intellectual property

TrendTechie
September 2, 2026
Sony Music Publishing and Warner Chappell Music have filed a lawsuit against Anthropic, claiming that the company used pirated songbooks and song lyrics from "shadow libraries" to train its AI model, Claude. The lawsuit cites approximately 7 million books obtained through torrent downloads and web scraping, including unauthorized sheet music and songbooks. The plaintiffs are seeking statutory damages of up to 0,000 for each work that is found to have been willfully infringed. The lawsuit was filed on August 28, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, naming Anthropic and its co-founders as defendants. The plaintiffs allege that the data sources used for training included 5 million books downloaded from Library Genesis and 2 million from Pirate Library Mirror, as well as scraped song lyrics from licensed platforms Musixmatch and LyricFind. The use of BitTorrent for downloads introduces legal risks due to the simultaneous distribution of files. The lawsuit emphasizes the distinction between legally purchased and pirated materials, with prior cases indicating that downloads from pirate libraries constitute significant copyright infringement.
AppWizard
August 22, 2026
Compulsion Games has regained its independence and the rights to its original intellectual properties after a management buyout, allowing the studio to explore new partnerships. Their latest release, South of Midnight, received an 83% review score. CEO Guillaume Provost confirmed that the management has acquired the studio and staff, enhancing the studio's financial prospects by allowing them to retain a larger share of revenue from purchases made outside the Xbox digital storefront. Compulsion Games is known for titles like We Happy Few and Contrast.
AppWizard
August 22, 2026
Double Fine has regained full publishing rights to its titles developed under Microsoft after parting ways with Xbox earlier this year. CEO Tim Schafer confirmed that the studio has received back all intellectual property and publishing rights for their games. The studio has launched a Kickstarter campaign for its annual Amnesia Fortnight game jam, allowing backers to influence game development. Double Fine recently laid off 23 staff members to maintain a sustainable operational size. Schafer mentioned upcoming content for their multiplayer game, Kiln, which will include a major update and a price reduction, and recommended their adventure game, Keeper.
AppWizard
August 20, 2026
Sitara Shefta and Will Dudley have launched Pretty Cool Games, a remote indie studio in the UK, with funding from Coreblazer, the investment arm of HyperGryph. The studio is developing its first project, a double-A, physics-based game focused on gameplay. The game draws inspiration from Nintendo, Hazelight, Disney theme parks, and classic physical comedy films. Despite challenges in the gaming industry, Pretty Cool Games is optimistic about the demand for innovative gaming experiences. The studio aims to create highly entertaining PC and console games, emphasizing creativity and quality, with a team experienced in developing successful titles.
TrendTechie
August 16, 2026
The remake of Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced has been compromised by hackers, making it available for download on various torrent sites. This breach occurred a little over a month after the game's official release on July 9. The hacker, known as voice38, successfully bypassed Denuvo's anti-piracy measures and has previously hacked other titles. The game is available on PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and Ubisoft Connect, as well as on PS5 and Xbox Series, featuring Russian subtitles and significant enhancements such as redesigned mission structures, revamped combat systems, improved parkour mechanics, enhanced graphics, and new narrative content. Additionally, Mafia: The Old Country has released an expansion titled “Man of Honor”.
Winsage
August 11, 2026
A developer has adapted Microsoft Word 1.1a, originally for 16-bit x86 systems, to run natively on modern 64-bit Windows PCs through a project called “Opus.” This adaptation compiles the original source code into a genuine x64 application, avoiding the use of emulators or virtual machines. The developer translated incompatible segments of the original code, including 16-bit assembly language, into C or C++, while mapping Win16 functions to modern Win32 APIs. The project retains original resources and copyright notices, and is hosted on GitHub without a broad open-source license. Automated testing has been implemented to ensure functionality mirrors the original application. Microsoft has previously published similar historic projects, but this port is an independent effort, providing insights into early Windows software architecture.
AppWizard
August 6, 2026
Warhorse Studios has filed trademarks for their upcoming title, Kingdom Come Salvation, in both Europe and the United States. The filings include references to "services for matching users with computer games," suggesting potential online features. The trademarks are categorized under IC 009, related to video games, and IC 041, which covers entertainment services, including online gaming. An expert noted that while the filings imply possible online capabilities, fans should manage their expectations regarding multiplayer features until an official announcement is made.
AppWizard
August 3, 2026
Kakao Games has announced its upcoming PC MMORPG titled 'ArcheAge S: Strait of Freedom', developed by XLGAMES. The game is being crafted for a global audience, focusing on optimizing the experience for PC users, and is led by PD Kim Kyung-tae, who was part of the original 'ArcheAge' planning team. Kakao Games has secured global publishing rights for the game and aims to enhance its portfolio with this title. The original 'ArcheAge' debuted in 2013 and has been well-received for its world-building and player freedom. 'ArcheAge S' is set to be released next year, with further details to be announced.
Winsage
August 2, 2026
Dave W. Plummer, the original developer of the Windows Task Manager, has launched a beta project called Task Manager OG (TMOG) as an alternative to macOS's Activity Monitor. TMOG is built from scratch using Swift and does not contain any code from Windows XP. Microsoft provided Plummer with the source code of the XP Task Manager, but TMOG is independent. Initially intended for distribution through the Mac App Store, TMOG will instead be available for direct download due to Apple's sandboxing restrictions and guidelines against terminating other applications. Plummer plans to develop a Windows version and potentially a Pro version in the future.
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