Nintendo Asks GitHub to Shut Down Game Boy Emulator

[Megalith]

Not content with suing ROM sites, Nintendo is now going after browser-based emulation: the company filed a DMCA notice late last week asking GitHub to remove a repository hosting a JavaScript-based Game Boy Advance emulator and titles such as Advance Wars, Dragon Ball Z, and Super Mario Advance.

“The files located at the repository link https://jsemu3.github.io/gba/ contain unauthorized copies of Nintendo’s video game software in violation of the law and GitHub’s Terms of Service,” Nintendo writes. The repository in question offered JavaScript-powered versions of many popular titles including Advance Wars, Dragon Ball Z, Super Mario Advance, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, and Legend of Zelda.

 

[purple_monster]

looks like they decided to pay the $8 and take the repo private

 

[hlfbkd420]

*loads up his raspberry pi.

 

[DukenukemX]

It looks like they're after the roms and not the emulator itself.

 

[SCSI-Terminator]

Well, yeah. Emulators are not illegal.

 

[tetris42]

Unless it contains actual code from the original Gameboy, this is a bullying tactic, with no legal standing. Any attorney worth his salt should know about Sony v. Bleem back in 2000, which declared reverse engineered emulators legal. There's no way Nintendo doesn't know this, so they're trying to intimidate the site to shut it down. Too bad there's no penalty for a frivolous DMCA takedown request.

 

[acidrain97]

I'm waiting for Nintendo to go after Hakchi... Even though no roms are involved but it does affect SNES/NES mini. To be honest Nintendo should pay the authors of Hakchi because with out them the SNES/NES probably would not of sold like it did. Even here in Sparks, NV it's very hard to find those little consoles. Target/Best Buy seem to be the only ones to carry them.

 

[Nobu]

Yeah, if you browse to the repo from the user's list of projects, you get a notice of dmca takedown.

The issue here was the hosting of nintendo roms, and possibly a bios file ripped from a system. If it were just the emulator, there'd probably be no issue.

 

[emphy]

Unless it contains actual code from the original Gameboy, this is a bullying tactic, with no legal standing. Any attorney worth his salt should know about Sony v. Bleem back in 2000, which declared reverse engineered emulators legal. There's no way Nintendo doesn't know this, so they're trying to intimidate the site to shut it down. Too bad there's no penalty for a frivolous DMCA takedown request.

Maybe Nintendo is testing the waters with github's new owner. I think it highly unlikely they are trying to intimidate them, though.

 

[leathco016]

They aren't going after the emulator, they are going after the ROMs being hosted. The emulator itself is fine, and as long as it only was hosting public domain ROMS, or allowed users to upload their own, they would be fine. It's the copyrighted content that is the problem, and they are in the right for doing so.

 

[mope54]

It's boggling my mind that these stories keep popping up here as "news" like it's the first you've heard of Nintendo's aggressive pursuit against anyone and everything related to infringements against their IP.

 

[jedijeb13]

If Nintendo is using the code in active games I can see it as being legit, but with so many thing that are no longer sold or supported, they should change copyright laws so that it becomes open source within a few years of the owner no longer selling or supporting it.

Just like when Michael Jackson bought the rights to the Beatles music, should have never been allowed. Works should belong to the original owner and not be transferable, once the owner is gone or no longer wants to use the rights, it becomes public.

 

[gamerk2]

They aren't going after the emulator, they are going after the ROMs being hosted. The emulator itself is fine, and as long as it only was hosting public domain ROMS, or allowed users to upload their own, they would be fine. It's the copyrighted content that is the problem, and they are in the right for doing so.

Ding ding.

Really nothing else to say here.

 

[c3141hf]

They aren't going after the emulator, they are going after the ROMs being hosted. The emulator itself is fine, and as long as it only was hosting public domain ROMS, or allowed users to upload their own, they would be fine. It's the copyrighted content that is the problem, and they are in the right for doing so.

Except that copyright isn't supposed to be perpetual. It is a violation of the social contract that copyright was created for. Creators were supposed to get a *limited* copyright in exchange for having the work later released in the public domain. The constitution even says as much. Copyright was never intended to last more than 10 or 20 years at the most. Having perpetual copyright is not only unconstitutional, it defeats the entire purpose since if you have a perpetual monopoly, you have no need to release new products since you can keep charging for the same works over and over again.

 

[Derangel]

Except that copyright isn't supposed to be perpetual. It is a violation of the social contract that copyright was created for. Creators were supposed to get a *limited* copyright in exchange for having the work later released in the public domain. The constitution even says as much. Copyright was never intended to last more than 10 or 20 years at the most. Having perpetual copyright is not only unconstitutional, it defeats the entire purpose since if you have a perpetual monopoly, you have no need to release new products since you can keep charging for the same works over and over again.

Blame Disney and Congress for fucking it all up. Also, copyright isn't perpetual, it just lasts a really damn long time right now and will likely be made to last longer as soon as Mickey gets close to being public domain.

 

[zkostik]

Well, yeah. Emulators are not illegal.

Yup, but ROMs are. This site didn't just host a JS emulator but also ROMs which is why they got in trouble. Not really surprising to be honest. It was very shortsighted of them to also make the ROMs available in their GitHub.

 

[pendragon1]

nope, not surprising at all. they have been doing stuff like this since the 90s. but as stated its all about the roms not the emus.

 

[sfsuphysics]

So Nintendo is going to rerelease the Gameboy now?

 

[leathco016]

Except that copyright isn't supposed to be perpetual. It is a violation of the social contract that copyright was created for. Creators were supposed to get a *limited* copyright in exchange for having the work later released in the public domain. The constitution even says as much. Copyright was never intended to last more than 10 or 20 years at the most. Having perpetual copyright is not only unconstitutional, it defeats the entire purpose since if you have a perpetual monopoly, you have no need to release new products since you can keep charging for the same works over and over again.

A common misconception. A quote from https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-duration.html should help clear this up though.

"As a general rule, for works created after January 1, 1978, copyright protection lasts for the life of the author plus an additional 70 years."

Considering none of these games are 70 years old, and in many cases members of the original coding team are still alive, Nintendo is well within its rights to enforce their claims.

 

[Trimlock]

Damn that evil nintendo for protecting what’s rightfully theirs. DAMN THEM!