RedOctane Sues Third Party Peripheral Maker

Representatives from Guitar Hero publisher, and recent Activision acquisition, RedOctane have confirmed that the company has filed a law suit against peripheral manufacturer The Ant Commandos, over the creation and sale of controllers for the Guitar Hero game. The suit claims offences including unfair competition, trademark infringement, copyright infringement, unfair and deceptive trade practices, false advertising and unjust enrichment. RedOctane also alleges that despite advertising for the products, they are not fully compatible with the award winning game for the PlayStation 2. According to consumer website GameSpot the suit reads; “Defendants have copied the packaging of Plaintiffs' products and have used Plaintiffs' trademarks and copyrighted material in its packaging and advertising of its own products in an effort to cause confusion among consumers." The law suit asks that The Ant Company no longer makes, advertises or sells the guitars, recalls those already sold and turns over all materials for destruction as well as profits from the sales, damages and attorney’s fees. As GameSpot points out the irony of the situation is that RedOctane, before being acquired by Activision, was the subject of another law suit alleging broadly the same complaints, after RedOctane created unlicensed peripherals for Konami’s Dance Dance Revolution (aka Dancing Stage) series.