LucasArts comments on 3DO lawsuit

3DO filed a lawsuit against LucasArts for trademark infringement two weeks ago, claiming that LucasArts' use of the name Starfighter for its Star Wars space combat game on the PlayStation 2 will cause confusion with its own Star Fighter series of games. While both companies were unavailable for comment when we ran the story last week, LucasArts has issued a statement regarding the situation.

"The term Starfighter has been part of the Star Wars lexicon since at least the 1980s, and there is no basis for any claim against Star Wars Starfighter," Tom Sarris, director of public relations for LucasArts, stated. "LucasArts' game continues to enjoy critical and commercial success, and it furthers LucasArts' proud tradition of providing Star Wars fans and gamers alike with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the Star Wars universe and play out roles, scenes, etc. inspired by events first depicted in the Star Wars films."

3DO is basing the lawsuit on the grounds that it has spent significant amounts of money in the past promoting its own Star Fighter brand, LucasArts' Starfighter product is similar to its Star Fighter products, LucasArts' usage of the Starfighter name may cause confusion between products, and its Star Fighter products have been in production far longer than the LucasArts game.