PkmnTrainerJ

Nintendo Co., the world's biggest maker of handheld game machines, is facing a ban on U.S. sales of some controllers for its Wii and GameCube systems after it lost a bid to overturn a $21 million patent-infringement verdict.

U.S. District Judge Ron Clark in Lufkin, Texas, rejected Nintendo's request for a new trial in the case won by closely held Anascape Ltd. of Tyler, Texas. He said that he would stop sales of the Wii Classic Controller, WaveBird controller and Nintendo GameCube controller. His ban will be put on hold while Nintendo appeals the verdict to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, according to Anascape lawyer Doug Cawley.

The judge, scheduled to issue his ban order tomorrow, said Nintendo will have to post a bond or put royalties in an escrow account to avoid the halt, said Cawley, of McKool Smith in Dallas. The opinion denying a new trial was issued July 18, the same day as the hearing on Anascape's request for an order blocking sales of products found to infringe its patent.

"Nintendo was already planning to appeal this case to the Federal Circuit court,'' Nintendo spokesman Charlie Scibetta said in an e-mailed statement. "The recent ruling by the trial court does not impact that decision.''

Scibetta said Nintendo will "immediately appeal'' once Clark issues his order and post a bond. The company no longer makes the GameCube or WaveBird controllers, and "is free to continue selling the Wii Classic Controller'' pending the appeal, he said. The Wii replaced the GameCube as the company's main home video-game system.

Nunchuk Controller Excluded

Not all controllers were found to infringe the patent. Jurors agreed with Kyoto, Japan-based Nintendo that the rectangular Wii remote, when not used with the Wii Classic, and the "Nunchuk'' controller attached to the remote don't violate the patent at the heart of the case. The rectangular Wii remote is the one that comes with the console.

Anascape's patent covers certain configuration of the remote to control six types of motions at the same time. The inventor, Brad Armstrong, spent years developing game controllers in his garage after "he became fascinated with computers including video games'' in the late 1970s, Cawley said.

Cawley said he argued last week that Anascape was entitled to a ban on the Nintendo controllers because Anascape wants to enter the market and Nintendo has ``clogged the channel.'' Sony Corp., maker of the PlayStation game system, licensed the patent in 2004 and Microsoft Corp., maker of the Xbox 360, settled lawsuit claims on May 1, just before the trial began.

Nintendo said it didn't use Anascape's technology and challenged the patent's validity.

Sufficient Evidence

The trial record contains sufficient evidence to support the jury's finding'' against Nintendo, Clark said in the July 18 ruling. He also said the damage award was supported by "substantial evidence'' and denied Nintendo's request to reduce the amount it was told to pay.

The Wii, a machine that plays games by swinging a motion- sensing controller like a bat, tennis racket or other item, overtook Microsoft's Xbox 360 as the leading console in U.S. homes among the latest generation of video-game players.

As of last month, U.S. consumers had purchased almost 10.9 million Wii consoles since the player was introduced in November 2006, passing the Xbox 360, which began selling in 2005, research firm NPD Group Inc. said last week.

The case is Anascape Ltd. v. Microsoft Corp., 06cv158, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas (Lufkin).

I love how many companies are leaping forward now that Nintendo is leading the market. Always happens when someone is ahead.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=new...id=aO_ucYxT3eNw

So if you're wanting something to tide you over until Lost returns, the latest ARG started today at Comic-Con. People went in to a DHARMA both and were shown a series of images and asked questions and will be told whether they passed tomorrow. You are apparently assigned one of three jobs during the start of the ARG.

People who didn't go to Comic-Con can use the site - Octagon Global Recruiting to register their interest. Also used will be DHARMA wants you which so far is just an image with a series of dots which people have already worked out make up the DHARMA logo.

Actually Hayley wants Chinchou, Aerodactyl and Seadra. So the fossils are done.

Gonna drop a Giratina I got off the GTS on there. :-)

Also had my first member of Club-Look-See come over

Shit. Yeah. I am

Well, I declare myself the winner by default.

Go on then, let's multi-mafia.

I'm in

Final Fantasy II/IV + Final Fantasy III/VI + Chrono Trigger + Link to the Past + Mario World + Super Punch-Out + Mario RPG + a smoother and crisper Street Fighter II + Donkey Kong Country = fuck alla yall, SNES takes the prize. Shit, Chrono Trigger alone clinches it. I can't think of a single piece of Genesis software that touches it.

What he said. + Earthbound, Super Metroid, Mario All-Stars, Shadowrun (although admittedly, the Genesis game was cooler), Turtles in Time, Mega Man X, Mario Kart, Secret of Mana, Star Fox, Super Castlevania, and motherfuckin Actraiser!

And sorry, but there's no debate between Mario and Sonic - to this day, there still hasn't been a better platformer than Super Mario World - sorry to all you who were raised on the N64, but it's true.

With all that said, I did own both and I love my Genesis dearly. I wouldn't even call it a distant second due to Shining Force I & II being fucking amazing, and the aforementioned badass version of Shadowrun.

I have to agree. Super Mario 64. whilst nice and everything, barely scratches Super Mario World.

Been with Nintendo since the early days (well obviously not when they started, that'd be fucking crazy) so we had a SNES in the house. Wasted many hours on Super Bomberman 2 and Secret Of Mana as well as obvious things like Super Mario All Stars. Donkey Kong Country was also a family favourite too.

I saw him say, Richard is is usually a cock to everyone, so it'll be fun, switching over from this shite MTV Dance thing someone put on

Shedinja can't be hurt by normal attacks.

Only problem is it can be hurt by Dark attacks. All of Norman's Pokémon carry Facade.

So I just completed Hotel Dusk after getting it a few months ago (lost it at one point, so didn't play on it for about two months) and it's like playing an interactive mystery novel with point & click and puzzle elements thrown in.

Very, very good game and as it was new developers back then (Cing, now have a Wii game in the line) I wasn't expecting too much, but it had the right amount of mystery to it and enough little mini-game moments to keep me playing.

If you're thinking about getting a new DS game, I highly recommend it. Also if you do get it, try not to look at an FAQ. I looked once and got annoyed at myself for doing so and then went through the rest of the game without.

What games have you purchased that you didn't think too highly of, but then they smacked you around the face with a wet kipper of awesome?

I just got a shiny Bidoof in a trade. My Pokémon > yours

I had a gold Steelix once on silver. It was awesome

I have two at the moment. Hunting a third Onix, which may just stay as Onix

I just got a shiny Bidoof in a trade. My Pokémon > yours

Pokémon Ranch can suck my balls. Hayley's wanted Pokémon for today - Hippopotas (easy to get), Gastrodon (means I need an evolution, middling annoyance) and then Yanmega >_<

Okay, kept supplying her with Wanted Pokémon and now have her Pikachu & Staravia. Now she wants Spearow (easy again), Spinarak (just means some breeding) and still Yanmega, that last one is a bitch

http://en.lostpedia.com/wiki/Literary_works

Jouch is correct. Yeah, Lostpedia is awesome.

Also, Miles has to have the best name.

Miles Straume = Maelstrom

Love that word

All this talk about wanting to toss around Rikku, has actually made me decide to throw X back in sometime today. Which means I have unbeaten saves of VIII, IX and XII lying around. I need a better attention span.

No, you don't. Unless I do too. I have many unfinished FF saves.

So I got Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2: Grimoire Of The Sealed Rift today along with my new DS.

Penny Arcade wins.

Collect bugs, fish, furniture, fossils, pictures from your residents too.

Someone sent me a song saying it was composed 90% of Disney's Alice In Wonderland, so I had to listen and it's not too bad. It's called Alice and is by Pogo. Anyone else listened to it?

http://www.last.fm/music/Pogo (Four free songs there so give it a listen)

If I'm behind with this artist, apologies.

PS2 was last generation, surely there's got to come a time to just release a final game for the system and let it die? Don't get me wrong, I still sometimes have fun playing games such as Kingdom Hearts on it.

Well I'd imagine since it's called "city folk" it'd be... well... the size of a city

It's City Folk due to the city housing the Happy Room Academy, Gracie's and Harriet's and more stuff.

There was a brief blink of Buzz which I was looking forward to, but that was it. Also, I don't know why Sony still see PS2 as a market

I'm almost falling asleep at Sony's conference. If this guy talking went off the stage for more than a few minutes at a time, I'd be a little less bored.

The whole City thing for this makes it look great. The village also had a hill. How massive must villages be now?