Gibson Guitar sues six major retailers for selling Guitar Hero

Suits and countersuits, statements and counter-statements have flown back and forth between the camps of Gibson Guitar and Activision for patent infringement. Today’s update on the issue centers on a recently filed suit against retailers of the game. The defendants? Wal-Mart, Amazon, Kmart, GameStop, Target, and Toys “R” Us. Check out the entire story at the full article.

We’ve seen a volley of lawsuits and countersuits, statements and counter-statements in the current patent argument between Gibson Guitar and Guitar Hero publisher, Activision. Now, the guitar makers have taken the fight to the retail level, filing suit against six major retailers including Wal-Mart, Amazon, Kmart, GameStop, Target, and Toys “R” Us for selling the video games.

In case you missed our previous reports, it all started when Gibson filed suit against Activision, claiming that the Guitar Hero franchise infringed its 1999 patent for “System and Method for Generating and Controlling a Simulated Musical Concert Experience.” The receiving end of the flak, Activision, answered with a countersuit and a statement. This time, Gibson has filed a suit against the retailers for selling Guitar Hero.

According to reports, Gibson’s lawsuit says that the company “has been damaged and will continue to be damaged by the aforesaid infringement unless defendants are enjoined, preliminarily and permanently, from selling and offering for sale infringing products …”

We’ll keep you posted on more news regarding this legal battle, stay tuned.

Buy: [ Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Xbox 360), (Wii) ]
Buy: [ Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (PS3), (PC) ]