Legal Niches

R4 Cards Now Illegal in UK

By pete_gallagher

R4 cards, which allow Nintendo DS owners to run their own code, homebrew applications and, in some cases, illegal copies of games, have been outlawed in the UK.

MCVUK carries word that a London High Court issued the ruling in a case against Playables Limited, decreeing that the R4 cards are now illegal to import, advertise or sell. Defendant Wai Dat Chan had attempted to argue that the cards should be legal since they allow users to run homebrew applications, but the court ruled that 'the R4 must first must circumvent Nintendo's security systems before it can work, therefore making it illegal.'

Nintendo, which apparently was the plaintiff in the case, issued a statement saying 'Nintendo initiates these actions not only on its own behalf, but also on behalf of over 1,400 video game development companies that depend on legitimate sales of games for their survival.'
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Full post as published by GamePolitics.com on July 28, 2010 (boomark / email).