soon get support for microSD cards over USB, a night mode and a low-power mode.
Oculus will pay ZeniMax $250 million for copyright infringement
Bethesda Softworks parent company ZeniMax Media has always been a little sue-happy. But maybe a recent decision from its case against Oculus (and by extension, Facebook) will cool its jets a bit. A jury recently decided that Zuckerberg and Co. will only pay $250 million of the initial $500 million claim from ZeniMax that when John Carmack left Bethesda-owned id Software for Oculus, he stole his former employer's intellectual property, according to Bloomberg.
Zenimax turns on Samsung after victory in Oculus VR suit
Zenimax and Oculus aren't quite done duking it out in court, but the former has already taken on yet another adversary. The software company has filed a lawsuit against Samsung for infringing on its copyright, since it uses Oculus tech to power the Gear VR. It's accusing the Korean giant of continuing with the device's development despite knowing about the details of its lawsuit against the Facebook-owned firm. Samsung, it says, didn't even ask for permission knowing full well that it sued Oculus for stealing its technology and even released an updated version of the Gear VR after the court awarded it a partial victory.
John Carmack sues ZeniMax for unpaid acquisition money
Oculus CTO John Carmack has personally joined the litigation war between his company and ZeniMax. He has just filed a lawsuit against the media firm for refusing to pay the rest of what it owes him for id Software's $150 million acquisition in 2009. Carmack co-founded id Software in 1991, and it's best known for developing the Wolfenstein, Doom and Quake video game franchises. The CTO says ZeniMax still hasn't paid the last $22.5 million of the price they agreed upon. It also sounds like the company has no intention of paying up.
John Carmack airs grievances over ZeniMax lawsuit on Facebook
ZeniMax might have only won a small fraction of the $4 billion it wanted to get from its Oculus lawsuit, but John Carmack was still definitely unhappy with the court's decision. The Oculus CTO has posted on Facebook to publicly disagree "with [ZeniMax's] characterization, misdirection and selective omissions" during the proceedings.
Oculus to pay $500 million after ZeniMax lawsuit ends
ZeniMax is triumphant in its lawsuit against Oculus over alleged technology theft... well, sort of. A Texas jury has determined that Oculus must pay $500 million to ZeniMax over claims that Palmer Luckey didn't comply with a non-disclosure agreement he signed with the game publisher. However, what didn't happen is more telling. The jury found that Oculus didn't steal trade secrets from ZeniMax when it hired John Carmack. In other words, one of the cornerstones of the case didn't hold up.
ZeniMax now wants $4 billion from Oculus as case goes to jury
VR pioneer Oculus has been on trial for several weeks now, defending itself against claims it stole crucial code from ZeniMax. But the ultimate judgement is now in the hands of a jury. As reported by Polygon, closing arguments have concluded and the jury now has to decided if Oculus chief technology officer John Carmack stole ZeniMax IP and brought it to Oculus when he joined the company in 2013. At the same time as it wrapped up closing arguments, ZeniMax doubled the damages it is asking for. The company now wants a grand total of $4 billion -- $2 billion in compensation and $2 billion in punitive damages.
Palmer Luckey insists he didn't steal VR code for Oculus
Yesterday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the stand to testify in a lawsuit against Oculus, and today it was Palmer Luckey's turn. The founder of Oculus VR -- who has remained out of sight since his role in funding political trolls came to light -- sold his startup to Facebook for $2 billion in 2014, but ZeniMax (parent company of iD Software) claims its tech is based on code Oculus CTO John Carmack wrote while still an employee. According to Bloomberg, Luckey testified that while the company's software ran in a demonstration for investors, he also said "I didn't take confidential code...I ran it and demonstrated it through the headset. It is not true I took the code."
Mark Zuckerberg defends Oculus in court against VR rival
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg was grilled in court this morning over the creation of the Oculus Rift VR headset, as part of a $2 billion lawsuit brought by ZeniMax Media. ZeniMax -- the owner of Bethesda Softworks, id Software and other video game studios -- says Oculus chief technology officer John Carmack stole ZeniMax's intellectual property when he left the company in 2013. Essentially, ZeniMax argues that it owns the technological foundation behind the Oculus Rift VR headset. Zuckerberg purchased Oculus in 2014 in a deal estimated to be worth $2.3 billion -- and as he made clear on the stand this morning, he disagrees entirely with ZeniMax's claims.
Recommended Reading: How Oculus took Netflix to the Gear VR
Recommended Reading highlights the best long-form writing on technology and more in print and on the web. Some weeks, you'll also find short reviews of books that we think are worth your time. We hope you enjoy the read. John Carmack on Developing the Netflix App for Oculus by John Carmack Netflix Tech Blog During this week's Oculus Connect 2 keynote, the virtual reality company announced that the upcoming Gear VR would include support for Netflix. What does is take to bring a streaming service inside the headset? Well, Oculus CTO John Carmack detailed the process on the Netflix Tech Blog.
What makes Samsung's mobile VR consumer-ready? Marketing
A consumer release is en route for Gear VR. Hey, alright! If you've been paying attention, you might realize the problem with that first sentence, though. Think for a few minutes, I'll be here. Give up? Well, here's the answer: Unlike Oculus' still-in-prototype Rift headset, you can go to Best Buy's website today, throw down $200 and, boom, you'll have a head-mounted virtual reality display. Just like that. Okay, you'll need a Galaxy Note 4 too. But still, it already exists.
Oculus VR's software development kit for mobile is now available
When Oculus VR hired away legendary programmer John Carmack from id Software, there was a specific intention: Carmack's commitment to virtual reality, specifically as it pertained to mobile VR. The first major fruit of Carmack's work over the past year is now available for you to download, as Oculus VR today announced the release of its mobile software development kit. So, what can you do with it? You can make stuff for Samsung and Oculus VR's joint venture: Gear VR. Specifically, the SDK is meant for use with the Note 4, which powers virtual experiences in Gear VR.
How Samsung's VR headset convinced John Carmack to join Oculus VR
John Carmack's name isn't synonymous with virtual reality just yet. He's still "the guy who led programming on Doom and Wolfenstein" to most folks; the co-founder of acclaimed development studio id Software. And that's exactly why it was such a big deal when he suddenly left id Software last year to join Oculus VR as chief technical officer. Though Palmer Luckey and co. helped sway him with their own Rift headset, Carmack was eventually sold on the gig by Samsung's mobile VR concept: Gear VR. "That was really the prime thing that motivated me to decide: No, I'm gonna devote 100 percent of my attention and focus to Oculus," he told Engadget in an interview this week.
'Minecraft' might actually come to virtual reality after all
Earlier this year when the Facebook purchase of Oculus VR went down, there were more than a few detractors but none as prominent as the man behind Minecraft. At the time, Markus "Notch" Persson said that his company Mojang was in talks to bring the blocky construction set to Oculus Rift, but cancelled the deal because Zuckerberg's social network creeped him out. That's all changed now. Notch recently tweeted that he's officially over being peeved about the transaction, and was now more upset about a hole in one of his favorite socks (yes, really). That musing didn't go unnoticed by Oculus. Specifically, the outfit's chief technology officer and all-around game-industry legend John Carmack, who offered: "Say the word, ship the source and I'll make sure it runs well on you-know-what..."
Oculus VR and Palmer Luckey being sued by CTO's former employer (update)
Oculus VR and co-founder Palmer Luckey are being sued by Zenimax Media and id Software, the former employer of Oculus VR Chief Technical Officer John Carmack. The suit claims that Luckey and Oculus VR, which worked with Carmack while he was still employed by id Software (owned by Zenimax Media), stole and misappropriated "trade secrets relating to virtual reality technology." The suit was filed in Texas (where id Software is located), and follows up on legal claims Zenimax was already making publicly. For its part, Oculus VR denied Zenimax's previous claims in a followup response, which stated, "There is not a line of Zenimax code or any of its technology in any Oculus products." Carmack openly worked with Luckey in the lead up to the Oculus Rift's tremendously successful Kickstarter campaign, and he eventually joined the company full-time last year.
Oculus denies John Carmack stole VR tech from his former employer
When word came out last week that Oculus VR Chief Technology Officer John Carmack was being accused by his former employer of stealing intellectual property for use in his new gig, the nascent Facebook subsidiary only issued a cursory statement: "It's unfortunate, but when there's this type of transaction, people come out of the woodwork with ridiculous and absurd claims. We intend to vigorously defend Oculus and its investors to the fullest extent." The company's expanding on that statement today, and pushing back on the claims made by Zenimax.
Oculus VR's John Carmack sees bright future in Facebook deal
When Facebook said it would buy Oculus VR, many eyes turned to Oculus CTO John Carmack. Would Quake's co-creator be happy with the deal when Facebook sees virtual reality gaming as just the beginning? Thankfully, it looks like he's staying put. In a response to jitters about the acquisition, Carmack says that Facebook appears to "get the Big Picture" -- it understands the impact of VR and will help the technology grow. The executive also isn't worried about the social network's privacy issues. While he believes that privacy is important, he also sees data mining as a valuable tool for successful companies. The statements won't completely assuage fears that the acquisition could lead Oculus astray, but Carmack clearly believes that the company is still headed in the right direction.
John Carmack quit id Software because it wouldn't support VR games
We know the basic reason why John Carmack left id Software: he wanted to concentrate on his work at Oculus VR. However, we now know that it was more complicated -- it was the result of a dream denied. The game developer explains to USA Today that he had proposed a deal between ZeniMax (id's parent company) and Oculus VR that would have games like Doom 4 and Wolfenstein: The New Order support the Oculus Rift. He was heartbroken when the pact didn't come to be. "When it became clear that I wasn't going to have the opportunity to do any work on VR while at id Software, I decided to not renew my contract," Carmack says. The departure is ultimately "bittersweet," but it reflects his sincere belief that wearable displays represent the next big thing.
John Carmack leaves id Software to focus on Oculus VR
For veteran gamers who enjoyed Doom and Quake, it's the end of an era -- id Software co-founder John Carmack has left the game studio to concentrate all his efforts on his Chief Technical Officer role at Oculus VR. It was just too "challenging" to divide attention between the two companies, he explains. id's Tim Willits says in a statement that the departure won't affect any existing projects, but it does leave the firm without the insights of one of the game industry's brightest programmers. However, his exit is good news for VR fans; Carmack can now pour all his energy into developing cutting edge wearable displays. Check out our recent video interview with him after the break.
