Spanish judge throws out criminal case against DS flash cart seller

Posted by Mister-X on November 23rd, 2009 at 08:45pm

Judge D. Gregorio Alvarez Alvarez of Salamanca, Spain, dismissed a complaint brought by Nintendo against Grupo Movilquick, which sells the DSTT flash cart in Spain. The judge ruled that though the device does circumvent Nintendo's DRM, and can be used for piracy, it can also be used to extend the functionality of the DS in other, legal ways -- such as, according to Google's translation of the judge's statement, "backing up original games or other various functions such as managing photos, music or performance of (free software)."

The judge notes that Nintendo might still have grounds for a civil lawsuit if it can be proven that the DSTT infringes on a Nintendo industrial design patent. But his ruling is a far cry from the usual "flash carts are piracy machines" rhetoric that (understandably) angry companies like Nintendo perpetuate.

[Via GamePolitics]

Spanish judge throws out criminal case against DS flash cart seller originally appeared on Joystiq Nintendo on Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.