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tardigrade_lawsuit [2018/08/22 23:21] – [Reactions] adds avi Carlos Pedrazatardigrade_lawsuit [2018/12/08 16:11] (current) – edits headline to clarify Carlos Pedraza
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 <wrap lo>**TWO TARDIGRADES** "Ripper" (left) was the teleporting tardigrade featured in //Star Trek: Discovery//; at right is the similarly-powered creature from the unreleased point-and-click game, Tardigrades, whose creator alleges //Discovery// copied his ideas. <wrap indent lo>//Image/Anastronaut blog//</wrap></wrap> <wrap lo>**TWO TARDIGRADES** "Ripper" (left) was the teleporting tardigrade featured in //Star Trek: Discovery//; at right is the similarly-powered creature from the unreleased point-and-click game, Tardigrades, whose creator alleges //Discovery// copied his ideas. <wrap indent lo>//Image/Anastronaut blog//</wrap></wrap>
  
-====== Indie Gamemaker Sues CBS for 'Copyright Infringement ======+====== Indie Gamemaker Sues 'Discovery' for Stealing His Ideas ======
  
-**//Allegations 'Star Trek: Discovery' Copied Significant Features From Unpulished 'Tardigrades' Game//**+**//Lawsuit Alleges CBS Copied Significant Features From Unreleased 'Tardigrades' Game//**
  
 {{TOC}} {{TOC}}
 {{page>byline}} {{page>byline}}
  
-A Kuwaiti videogame maker filed suit in U.S. District Court against [[CBS]] and Netflix seeking damages for what he alleges is [[copyright infringement]] in the conception, production and broadcast of //Star Trek: Discovery//.+A videogame maker filed suit August 19, 2018, in U.S. District Court against [[CBS]] and Netflix seeking damages for alleged [[copyright infringement]] in the conception, production and broadcast of //Star Trek: Discovery//.
  
-Anas Abdin, an Egyptian citizen residing in Kuwait, tweeted August 20, 2018, that he was suing the studio and international distributor of the heralded science fiction series after he tried for months to get them to take his copyright complaints seriously.+<WRAP center 95%> 
 +<wrap lo>**//See also:// [[tardigrade_lawsuit_trouble|'ST: Discovery' Copyright Lawsuit Gets off to Rocky Start]]** and **[[tardigrade_october|Tardigrades Developer Raises Stakes in 'Discovery' Lawsuit]]** and **[[tardigrades_pre_motion|CBS Seeks Meeting with Judge to Dismiss Copyright Case Against Discovery]]** \\ 
 +**//Analysis:// [[breakdown_dismissal_letter|The Case For and Against Dismissing the Tardigrades Suit]]**</wrap> 
 +</WRAP> 
 + 
 +Anas Abdin, an Egyptian citizen residing in Kuwait, tweeted he was suing the studio and Netflix, international distributor of the heralded science fiction series, after he tried for months to get them to take his copyright complaints seriously.
  
-<WRAP right round download 50%> +<WRAP right round download 320px> 
-<wrap lo><wrap em>DOWNLOAD</wrap> the 13-page {{ ::tardigrade_complaint.pdf |legal complaint}} for copyright infringement against CBS and Netflix by the creator of the unreleased videogame, "Tardigrades."</wrap>+<fs smaller><wrap em>DOWNLOAD</wrap> the 16-page, second amended {{ ::abdin_v_cbs_2_amended.pdf |legal complaint}}, filed October 29, 2018, alleging copyright infringement in //Star Trek: Discovery// by CBS and Netflix of plaintiff Anas Abdin's unreleased videogame, "Tardigrades."</fs>
 </WRAP> </WRAP>
  
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 In his legal complaint, Abdin alleges his "fictional characters, aesthetics and re-worked narratives that are unique to [his] Original Work … appear in the Infringing Work [Star Trek: Discovery]," and that the show's producers, "fully aware of Plaintiff's copyright … willfully and improperly developed, produced, filmed and released the Infringing Work derived from Plaintiff's Original Work."((Abdin v. CBS Broadcasting and Netflix Inc., docket 1, p. 4, 8/19/18.)) In his legal complaint, Abdin alleges his "fictional characters, aesthetics and re-worked narratives that are unique to [his] Original Work … appear in the Infringing Work [Star Trek: Discovery]," and that the show's producers, "fully aware of Plaintiff's copyright … willfully and improperly developed, produced, filmed and released the Infringing Work derived from Plaintiff's Original Work."((Abdin v. CBS Broadcasting and Netflix Inc., docket 1, p. 4, 8/19/18.))
  
-==== Seeking Damages ====+==== Damages ====
  
 The complaint seeks unspecified damages pending accounting of //Discovery//'s earnings presumably during the suit's [[discovery]] process. The complaint seeks unspecified damages pending accounting of //Discovery//'s earnings presumably during the suit's [[discovery]] process.
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 Among the allegedly infringing elements: Among the allegedly infringing elements:
-  * Space travel made possible by a blue-hued, human-sized tardigrade ("Ripper" in //Discovery//).+  * Space travel made possible by a blue-hued, bigger-than-human tardigrade ("Ripper" in //Discovery//).
   * A gay relationship between a blond white guy who is a space botanist, and a brown guy with sideburns, mustache and beard (Stamets and Culber in //Discovery//).   * A gay relationship between a blond white guy who is a space botanist, and a brown guy with sideburns, mustache and beard (Stamets and Culber in //Discovery//).
   * A main character accused of treason (Michael Burnham).   * A main character accused of treason (Michael Burnham).
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 ==== A Tale of Two Tardigrades ==== ==== A Tale of Two Tardigrades ====
  
-In a November 2017 interview, Abdin appeared to be worried CBS would try to prevent him from releasing his teleporting tardigrade game: "My ideal outcome is to get addressed by the producers and [know that they'll] let me be, to finish my project."(([[https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/11/08/a-tale-of-two-tardigrades/|"A Tale of Two Tardigrades," Rockpapershotgun.com]], 11/8/17.))+In a November 2017 interview, Abdin appeared to be worried CBS would try to prevent him from releasing his teleporting tardigrade game: "My ideal outcome is to get addressed by the producers and [know that they'll] let me be, to finish my project."((John Walker, [[https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/11/08/a-tale-of-two-tardigrades/|"A Tale of Two Tardigrades," Rockpapershotgun.com]], 11/8/17.))
  
-The writer of that article, John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun, however, remained skeptical:+The writer of that article, John Walker of the PC gaming news site, Rock Paper Shotgun, however, remained skeptical:
  
->  There’s every possibility that [//Discovery//'s] creative team had been working on the idea for years beforehand or simply came to it on their own. Indeed, put “tardigrade space travel” into Google and you’d perhaps expect to see //Star Trek: Discovery// dominating the results. But no. What you see instead is years and years of popular science articles about the seemingly invincible little Earth beasties, and their notorious ability to survive in a vacuum. And in space. … It’s entirely plausible both projects were inspired by similar ideas and developed entirely independently, regardless of both coming to light around the same time.(([[https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/11/08/a-tale-of-two-tardigrades/|"A Tale of Two Tardigrades," Rockpapershotgun.com]], 11/8/17.))+>  There’s every possibility that [//Discovery//'s] creative team had been working on the idea for years beforehand or simply came to it on their own. Indeed, put “tardigrade space travel” into Google and you’d perhaps expect to see //Star Trek: Discovery// dominating the results. But no. What you see instead is years and years of popular science articles about the seemingly invincible little Earth beasties, and their notorious ability to survive in a vacuum. And in space. … It’s entirely plausible both projects were inspired by similar ideas and developed entirely independently, regardless of both coming to light around the same time.((John Walker, [[https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2017/11/08/a-tale-of-two-tardigrades/|"A Tale of Two Tardigrades," Rockpapershotgun.com]], 11/8/17.)) 
 + 
 +[{{ ::ketwolski.jpg?nolink&125|YouTuber **Ketwolski**}}] 
 + 
 +==== Interactions with CBS Legal ==== 
 + 
 +A YouTube vlogger, [[yout>ziyfVDQe7Jo&t=108s|Ketwolski]], advocating for Abdin, claimed in an August 23 post that in the interactions the game developer had with network lawyers, they had promised to: 
 +<WRAP center 90%> 
 +  * Stop using tardigrades on //Star Trek: Discovery//. 
 +  * Not sue Abdin for his use of tardigrades. 
 +</WRAP> 
 + 
 +In his YouTube post, Ketwolski said he had documentation of Abdin's interactions with CBS but would not release them prematurely.(([[yout>ziyfVDQe7Jo&t=108s|"CBS Lawsuit | Studio vs Indie Game Update #1 | Star Trek Discovery Tardigrade Controversy"]], Ketwolski YouTube channel, 8/23/18.)) 
 + 
 +{{youtube>ziyfVDQe7Jo?large|CBS Lawsuit | Studio vs Indie Game Update #1 | Star Trek Discovery Tardigrade Controversy}} 
 +<WRAP 550px> 
 +<wrap lo>YouTuber Ketwolski advocates for Anas Abdin in the indie game developer's copyright infringement lawsuit against CBS. <wrap lo>//Video/Ketwolski/YouTube//</wrap></wrap> 
 +</WRAP>
  
 ===== Reactions ===== ===== Reactions =====
  
-Apart from some public skeptics, Abdin's lawsuit appeared to touch a nerve among Star Trek fans who don't like //Discovery// or who are still smarting from what they perceive as CBS' suit "against the fans" in the [[Axanar]] [[lawsuit|case]] that resulted in what they believe are onerous restrictions imposed on fan films.+Apart from some public skeptics, Abdin's lawsuit appeared to touch a nerve among Star Trek fans who don't like //Discovery// or who are still smarting from what they perceive as CBS' suit "against the fans" in the [[Axanar]] [[lawsuit|case]] that resulted in what they believe are [[cbs_guidelines|onerous restrictions]] imposed on fan films.
  
 Among the commentators was Axanar's former director, [[Robert Meyer Burnett]], who advised Abdin on Twitter: Among the commentators was Axanar's former director, [[Robert Meyer Burnett]], who advised Abdin on Twitter:
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 ==== Continuing Coverage ==== ==== Continuing Coverage ====
  
-**AxaMonitor** plans to provide continuing coverage, including reactions from CBS and Netflix. {{:axamonitor-ico.gif?nolink|}}+**AxaMonitor** is providing [[axam>tag:tardigrades_lawsuit&do=showtag&tag=Tardigrades_lawsuit|continuing coverage]], including reactions from CBS and Netflix. {{:axamonitor-ico.gif?nolink|}}
  
 <WRAP tip 75%> <WRAP tip 75%>
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 </WRAP> </WRAP>
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-**Keywords** {{tag>copyright lawsuit Star_Trek_Discovery}}+**Keywords** {{tag>Tardigrades_lawsuit copyright Star_Trek_Discovery CBS Netflix}}