Blizzard Entertainment, besides raking in and spending loads of dough on World of Warcraft, is embroiled yet in another lawsuit, but this time, it’s for… fonts?
That’s right folks, Beijing Founder Electronics Co Ltd said yesterday that they’re currently suing Blizzard for alleged copyright infringement over its fonts that have been used in World of Warcraft.
Founder Electronics is China’s largest supplier of fonts and due to this infringement, Founder Electronics claimed they’ve lost over 1 billion yuan ($131.87 million) in sales. Color me surprised, but I never knew fonts were such a lucrative business; I guess graphics folks will easily say otherwise.
Beijing’s High People’s Court, which is the highest local court in China, accepted Founder Electronics’ case and will proceed. According to the suit, Founder Electronics is seeking 100 million yuan ($13.19 million) for compensation over the infringement. This marks the largest amount by a Chinese company in a case like this.
Will this case affect Blizzard’s partnership with The9 Limited? The9 currently is hosting World of Warcraft all over China, so a case like this can turn the deal to sour grapes. Hopefully it doesn’t lead to that.
