Gibson Files Patent Suits Over Guitar Video Games

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 24, 2008 - 7:07am.

Nashville, Tenn. - Guitar manufacturer Gibson has filed a second patent infringement lawsuit over guitar-replica controllers used in the video games "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band," this time suing "Rock Band" makers Harmonix, Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) MTV Networks and Electronic Arts (NASD: ERTS). Gibson also last week filed suit against a number of retailers, including Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), for selling Activision's (NASD: ATVI) "Guitar Hero" in violation of its 1999 patent.

The patent in question describes technology that lets users "simulate participation in a concert by playing a musical instrument and wearing a head-mounted 3-D display that includes stereo speakers."

While Gibson has not directly sued Activision, for its part Activision has asked a federal court to declare that Guitar Hero controllers do not violate Gibson's patent.

"We disagree with the applicability of their patent and would like a legal determination on this," George Rose, Activision's general counsel, said in explaining Activision's lawsuit, the Associated Press reported.