Stephen S. Wu-- SL: Legal Writer, swu@svlg.com, (408) 573-5737, 50 W. San Fernando St., Ste. 750, San Jose, CA 95113

Events of the Week

I checked the dockets this week for the Eros v. Linden Research case and the Playfish v. Rackspace case, and the docket revealed no new filings. These cases have been quiet, at least in terms of filings. It may be that the parties are now exchanging requests for information to each other to begin the evidence-gathering process.
In the meantime, I would like to mention a great article in the San Jose Mercury News entitled “New Generation of Online Games Attracts Millions.” The article describes the success of the “free to play” business model, in which users can try a game for free and the game company makes its revenue from a modest percentage of its players that is willing to pay for virtual goods and other in-world benefits. The article mentions that the market for virtual property is approximately $1B this year, and is expected to be $1.6B next year. WIth that kind of money involved, litigation will occur, and I will keep reporting on it.
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