Several Chinese mobile gaming companies, “Pocket monster Reissue” included, have been officially sued for copyright infringement and unfair competition by the Pokemon Company. The company found a variety of similarities and “striking resemblances” to their own game and IP, thus deciding to take legal action.
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Jiangyin Zhongnan Heavy Industries Co, one of the accused companies, stated that all six companies had been running the game since 2015. As a result, the Pokémon Company has applied for an order against the six companies to prevent them from working on Pocket Monster Reissue at the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court.
The Pokémon Company also requested CNY 500 million for compensation, as well as an apology from Chinese social media platforms and websites, such as Tencent and NetEase. It’s reported that Jiangyin Zhongnan Heavy Industry Co earned over CNY 300 million, but it remains unknown how much the other companies earned.
Pokémon GO was launched in 2016, and trainers from around the world were playing together by overcoming challenges and catching Pokémon at home and abroad, leading to Pokémon GO crazes around the world.
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The National Basketball Association (NBA) and Pokémon GO developer Niantic collaborated in June to create a mobile AR game called “NBA All-World”. Described by the NBA as a “first-of-its-kind game,” it will immerse fans in a metaworld connected to reality. Using NBA All-World, players can recruit and challenge today’s NBA ballers right in their neighborhoods, and further challenge them and compete against each other.