Skip to main content

Zynga and Activision face patent infringement charge

WoW, COD, Mafia Wars part of "electronic tournament system" suit

Walker Digital, owner of travel site Priceline.com, has filed a lawsuit against Activision Blizzard and Zynga for alleged infringement of its patent.

US Patent Number 6,425,828 concerns a "database driven online distributed tournament system," a version of which Walker Digital claims has been used by 24 Blizzard and Zynga products - including World of Warcraft, Mafia Wars and Call of Duty.

The 2002 patent appears to cover a very broad definition of online gaming tournaments, including entry fees, player advancement and prizes.

Walker Digital has not revealed just how much of a damages payment it seeks, claiming it "cannot presently be quantified but will be ascertained through discovery or at trial."

Walker Digital has something of a history of patent suits - it's currently pursuing another against Facebook, concerning the sharing of user information.

Read this next

Alec Meer avatar
Alec Meer: A 10-year veteran of scribbling about video games, Alec primarily writes for Rock, Paper, Shotgun, but given any opportunity he will escape his keyboard and mouse ghetto to write about any and all formats.
Related topics