Fallout IP Related Lawsuits Settled by Bethesda
At long last, all lawsuits pertaining to the Fallout intellectual property have been settled by Bethesda.
Interplay and Bethesda Softworks settled their dispute over the rights to the Fallout IP including the infamous MMO that was to be developed by Interplay. According to Bethesda, “the license granted to Interplay to develop the Fallout MMO is null and void, and all rights granted to Interplay to develop a Fallout MMO revert back to Bethesda, effective immediately.”
Interplay will receive $2 Million from ZeniMax (parent company of Bethesda) while each side will pay its own legal fess. In addition to this, Bethesda retains its rights to the Fallout IP while Interplay has no right to the Fallout brand or IP Though Interplay no longer has rights to Fallout, it is permitted to sell Fallout, Fallout 2, and Fallout Tactics until December 2013 at which time, the right to sell and any merchandising rights will expire.
As far as the Fallout MMO is concerned:
“The lawsuit against Interplay arose after Bethesda Softworks acquired all Fallout intellectual property rights from Interplay in April 2007, and conditionally licensed back to Interplay certain trademark rights to make a Fallout MMO, provided Interplay secured $30 million in financing for the MMO and commenced full scale development of the game by April 2009,” Bethesda stated in a release about the settlement. “Bethesda alleged in its complaint that Interplay failed to meet either condition of the license back agreement but refused to relinquish its license and insisted it would develop a Fallout MMO.”
And for Masthead Studios being subcontracted by Interplay to work on the MMO, Bethesda states, that matter has also been settled, and that “Masthead had no right to the Fallout IP”.
Robert Altman, Chairman and CEO of ZeniMax had this to say. “Fallout is an important property of ZeniMax and we are now able to develop future Fallout titles for our fans without third party involvement or the overhang of others’ legal claims.”