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Silicon Knights loses appeal for ruling on lawsuit with Epic Games
A United States Court of Appeals judge has upheld a lower court's decision concerning the legal battle between Silicon Knights and Epic Games. The post-trial motions for the previous ruling ordered Silicon Knights to destroy all unsold copies of their games that used Unreal Engine 3, which included Too Human and X-Men: Destiny. Epic was also awarded more than $9 million in the ruling - $4.45 million for damages, with the rest covering the studio's legal fees and prejudgment interest. The dispute began back in 2007, when Silicon Knights claimed Epic delivered Unreal Engine 3 six months late while withholding a superior version just to be used for Epic's internal projects. Epic Games Vice President Mark Rein described the allegations as "unfounded and without merit," noting Epic's intention to defend themselves. Silicon Knights' ability to pay the sentence is currently uncertain, as the studio followed the initial ruling by laying off "a small number of people." A report from last May also stated that the Silicon Knights offices were empty, with former studio head Denis Dyack gone and involved with a sequel to Silicon Knights' Eternal Darkness called Shadow of the Eternals. That project is an effort from Precursor Games and is uninvolved with Silicon Knights, but Precursor noted its team was "taking a break" in September and that the project is on hold after failing to meet funding goals.
Appeals court affirms Richard Garriott's lawsuit win against NCsoft
Ever since Richard Garriott won his lawsuit against former employer NCsoft last year, the legal process has been grinding on ever since to hash out the details. Today we've learned that the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirmed the win of almost $32 million in favor of Garriott. The lawsuit came about after NCsoft fired Garriott in 2008 and then marked his departure as "voluntary," causing his stock options to expire instead of remaining intact through the end of his 2011 contract. In 2010 a court found NCsoft to have breached its contract, and it ordered the company to pay $28 million plus interest and attorney fees to Garriott and his legal team. This recent ruling affirms that outcome and paves the path for Garriott to be compensated. In the ruling, the 5th Circuit Court writes, "It would be unjust to allow NCsoft to sit back during trial, observe Garriott's litigation strategy, and then demand a new trial on damages when it dislikes the verdict." [Source: Androvett Legal Media press release]
Court rules against Comcast, Cablevision on new FCC program access rules
Comcast and Cablevision's quest to keep the HD feeds of the networks they own off of satellite and telco services was again dealt a loss Friday when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld new FCC rules requiring them to share. Neither found that pleasing, with Comcast citing the continued exclusivity of NFL Sunday Ticket and NASCAR Hot Pass to DirecTV, while Cablevision whined about its latest spat with ABC. This might not be the end of things however, as the court voted the FCC could later rescind the rule if it decides it "is no longer timely," and it will likely play a part in the ongoing discussions over Comcast's proposed purchase of NBC.
