The sued Switch modchip vendor denies the allegations and appears to be taking on Nintendo without a lawyer…
Nintendo has filed a complaint against Ryan Daly of Michigan, who runs a shop called Modded Hardware. The suit alleges that Nintendo contacted Daly in March and threatened to sue him if he did not stop selling modded Switch consoles and MIG Switches (which allow pirated versions of Switch games to be played on non-modded hardware).
According to the Japanese company’s complaint, Daly agreed to stop selling unauthorized devices in March. But he continued to do so, citing the fact that he was looking for a new lawyer.
Nintendo, therefore, filed a complaint in federal court in Seattle, accusing Daly of six counts, including “trafficking in circumvention devices” and copyright infringement.
Now Daly – who still hasn’t hired a lawyer – has filed a response to Nintendo’s complaint denying any wrongdoing.
As reported by TorrentFreak, Daly was brief in his response to each of Nintendo’s claims, either saying he “denies” or that he doesn’t have enough information to acknowledge or deny them, so he denies them.
Daly also listed 17 “affirmative defenses” _ defenses in which the defendant introduces evidence that could exonerate him from liability, including fair use, invalid copyright, and unjust enrichment.
The case will now move on to the next stage where both sides can begin obtaining evidence, although it appears that will continue with Daly representing himself instead of hiring a lawyer.
Nintendo’s lawsuit alleges that Daly not only sold mods to customers but also offered a mail-in service that allowed gamers to send in their Switch consoles and return them modded, often with pirated games installed.
“Defendant not only offers the hardware and firmware to create and play pirated games, but he also provides his customers with copies of pirated Nintendo games,” the platform owner’s complaint states.
“Typically, when a customer purchases a hacked console or the circumvention services, Defendant preinstalls on the console a portfolio of ready-to-play pirated games, including some of Nintendo’s most popular titles such as its Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Metroid games.”
Source: TorrentFreak
