Nintendo's often been known for a particularly aggressive stance when defending their IP. Having taken down numerous fan projects over the years, they went after ROMUniverse - a site hosting ROMs for many games - back in September 2019. Having filed a lawsuit, they've now won $2.1 million in damages.
Having initially sued ROMUniverse for $15 million, US District Court Judge, Consuelo Marshall, ordered the site's owner, Matthew Storman, to pay $2.1 million instead. As part of his operations, Storman was found guilty of profiting from such infringement, having charged paid subscriptions to up the download cap.
Read More: Nintendo Switch Pro: Release Date, Price, Games, And More For Nintendo's Rumoured Upgrade
Nintendo Just Won $2.1 Million In A Lawsuit Against ROM Website
As part of this, RomUniverse was also taken offline and speaking further about this ruling, Judge Marshall advised:
Considering Defendant’s willful infringement, the Court finds $35,000 statutory damages for each infringed copyright […] would compensate Plaintiff for its lost revenue and deter Defendant who is currently unemployed and has already shut down the website
However, Storman's not been given an permanent injunction, as Judge Marshall stated that Nintendo could not prove they'd suffered "irreparable harm". As such, Storman could potentially start up a new site if he felt inclined, though that appears highly unlikely at this time.
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!