Valve, the game developer and publisher that's also at the helm of PC game distribution platform Steam, has won its lawsuit against Leigh Rothschild and company. One of the most revered entities in gaming, Valve has been responsible for some of the most critically acclaimed properties in the industry since its founding in 1996.
Valve's litany of popular franchises includes Half-Life, Team Fortress, Left 4 Dead, and Portal. The company also published DOTA 2, the sequel to the fan-made 2003 title Defense of the Ancients that helped to popularize the MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) subgenre. In addition to its development and publishing work, Valve is also the company behind Steam, the incredibly successful PC game distribution platform. Valve has also produced a wide range of hardware devices since its inception, including the company's portable Steam Deck, which allows players to enjoy a large portion of their Steam library via the handheld device. The upcoming Steam Machine promises to bring a similar experience to living rooms, granting players the option to play their PC titles in living rooms by way of a Steam-based home console.
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Valve Has Emerged Victorious in Its Lawsuit Against Leigh Rothschild
Valve has experienced a major victory in its 2023 lawsuit against Leigh Rothschild, his lawyer, and their associated companies. According to court documents on the case, a judge has ruled that Rothschild and company have violated both Washington's Patent Troll Prevention Act and its Consumer Protection Act, while also committing a breach of contract against Valve. The lawsuit, centered around patent US8856221B2, comes after years of strenuous legal action between the two entities, and Valve's success could set a major precedent for other businesses in similar court cases.
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Rothschild, an inventor and head of a host of companies, holds several patents, both granted and pending. The patent in question, US8856221B2, is listed as a "system and method for storing broadcast content in a cloud-based computing environment." In 2016, Valve entered into an agreement with Leigh Rothschild and Rothschild Broadcast Distribution Systems (RBDS), his company, and the holder of said patent. Despite holding a "perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, fully paid-up, worldwide license" for this patent and others that Rothschild holds, Valve was sued by Rothschild for patent violation in 2022. Rothschild once again took legal action against the creator of the Steam Deck in 2023, with another lawsuit specifically focusing on Valve's use of its US8856221B2 patent.
Valve responded to this legal action by filing its own lawsuit against Rothschild himself, RBDS, and several of his other companies, along with attorney Samuel Meyler and Meyler Legal LLC. This lawsuit alleged that Rothschild, his attorney, and the associated companies acted in bad faith when taking legal action against Valve, with a judge ruling in the developer's favor on every one of its claims. This ruling sets a new precedent in legal action taken over patents, as Valve took major action against not just RBDS but Rothschild himself, alleging that his many companies serve as "alter egos" for the inventor. This violation of the Washington Patent Troll Prevention and Consumer Protection Acts places the attention on the individual responsible, preventing the ruling from focusing on any "shell" company that Rothschild may own.
This ruling may allow other companies to more effectively target "patent trolls" — individuals or businesses that hold numerous patents with no intention of using them, instead profiting by taking bad-faith legal action against those who do utilize the methods and technologies they've patented. With patents playing such a major role in the world of gaming, this could prevent the industry from being overrun by these disingenuous individuals who simply look to capitalize on the work of others.
Source: PC Gamer