Niantic and Pokemon Go have been no stranger at all to lawsuits over the years – it’s just that most the suits have been against Niantic, not lodged by it. And when it comes to cheaters, Niantic has generally erred on the side of patching in annoyances that make it difficult to cheat, even when that means making it hard for innocent people to play too.
That’s changing now, however, as the company is taking hackers to court. According to Business Insider (via GIbiz), Niantic is suing the masterminds behind a hacker group that makes PokeGo++, Ingress++, and Potter++, cheater apps that run on a subscription basis.
If this is starting to sound a bit familiar, you’re probably thinking about the long-running feud between Blizzard and Bossland, the purveyors of the Buddy cheat apps for Blizzard’s games. It took Blizzard years to get those pay-to-cheat programs shut down, and even then the German court system blocked Blizzard nearly every chance it could. However, in the Niantic case, it appears the hacked apps are more like cheat centric clones of the original game rather than mods.
“Among other things, defendants’ schemes undermine the integrity of the gaming experience for legitimate players, diminishing enthusiasm for Niantic’s games and, in some cases, driving players away from Niantic’s games altogether. Defendants’ schemes therefore damage Niantic’s reputation and goodwill and interfere with Niantic’s business,” Niantic’s lawsuit reads.
More Pokemon Go legal drama and anti-cheating measures:
The Pokemon Go trespassing lawsuit’s proposed settlement terms are absurdly reasonable
Niantic agrees to settle the property trespass class action lawsuit over Pokemon Go
Pokemon Go developer Niantic to pay out $1.5 million for its disastrous festival
Milwaukee settles lawsuit over Pokemon Go-inspired park ordinance
Pokemon Go is being sued over the disastrous Chicago live event
Pokemon Go: Milwaukee County lawsuit injunction and preparing for legendaries
Legendary pokemon are teased for Pokemon Go as a new anti-cheat measure auto-bans bots
MMOARG dev sues Milwaukee county over Pokemon Go-inspired park ordinance
U.S. district court hears Pokemon Go trespassing lawsuit
Pokemon Go blocks third-party apps again, buffs gym training
Pokemon Go indiscriminately blocks access for rooted and jailbroken phones
Niantic’s banhammer smashes Pokemon Go GPS spoofers and botters
Pokemon Go: Michigan couple sues over game’s impact on private property
Here’s why Niantic shut off Pokemon Go’s third-party apps
Pokemon Go: Suing Nintendo, Pokemon insurance, and the Ohio Articuno controversy
Pokemon Go: Drones, Tesla autopilot, finding Ditto, and dirty cheaters
