Nintendo is complaining about a ROM store owner they sued missing a $50 payment

[mongeese]

TL;DR: After winning a lengthy legal battle against Matthew Storman in May, Nintendo is seeking a permanent injunction against his site, RomUniverse, because they believe that his failure to pay the first $50 towards his $2.1 million debt shows that he disregards the law.

In 2019, Nintendo sued Storman as the owner of RomUniverse, a site they purported was illegally distributing copyrighted Nintendo games. Storman chose to represent himself. The California Federal Court ultimately awarded Nintendo $35,000 for each of their 49 games available on the site and an extra $400,000 in trademark damages.

According to himself, at the time of his deposition, Storman’s only source of income was "unemployment and food stamps." Before being closed down as part of an agreement with Nintendo last year, RomUniverse was generating about $800 per month.

Nintendo has already sought an injunction against Storman’s operation of RomUniverse, which would prevent him from ever relaunching the site. But their request was denied because they failed to show that the site had caused them irreparable damage, which is a legal requirement, and because it was already offline.

However, Nintendo’s lawyers now claim that in a recent phone call with Storman, he didn’t deny the possibility of relaunching the site in some kind of legal fashion. Nintendo’s lawyers argue that because he hasn’t made the first $50 payment towards his $2.1 million debt, the threat of further financial consequences might not disincentivize further copyright infringements.

"This failure to make even the modest $50/month payment, an amount that he proposed and agreed to, demonstrates that Nintendo has no adequate remedy at law for Defendant’s past or future infringement and underscores the need for a permanent injunction," Nintendo’s lawyers write.

It would take Storman 3,525 years to pay off his $2.115 million debt at the $50 per month rate the Court has mandated.

Image credit: Cláudio Luiz Castro

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https://www.techspot.com/news/90296-nintendo-complaining-about-rom-store-owner-they-sued.html

 

[Dimitriid]

Really? Nintendo really needs 50 bucks?

Or do the bastards just want to throw this guy in jail to make an example out of him?

They won, site is gone, guy's life is probably ruined for good at least financially Nintendo: you can shut up now.

 

[R00sT3R]

..Gotta justify, those no doubt exorbitant legal firm retainers at Nintendo HQ, somehow.

Just think of all those poor lawyers who would be on the bread line if we lived in world without vexatious legal recourse.

 

[gerjy5w]

Good job Nintendo

 

[MaitieS]

It's kind of funny how everyone is shitting on EA meanwhile I feel like Nintendo is THE WORST. Damn I am so happy that I never cared about their trashy games

 

[wujj123456]

It's kind of funny how everyone is shitting on EA meanwhile I feel like Nintendo is THE WORST. Damn I am so happy that I never cared about their trashy games

Copyright wise, I think most people would agree Nintendo is indeed the worst.

 

[Nicromancer]

That guy should really start to get a job and stop stealing from others. No matter how people hate Nintendo,that guy is the one to blame in the story. The 50 per month for thousands of years penalty is too forgiving not to mention our money is becoming less and less valuable every year.

 

[m4a4]

It's kind of funny how everyone is shitting on EA meanwhile I feel like Nintendo is THE WORST. Damn I am so happy that I never cared about their trashy games

EA can be the worst publisher, Nintendo can be the worst console maker

 

[m4a4]

Congrats Nintendo, you took down the ONLY site hosting ROMs (at least, that's what it seems like), and you're making this guy's life hell for not being more careful hiding his ID.

Man, Nintendo sure does makes it easy to not want to buy their stuff (and pirate it instead lol)...

 

[scavengerspc]

You breaks the law, you pays the price.

Pay your lifetime $50 per month order or go to jail.
This is still America, so make your choice.

 

[verthias]

Pay Nintendo that child support

 

[Lounds]

I think the issue is, these games are no longer manufactured and aren't available to purchase on digital platforms to play. Personally this the biggest bs from Nintendo. I could understand maybe a Dev getting annoyed perhaps but seriously how can Nintendo moan about ROM sites when they don't offer an alternative.

 

[Xibyth]

I think Nintendo is grossly exaggerating the impact these sites have on their business. Realistically I blame America's broken copyright system and Nintendos blatant attempts to profit off of roms at any corner. They wonder how these sites draw so many, and while many play these games on pc, many more actually play on Nintendo hardware, they simply can't access them anywhere else. Prime example, Super Mario RPG has yet to be available on current Nintendo hardware.

 

[Puiu]

It's just 50$ per month. it's not a sum an adult can't pay. just freaking pay it.

 

[amghwk]

Time to download more Nintendo roms.

 

[Lol ok sus]

Really? Nintendo really needs 50 bucks?

Or do the bastards just want to throw this guy in jail to make an example out of him?

They won, site is gone, guy's life is probably ruined for good at least financially Nintendo: you can shut up now.

Did you even read the article? Nintendo themselves say it is to make an example him, of which it is their right as a company. If he isn't paying up then what's the point in copyright laws?

 

[Lol ok sus]

I think the issue is, these games are no longer manufactured and aren't available to purchase on digital platforms to play. Personally this the biggest bs from Nintendo. I could understand maybe a Dev getting annoyed perhaps but seriously how can Nintendo moan about ROM sites when they don't offer an alternative.

Actually Nintendo sell many retro games, and you can use second hand market to buy them from other people, so don't talk like that.

 

[DukeJukem]

I don't agree with Nintendo being compared to EA. When it comes to video games Nintendo releases fun, fully functional titles with basically no microtransactions excluding their mobile games. Nintendo also listens when it comes to what their audience wants in future titles. EA on the other hand is a complete pile of garbage that throws microtransactions in every game they make and they don't listen to their customers. EA has completely ruined the fun aspect of all of their sports games. Tell me the last time Madden or Fifa was actually fun, it's tough. EA also releases broken games, hosts servers that are running dial up etc.

Nintendo just enforces the law people are breaking. Sure, paying 50 a month sucks but you also knew the risk of what you were doing. You're actually lucky the U.S has a right to a fair trial or you'd just be rotting in a cell......or taken out. The dude was an unemployed "loser" living on food stamps making money off someone elses' work. What do you expect?

 

[scavengerspc]

I don't agree with Nintendo being compared to EA. When it comes to video games Nintendo releases fun, fully functional titles with basically no microtransactions excluding their mobile games. Nintendo also listens when it comes to what their audience wants in future titles. EA on the other hand is a complete pile of garbage that throws microtransactions in every game they make and they don't listen to their customers. EA has completely ruined the fun aspect of all of their sports games. Tell me the last time Madden or Fifa was actually fun, it's tough. EA also releases broken games, hosts servers that are running dial up etc.

Nintendo just enforces the law people are breaking. Sure, paying 50 a month sucks but you also knew the risk of what you were doing. You're actually lucky the U.S has a right to a fair trial or you'd just be rotting in a cell......or taken out. The dude was an unemployed "loser" living on food stamps making money off someone elses' work. What do you expect?

 

[Dimitriid]

I don't agree with Nintendo being compared to EA. When it comes to video games Nintendo releases fun, fully functional titles with basically no microtransactions excluding their mobile games.

Oh sure, just exclude the cases where they absolutely do that for....Reasons. It's weird how you set up and then move your own goal post there chief.

 

[Nightmacer]

Actually Nintendo sell many retro games, and you can use second hand market to buy them from other people, so don't talk like that.

Actually buying second hand literally contributes nothing, Nintendo doesn't make any money from that

 

[scavengerspc]

Actually buying second hand literally contributes nothing, Nintendo doesn't make any money from that

Which puts them in the same category as, every other company in the world.

 

[scavengerspc]

Oh sure, just exclude the cases where they absolutely do that for....Reasons. It's weird how you set up and then move your own goal post there chief.

Those games are free to play with zero upfront cost. Bad example brother.

 

[DukeJukem]

Those games are free to play with zero upfront cost. Bad example brother.

he called me chief

 

[Axil00]

Did you even read the article? Nintendo themselves say it is to make an example him, of which it is their right as a company. If he isn't paying up then what's the point in copyright laws?

I don't know. What is the point of copyright laws that protect Nintendos right to not distribute decades old material that would've fallen into public domain, again, literally decades ago if the laws were not periodically updated to require tax payers to continue to finance enforcement of said protection?

I'm having a hard time figuring it out.