Game File Sharers Fined

A British woman put the game Dream Pinball 3D on a file-sharing network, allowing anyone to download it. It’s proved to be a very expensive action, as yesterday, in a London court, she was ordered to pay the game’s creator, Topware Interactive, over $32,000 in damages.

The decision, made at London’s Patents Country Court, awarded Topware Interactive over $12,000 in damages plus $20,000 in costs. It’s likely to be the first of many cases from Topware. Last year the company took legal action against British ISPs in order to identify people it claimed had been pirating the game on P2P networks. The company then sent out letters to the suspects, asking for $600 as a “settlement” fee to avoid further legal action.

Solicitor David Gore, who represented Topware Interactive in the court case, told the BBC:

"The damages and costs ordered by the Court are significant and should act as a deterrent. This shows that taking direct steps against infringers is an important and effective weapon in the battle against online piracy."

"This is the first of many. It was always intended that there would be a lot more."