Nintendo wins intellectual property suit

Nintendo of America has announced that it has been awarded a complete victory in its suit to recover infringing Internet domain names. The company sued individuals who held domain names--such as pokemon-trader.com and growlithe.com--that the company felt infringed on its intellectual property rights. A federal judge in the US District Court in Seattle awarded Nintendo a complete victory in the case, including damages ranging from $2,000 to $30,000 per name for 48 names--a total award of $560,000.

"Nintendo is pleased the court recognized the company's intellectual property rights and understood the damages that are caused by cybersquatting," said Richard C. Flamm, vice president and general counsel for Nintendo of America. "The anti-cybersquatting legislation is an effective tool to recover domain names in a single lawsuit."

This was Nintendo's first mass domain case under the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, which was enacted in October 2000.