Intellectual Property and Piracy Frequently Asked Questions
What is Intellectual Property?
Intellectual property is any innovation, commercial or artistic, or any unique name, symbol, logo or design used commercially. Intellectual property is protected by:
- Copyright in computer programs, music, videos, patterns and other forms of expression;
- The right to protect against infringement of copyright through deploying security measures (technological protection measures);
- Trademarks used to brand products;
- Patents on inventions. Design rights.
Nintendo owns the intellectual property rights for its products, which include copyrights, trademarks, patents and design rights.
What is a Copyright?
A copyright is an exclusive right granted to a creator of a literary, musical, audio-visual or artistic work, giving the creator the sole right to reproduce and distribute that work. There are several different types of copyrights that are associated with Nintendo's products. These include various copyrights in Nintendo's software source code, executable code, game visual display, game music, game characters, product packaging, game manuals and labels, hardware chip microcode, artwork and publications.
What are Trademarks?
Trademarks are the distinctive names, words, logos, designs and symbols used to distinguish a product of a particular manufacturer or source. Some of Nintendo's most widely recognized trademarks include Nintendo®, Nintendo Switch™, Nintendo 3DS™, Nintendo Labo™, amiibo™, Game Boy™, Pokémon™, Super Mario™, and The Legend of Zelda™. The Nintendo trademark has been filed in many countries throughout the world and registrations have been issued in Nintendo's name in many countries.
What is Video Game Piracy?
Video game piracy is the action of copying, downloading, or distributing illegal Nintendo video game products. Nintendo piracy can be in the form of illegal software available via the Internet, counterfeit games and systems, game copying devices, circumvention devices, and/or system modifications.
Video game piracy is illegal. Nintendo cooperates with law enforcement officials and aggressively pursues legal actions worldwide against those involved in Nintendo piracy.
What is Nintendo's official stance on video game piracy?
Video game piracy is illegal. Nintendo opposes those who benefit and trade off the creative work of game developers, artists, animators, musicians, motion capture artists and others. Piracy continues to be a significant threat to Nintendo's business, as well as to the businesses of thousands of game development companies that work to provide games for Nintendo systems. Most importantly, game developers and publishers depend on the legitimate sales of their games in order to survive. Piracy discourages innovation and new game development which ultimately impacts the consumer.
What is Nintendo doing to curb piracy globally?
Nintendo has anti-piracy programs in more than 40 countries and takes a multi-faceted approach to combating piracy, combining 1) legal enforcement; 2) consumer awareness; 3) technology; and 4) seeking improved intellectual property legislation.
Nintendo works closely with domestic and international enforcement authorities and Internet-monitoring agencies to curtail the spread of piracy and to demonstrate that the consequences for this illegal activity are real.
Nintendo continues efforts to educate customs and law-enforcement authorities on how to detect counterfeit products and infringing devices.
Nintendo works with international government officials to seek their assistance and cooperation in combating video game piracy together.
Nintendo collaborates with industry associations on a global scale to work together with other industry companies to pursue piracy and put forward legislative improvements.
What steps can parents take to address piracy with their children?
As with all things, parents and education are the best defense against their children possessing unlawful items and participating in unlawful activities. There are many tips to determine whether a Nintendo product is counterfeit or downloaded illegally. For a list of tips, please see the “How to Detect” section below.
How do I report potential infringements of Nintendo products?
Please see How to Report Potential Infringements of Nintendo Products.
How to Detect
Tips for detecting counterfeit products and infringing devices:
- Nintendo does not currently offer or authorize for sale any product that allows the play of game files downloaded via the Internet onto its handheld or home console systems. The only way to legitimately download games to Nintendo systems is through Nintendo eShop or through https://www.nintendo.com/store/games/ (games can be purchased through the site and downloads are initiated off-device).
- Carefully consider whether to purchase from websites offering large quantities of Nintendo products at low prices. The product could be counterfeit if offered well below the average retail price.
- Look closely at the print found on game discs, cartridges and packaging. Counterfeiters may ship the game disc or cartridge separate from the packaging or instruction manuals. If you purchase your product online, please note that a new Nintendo game comes fully assembled, within its packaging, and contains all relevant instruction materials.
- Use caution when purchasing used games. Make sure the product is not counterfeit, using the same tips outlined above.
Hardware Piracy & Software Piracy
Circumvention Devices
Circumvention devices are products including game copiers, USB piracy sticks and mod chips that bypass Nintendo’s security enabling a consumer to play unauthorized game files (called “ROMs”) that have previously been downloaded from the Internet or copied from the original disc or cartridge.
Are they illegal? It is illegal to sell circumvention devices (such as game copiers, USB piracy sticks and mod chips). Nintendo has obtained many decisions from criminal and civil courts across the world that confirms this. It is also unlawful to use these devices when playing unauthorized copies of Nintendo games.
Counterfeit Hardware
Unscrupulous traders continue to offer counterfeit copies of Nintendo hardware. For example, Nintendo has identified counterfeit versions of:
- Nintendo Entertainment System: NES Classic Edition and Super Nintendo Entertainment System: Super NES Classic Edition
- Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Controllers
- Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers
Hints for spotting counterfeit hardware:
- The pricing is often well below the average wholesale or retail prices. If “it seems too good to be true” – it probably is
- It may be missing packaging or manuals
- The printing on the packaging is blurred, faded, discolored or of poor quality
- Claims to be a refurbished product when it is not
A further list of tips can be found in the “How to Detect” section.
If you suspect that you are being offered counterfeit hardware, see How to Report Potential Infringements of Nintendo Products.
Physical Copies of Game Software
Counterfeit copies of authentic Nintendo game software are offered by unscrupulous traders.
Hints for spotting counterfeit game software:
- The pricing is often well below average wholesale or retail prices. If “it seems too good to be true” – it probably is
- It may be missing packaging or manuals
- The printing on the packaging is blurred, faded, discolored or of poor quality
- May include a compilation of games on one disc or memory card from a number of different publishers
A further list of tips can be found in the “How to Detect” section.
If you suspect that you are being offered counterfeit software, see How to Report Potential Infringements of Nintendo Products.
Online Piracy
Nintendo does not offer for sale, sell or distribute its games for its consoles or handhelds digitally other than from Nintendo eShop or through https://www.nintendo.com/store/games/ (games can be purchased through the site and downloads are initiated off-device).
If you see games offered for download using Peer-to-Peer networks, or by clicking on links to files hosted on third-party platforms, the content that you are accessing is an unauthorized copy (i.e. a pirate copy). Pirate copies of game files are often referred to as “ROMs”.
The uploading and downloading of pirate copies of Nintendo games is illegal.
Is It Okay to Copy or Download Older Titles That Are No Longer Sold?
No, the current availability of a game in stores is irrelevant as to its copyright status. Copyrights do not enter the public domain just because they are no longer commercially exploited or widely available. Therefore, the copyrights of games are valid even if the games are not found on store shelves, and using, copying and/or distributing those games is a copyright infringement.
While we recognize the passion that players have for classic games, supporting emulation also supports the illegal piracy of our products. Wherever possible, Nintendo and its licensees attempt to find ways to bring legitimate classics to current systems (via Virtual Console titles, for example).
Can I Download a ROM If I Own the Original Game?
No, downloading ROMs from direct download sites, linking sites or other illegal sources, even when you own a copy of the video game, is not allowable under the Copyright Act.
But can’t I make a backup copy if I own the video game?
You may be thinking of the backup/archival exception under the U.S. Copyright Act. There is some misinformation on the Internet regarding this backup/archival exception. This is a very narrow limitation that extends to computer software. Video games are comprised of numerous types of copyrighted works and should not be categorized as software only. Therefore, provisions that pertain to backup copies would not apply to copyrighted video game works and specifically ROM downloads, that are typically unauthorized and infringing.
