Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

The Intellectual Property StrategistKickerFeaturesSectionsNewsLJN Newsletters

Ninth Circuit to Plaintiff: Game Over! Virtual 'Pig Pen' Protected By First Amendment; 'Barbie Girl' Case Extended to Non-titular Expressive Works

By Jane Shay Wald
February 26, 2009

The defendants, producers of the irreverent and popular “Grand Theft Auto” video game series, came out with “Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.” Players enter the gangster culture of the West Coast in the virtual city of Los Santos, dodging drug pushers and prostitutes in a neighborhood replete with virtual liquor stores, ammo dealers, casinos, pawn shops, tattoo parlors, bars, and strip clubs, while enjoying the sound of random gunfire, in a setting lampooning “the seedy underbelly of LA,” according to its artists. The video game, of course, was a big hit. The game includes, among countless other low-end virtual elements, a strip club named “Pig Pen.”

The plaintiff operates an actual strip club, Play Pen Gentlemen's Club, and brought suit claiming that Pig Pen infringed its mark “Play Pen” and the trade dress associated with it. That allegedly distinctive trade dress included, inter alia, a logo version of the phrase “Totally Nude,” combined with the silhouette of a naked female.

This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only

  • Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
  • Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
  • Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts

For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473

Read These Next
Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It Image

Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?

Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.

The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later Image

The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.

A Lawyer's System for Active Reading Image

Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.

Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent Trolls Image

With trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.