St. Clair Shores, MI residents Scott and Jayme Dodich are fed up with Pokémon Go.
The couple, who live in the metro Detroit area, are filing a class-action lawsuit in federal court in California. The two are suing three separate entities, the first of which is Pokémon Go developer Niantic. Secondly, the Dodiches are suing Nintendo, who own 32% stock in the Pokémon Company. Finally, they’re suing the Pokémon Company itself.
The main complaint from the couple is that Pokémon Go has placed gyms and Pokéstops on private property without the permission of property owners. The first objective of the lawsuit is to stop Pokémon, Pokéstops or gyms from popping up on private property without the permission of the property owner.
However, there is another objective to the suit. The Dodiches are filing the class-action lawsuit in hopes that profits will be shared with various residents. The suit claims that this property owned by private residents contributed to the game's success. The lawsuit states that, "As of July 23, Pokémon Go had been downloaded more than 30 million times and had earned more than $35 million in revenue."
This is not the first time that Pokémon Go has been sued. On July 29th, New Jersey resident Jeffrey Marder filed a class-action lawsuit against Niantic, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company.
Many complaints regarding augmented reality invading real-world space have arisen since Niantic released the game. Certain sites, such as the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, were Pokéstops for the game. However, that and the Arlington National Cemetery were quickly removed from the game by Niantic upon request.
Nintendo, Niantic and The Pokémon Company have not yet responded to the lawsuit.
Quick Take
Pokémon Go has brought up some very good issues regarding augmented reality and the real world. Where does one draw the line between acceptable and not acceptable? How do you feel about the lawsuit, or the complaints in general? Let us know, we’re curious!