this post was submitted on 11 Sep 2025
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According to videogame patent lawyer Kirk Sigmon, the USPTO granting Nintendo these latest patents isn't just a moment of questionable legal theory. It's an indictment of American patent law.

"Broadly, I don't disagree with the many online complaints about these Nintendo patents," said Sigmon, whose opinions do not represent those of his firm and clients. "They have been an embarrassing failure of the US patent system."

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[–] sirico@feddit.uk 62 points 1 day ago (4 children)

I'm going to patent electrons passing through a xor gate

[–] AeonFelis@lemmy.world 8 points 21 hours ago (1 children)

You can probably get away with it if you write it in a confusing enough fashion; but you need to make it really confusing - to the point even CPU architecture experts could miss it unless they pay very close attention; and remember that the claims - which are the only part of the patent that has any legal meaning - may be limited by law to a single sentence each, but there is no limit on how cumbersome each sentence is; additionally, semicolons are not sentence terminators; this means that this entire comment I just wrote is technically a only one sentence.

[–] ICastFist@programming.dev 3 points 18 hours ago

Nah, you just need to get a friendly judge to tell whoever decides to dispute your patent that they're wrong and your patent is totally valid and innovative

[–] vrighter@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 21 hours ago

patent nand and nor! You'll get much more out of it

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 1 points 21 hours ago (1 children)

Prior art exists of that though so you wouldn't be able to. I know you're making a joke though lol.

[–] SkyezOpen@lemmy.world 9 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

If Nintendo can patent MOUNTS in the year of our lord 2025, that lemming can patent logic gates.

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 1 points 24 minutes ago

I thought this was about the ball throwing to capture monsters

[–] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 20 points 1 day ago

You can get a licence from Nintendo if you like.

[–] Wilco@lemmy.zip 39 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Someone in the patent office got bribed.

[–] AngryRobot@lemmy.world 24 points 1 day ago (1 children)

This entire regime is for sale. Top to bottom.

[–] ZILtoid1991@lemmy.world 9 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Get ready for "anti-woke" Nintendo games!

[–] EldenLord@lemmy.world 5 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago)

Get ready for whatever this is

[–] tekato@lemmy.world 60 points 1 day ago

Capcom should start their patent for 2D fighting games and see what happens to Super Smash Bros

[–] zrst@lemmy.cif.su 62 points 2 days ago (13 children)

Copyright and patent laws need to die.

Anyone who doesn't understand this is a useful idiot.

[–] QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 14 points 1 day ago (1 children)

No, they have utility as people shouldn't be able to rip off other teams work as that disincentivizes any product research , innovation or the ability to sustain yourself based on sales of your art.

The only thing idiotic is the notion that these systems need to die rather than be refined.

[–] dogs0n@sh.itjust.works 4 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

I agree. The only big problem I'm aware of is the length of validity for patents/copyright (and how large corporations for years were getting the laws changed so their IP could last even longer).

After a decade or two, surely you have profiteered enough or at least had enough time to try profiteering from your idea or works? Time for public domain? 75 years (i think it is for copyright) seems crazy to me.

Me not experto though, but I do think lowering the time you can hold your invention or works hostage from the world would be amazing for the general public and advancement of tech (even though when I say that, it sounds like stealing a baby from a mother).

[–] QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 points 6 hours ago

For patents it is much shorter than copyright. Copyright being roughly the lifespan of the creator makes sense when you think George RR Martin has been writing Game of Thrones for 20 years before it appears on HBO. Under a shorter span you could have people selling fanfiction of works before their creators saw any real profit.

IMO what needs reform is that if the public invests in your research the state shoukd hold a percentage of the revenue from the sale of that good. The USA did this until Reagan.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 60 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (72 children)

Current system is obviously broken, but you don't believe that artists and creators should have a right to control their intellectual property at all?

And yes, intellectual property is real whether you want it to be or not. And it's not necessarily about money, but about controlling what can be done with your work.

For example, Bruce Springsteen should 100% be allowed to tell Trump to fuck off and stop using his music at rallys.

What would be the mechanism to do that without IP?

[–] floquant@lemmy.dbzer0.com 23 points 1 day ago (5 children)

Personally I don't have an issue with individual intellectual property, it's the acquisition and trade of it by corporations that I have an issue with. For example, I believe no copyright should last after the creator's death. Disney is dead, Tolkien is dead, many musicians are dead, let alive creators contribute to their worlds.

[–] Adalast@lemmy.world 1 points 13 hours ago

I have a real issue here too. Though mine more centers around the purchase of IP to bury it because it would be competition. How many amazing creations that would benefit humanity and make all of our lives more livable are buried in archives at these big corpos?

This is what I would like to see fixed, in the most aggressive way possible. I want a clock on the ownership to bring a product to market based on the purchased patant and if that clock runs out, ownership reverts back to the creator.

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[–] livejamie@lemmy.zip 13 points 1 day ago (2 children)

I'm surprised that Palworld was even able to release, honestly.

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 12 points 20 hours ago (1 children)

What's frustrating is that the thing that is arguably questionable (the art of some of the characters) isn't what is the subject of anything. Nope. Ball throwing.

[–] JcbAzPx@lemmy.world 1 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago)

That's because copyright and trademark are more specific than patents. You have to use the exact look to be in violation. Patents are more of a vibes protection. You can sue for close enough.

[–] NocturnalMorning@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Why? Anybody who's played it knows it only has a passing resemblance to Pokémon. Once you play the game, you realize how different it is in its mechanics and story from pokemon.

Nintendo doesn't own the idea of monster taming. The idea predates their company by quite a bit actually.

[–] livejamie@lemmy.zip 1 points 13 hours ago

I agree, but Nintendo usually gets away with legally bullying companies

[–] SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org 77 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

An embarrassing failure describes the US quite well actually. Also fuck Nintendo. Don't give them your money.

[–] CubitOom@infosec.pub 124 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (15 children)

I can't wait to play Elden Ring 2 when it's made by Nintendo because Elden Ring used summoning and now only runs at 12 fps.

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[–] mx_smith@lemmy.world 14 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

“They have been an embarrassing failure of the US ~~patent system.~~ “ seems like a trend these days

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