The Lanier Law Firm Announces Trademark Infringement Lawsuit Against EA Over Mirror's Edge Video Game
SAN JOSE - The Lanier Law Firm is announcing a trademark infringement lawsuit filed today against video game giant Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) over the popular Mirror's Edge video game franchise.
The first-person, action-adventure game featuring the main character "Faith" has been a worldwide success for EA, which has sold more than one million copies of Mirror's Edge on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC and iOS platforms.
The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose Division, includes claims of willful infringement and unfair competition against Redwood City, Calif.-based EA. The Lanier Law Firm's W. Mark Lanier, Christopher Banys and Daniel M. Shafer are representing Pasadena, Calif.-based Edge Games Inc. in its damages claim and request for a court injunction to prevent EA's continued infringement. The lawsuit also includes claims for treble damages, which could triple any verdict if jurors find that EA willfully infringed Edge Games' trademark.
In continuous operation since the early 1980s, Edge Games and its predecessor companies comprise one of the oldest surviving video game development and publishing businesses in the U.S. Edge Games and its related entities have used the "Edge" trademark since 1984, including maintaining several registered trademarks for years based on the "Edge" designation.
According to the lawsuit, Edge Games sent a cease-and-desist letter in July 2007 after learning of EA's intentions to launch Mirror's Edge. Rather than responding to the letter, the lawsuit states, EA instead filed a trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in an attempt to register the Mirror's Edge name. The USPTO denied the application in early 2008, stating that EA's planned use of Mirror's Edge would likely cause confusion with several registered trademarks maintained by Edge Games.
Despite Edge Games' repeated efforts to contact representatives from EA, the lawsuit says EA did not respond until October 2008. Less than a month into negotiations, EA launched the Mirror's Edge line without Edge Games' approval.
EA is working on a sequel called Mirror's Edge 2, and the video gaming community is flooding online message boards in hopes that the new edition will be released during this week's e3 Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles. EA is one of the world's largest providers of video games with more than 7,800 employees worldwide, and 2009 revenue of $4.2 billion.
The lawsuit is Edge Games Inc. v. Electronic Arts Inc., No. CV-10-02614.
With offices in Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Houston and New York, The Lanier Law Firm is committed to addressing client concerns with effective and innovative solutions in courtrooms across the country. The firm is composed of outstanding trial attorneys with decades of experience handling cases involving intellectual property, pharmaceutical liability, asbestos exposure, business litigation, product liability, toxic exposure and maritime law.
For more information, please contact The Lanier Law Firm.
