Square Enix registers Just Cause 4 domains; Just Cause 3 not yet released
Aside from 2011 rumors of a Just Cause 3 video game in development and a movie, there hasn’t been a whole lot of news lately about Just Cause.
That may be about to change as Square Enix has registered a slew of Just Cause 4 domain names on May 18, 2012, like JustCause4.com (Whois) and JustCause4.fr (Whois).
Through the internet brand protection firm Corporation Service Company, Square Enix not only picked up the dot-com, but also registered the same name in different country code extensions, as well as JustCause3.it.
The list of Just Cause 4 domains includes: JustCause4.com, JustCause4.fr, JustCause4.co.uk, JustCause4.de, and JustCause4.it.
As of today, there has been no official announcement by Square Enix regarding Just Cause 4. Then again, Just Cause 3 hasn’t even been released.
The latest registrations hint that “official” Just Cause news may be imminent, and as a defensive measure, Square Enix registered the Just Cause 4 names.
Talking about this story: Game Informer, Cinema Blend, VG247, Eurogamer España, GameZone, Eurogamer.de, and PSX Extreme
Ubisoft settles on “Face Your Insanity” tagline for Far Cry 3 according to domain
Back in March, a GameFAQs member completed a market research survey for Far Cry 3 box art. They were also asked their opinion for the tagline “Face your insanity”.
Many of the people who responded in the forum liked the tagline. One person even replied, “Face your insanity is the perfect tagline for this game.”
Now, it looks like Ubisoft has settled on the tagline “Face Your Insanity” for the upcoming first-person shooter video game. On May 17, 2012, Ubisoft registered the domain name faceyourinsanity.com (Whois).
At the time of this story, the domain name does not resolve to a web page.
Far Cry 3 is expected to be released in September.
ZeniMax files trademark for Dragonborn
In April, ZeniMax Media filed a trademark application for the dragonborn shout “Fus Ro Dah”.
Now, the company has filed another trademark application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, this time for “Dragonborn”, an individual who has been born with the blood and soul of a Dragon, but the body of a mortal.
On May 15, 2012, ZeniMax Media submitted the application (Serial Number: 85626061).
The goods and services within the filing cover, “Computer game software for use with computers and video game consoles; downloadable computer game software offered via the internet and wireless devices”.
At the beginning of the month, Bethesda announced the first Skyrim DLC, called Dawnguard, would be coming to the Xbox 360 this summer.
It’s unknown whether the company’s latest filing will be for a subsequent Skyrim DLC or rather a defensive measure to protect its Dragon-born intellectual property.
Just this week, the creator of the Dragon Shout app received a copyright infringement notice from ZeniMax.
Talking about this story: VG247, Kotaku, IGN, Giant Bomb, Cinema Blend, Blue’s News and games.on.net
Samsung files Lunge, Forge, Rivet, Wield, Mission, Victory smartphone trademarks
Samsung is at it again, this time filing six different trademark applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for yet to be announced smartphones.
On May 10, 2012, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. submitted applications for the Lunge (Serial No. 85621870), Galaxy Forge (Serial No. 8561866), Galaxy Wield (Serial No. 85621864), Galaxy Mission (Serial No. 85621859), Galaxy Rivet (Serial No. 85621854), and the Galaxy Victory (Serial No. 85621853).
Like many recent filings, the goods and services in the latest applications cover nothing more than mobile telephones and smartphones.
The newest batch has Olympic-like names such as “Lunge” and “Victory”.
Earlier this month Samsung unveiled its Galaxy S III which is the official London 2012 Olympic Games smartphone.
Talking about this story: Android Police, IntoMobile, Phones Review, Phandroid, Android Community, MobileSyrup.com, TechnoBuffalo, Android.net, PhoneArena and Geeky Gadgets
(Image of Galaxy S WiFi 3.6 via Samsung.com)
Topps domain registrations hint at MechWarrior movie finally being made
The Topps Company made some interesting domain name purchases this week that hint toward a MechWarrior movie. On May 7, 2012, Topps registered movie-related names for several properties like BattleTechmovie.com, MechWarriormovie.com, Shadowrunmovie.com, and more. In total, the company picked up nearly a dozen domains through the brand protection firm Corporation Service Company.
The last time there was talk of a MechWarrior movie was back in 2009, when a trusted source told Joystiq that a MechWarrior film was “in development”.
At one point in time, MechWarriormovie.com was home to a petition that pushed for Hollywood to greenlight a MechWarrior/BattleTech film. You can see the web page here, courtesy of screenshots.com.
Here’s a full list of domain names acquired by Topps this week:
battletechmovie.com
battletechthemovie.com
garbagepailkidstv.com
garbagepailmovie.com
gpkmovie.com
mechwarriormovie.com
mechwarriorthemovie.com
shadrowrunmovie.com
shadrowrunthemovie.com
thegarbagepailmovie.com
thegargagepailkidsmovie.com
As of today, there has been no official announcement regarding an upcoming MechWarrior/BattleTech movie.
(Image of upcoming action game MechWarrior Online)
Lucasfilm Entertainment Company files “Star Wars 1313″ video game trademark
Lucasfilm Entertainment Company Ltd. has filed a trademark application (Serial Number: 85613835) with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for “Star Wars 1313″.
The filing covers a variety of goods and services including interactive entertainment software, books, toy action figures, online social networking services, and interactive video games.
After I spotted over a dozen registrations earlier this week for Star Wars 1313 domains like StarWars1313.com, I had speculated the project could be related to a potential Boba Fett movie. It wasn’t a strong argument and was based on the fact that CT-1313 was once an alias used by Boba Fett and last summer director Joe Johnston said he was trying to get George Lucas to make a movie featuring the bounty hunter.
While “Star Wars 1313″ now looks less likely related to a new film, apart from the trademark application filed on May 1, 2012, not much else is known including which platforms the game will be available on.
The goods and services listed are similar to previous video game trademark filings by Lucasfilm.
Below are details from the trademark application which appeared on the USPTO website today.
Interactive entertainment software and accompanying instruction manuals sold as a unit, namely, computer game software and manuals sold as a unit, video game software and manuals sold as a unit; video game software, computer game software, and pre-recorded compact discs and DVDs featuring games, films, animation, music, computer game software, and video game software; downloadable video game software and downloadable computer game software; computer game software for use on mobile and cellular phones
Books containing puzzles and games; calendars; children’s books; children’s books combined with toys and sold as a unit; comic books; comic magazines; gift books in the field of video games; graphic novels; printed instructional manuals and strategy guides in the field of computer games; magazines in the field of entertainment; markers; non-electronic personal planners and organizers; notebooks; novels for juveniles; pencil cases; pencil sharpeners; pencils; pens; personal organizers; postcards; posters; puzzle books; series of fiction books; sticker albums; sticker books; stickers; temporary tattoos; trading cards; animation cels; lithographic prints; original works of art created from paper; photographic prints; printed art reproductions
Toy action figures; accessories for use with toy action figures; action type target games; balloons; bath toys; board games; card games; cases for action figures; cases for play accessories for action figure, model vehicles and model space craft; connecting links for toy building blocks; construction toys; costume masks; costume masks for dolls; dolls; rubber hi bounce balls; jigsaw puzzles; paper face masks; parlor games; play sets for toy model vehicles, toy model space craft; plush toys; protective pads and padding for skateboarding; role-playing games; toy model space crafts and related accessories sold as units; three-dimensional puzzles; toy action figures; toy building blocks; toy candy dispensers; toy candy holders, namely, plastic candy dispenser designed as a toy; toy coin banks; toy model hobby craft kits for making model spacecraft, model cars and model vehicles; toy model vehicles and related accessories sold as a units; toy modeling dough kits and accessories for use therewith sold as units; toy remote control vehicles, namely, airplanes, spacecraft, boats; toy scooters; toy snow globes; toy vehicles; toy weapons; toy model vehicles and accessories therefore sold as a unit; water squirting toys; wind-up toys; yo-yos; collectible card games; collectible miniature board games, and toy helmets
Entertainment services provided on-line by means of global and local area networks, namely, providing interactive computer games and interactive video games, all on-line by means of global and local area networks; providing news and information in the field of entertainment relating to interactive computer game software and interactive video game software over an electronic network; fan club services
Online social networking services
As of today, Lucasfilm has yet to announce anything official.
Talking about this story: G4TV, Kotaku, Joystiq, IncGamers, The Escapist, Gameranx, Neoseeker, Gamed, NeoGAF, Gamereactor Sverige, Tweakers.net, Ubergizmo, Game Rant, Ars Technica, Lazygamer and Buffed.de
(Image of Darth Maul from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace)
Apple files dispute over iPhone5.com domain name [UPDATED]
Apple is planning ahead for the release of the next iPhone by filing a complaint (Case number: D2012-0951) with the World Intellectual Property Organization over iPhone5.com. The domain dispute popped up on WIPO’s website this week.
Anyone who visits the website of iPhone5.com today will be greeted by smart phone advertisements and online forums discussing the iPhone 5.
Although Apple has been known to open its wallet to acquire domain names, in the past year it has selected to go the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) route. And it’s had a lot of success.
The company secured rights to iphone4s.com, iphoneporn4s.com, iphonesex4s.com, iphonexxxforce.com, iphone4s.com and other domains that were being used by an adult website operator, after filing a similar dispute with WIPO.
But, that’s not all.
Apple has won disputes over applesales.com, appleproductsonline.com, appleipods.com, and even ipods.com, just to name a few.
In mid-July 2011, Apple acquired the domain names iPhone4.com and WhiteiPhone.com for an undisclosed amount, opting to pay for the domain names.
In the years to come, expect to see more iPhone domain disputes. At the time of this story, Apple doesn’t own iPhone6.com, iPhone7.com, iPhone8.com, iPhone9.com, iPhone10.com — you get the idea.
[Update 2 on May 13, 2012:. According to Whois records, Apple has taken ownership of the domain iPhone5.com through the brand protection agency Corporation Service Company.]
[Update 1 at 6:48 PM Est:. In an interesting little twist, there are now two new discussion threads on iPhone5.com that discuss Apple going after the domain name. One thread is called HELP US FIGHT. The second thread includes a poll that asks whether Apple should be able to take control of iPhone5.com.]
Talking about this story: Mashable, San Francisco Chronicle, Business Insider, Yahoo! Finance, ComputerWorld, The Register, Macworld, WebProNews, Red Orbit, PC Mag, Gotta Be Mobile, MacRumors, Apple Insider, VentureBeat, AppAdvice, Apple Bitch, Cult of Mac, The Mac Observer, Silicon News, iClarified, Inrumor, Gotta Be Mobile, International Business Times, Huffington Post, Afterdawn, Domain Name Wire and Business Insider
(Image of iPhone 4 via Apple.com)
Amazon acquires KindleVoice.com, Siri-like functionality closer to release?
Amazon buys domain names on a regular basis, so it’s no surprise to see the company acquiring the domain name kindlevoice.com.
The name recently expired and Amazon’s legal department scooped it up. While it may be nothing more than a defensive move, it may also signal that Amazon could be closer to releasing its own version of Apple’s Siri.
Last November, Amazon purchased the Charlotte voice-to-text startup called Yap, which created a lot of buzz among tech sites that speculated Amazon would eventually release voice recognition technology for its Kindle devices.
Apple’s Siri still isn’t fully available on its iPad tablets. The new iPad was the first tablet to officially have limited Siri technology, but only the voice dictation software.
(Image of Kindle Fire via Amazon.com)
Avengers: Battle for Earth video game headed to consoles [UPDATED]
The Avengers video game looks to have a title — Avengers: Battle for Earth.
On May 3, 2012, a day before the film was released in the United States, the domain name avengersbattleforearth.com (Whois) was registered through the brand protection company MarkMonitor.
The name was registered by Marvel Characters, Inc. and is currently listed on Ubisoft’s nameservers: nic1.ubisoft.com and nic2.ubisoft.com.
While there has been speculation the game may have been delayed, cancelled, or simply couldn’t work, the newest domain registration hints that it may be officially announced soon.
[UPDATED May 10, 2012:. Ubisoft officially announced "Battle for Earth" in a deal with Marvel Entertainment, LLC. According to the press release, "This game will be released this fall for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft with Kinect™ for Xbox360 and Nintendo’s Wii™ U™ system."]
Talking about this story: Joystiq, Forbes, Kotaku, /Film, Comic Book Movie, Game Rant, Just Push Start, Comic Book Resources, Game Informer, Complex.com (blog), Side Mission, io9, Shogun Gamer, Attack of the Fanboy, Digital Trends, MCV, Computerandvideogames.com, Kotaku Australia, OnlineWelten.com, Neoseeker, Neogaf, ZoKnowsGaming, Playstation Lifestyle, games.on.net, Gamespot, HardGamers, Videogameszone, Gamesaktuell.de, gamona.de, gry-online.pl, gram.pl, Judão and All Games Beta
Sony Pictures looks to have acquired rights to Turok film according to domains
Back in March, Deadline reported Sony Pictures closed a deal to acquire Bloodshot, the Valiant Comics series.
Now it looks Sony Pictures has landed another deal for a comic book character that once appeared in Valiant Comics: Turok.
On May 3, 2012, Sony Pictures registered domain names hinting at the movie like Turokthemovie.com (Whois).
Here’s a look at the full list of domain names:
turok-movie.com
turok-movie.net
turok-themovie.com
turok-themovie.net
turokthemovie.com
turokthemovie.net
Turok has a long publishing history, going back to the 1950s when he first appeared in Four Color Comics #596.
At the time of this story, Sony Pictures hasn’t officially announced anything regarding a Turok film.
