In case you didn’t know, DHS, without the permission of Nintendo, used the Pokemon IP to promote ICE arrests. Other related departments also joined in the act. This is obviously bad for business for a family oriented international brand. There’s been a lot of criticism of the company about their apparent lack of reaction other than the denial, but from my perspective, it’s a pretty complicated situation.
The main issue, of course, that Nintendo is based outside the United States, with likely dozens if not hundreds of foreign born employees working in the U.S. Does anyone doubt the administration’s ability or willingness to screw with Nintendo’s ability to do business, or worse, their individual employees up and down the corporate ladder?
Worse, I don’t see any likely scenario in which the offending videos are taken off the internet, given who put them up. So any legal action would only be to assert their own beliefs in front of the public, which isn’t worthless for either them or the public, but it’s still a heavy ask, in my opinion.
So once again, the administration is meddling with private business, and said business has tough decisions to make; worse, a good deal of the public believes that the decision should be easy, which makes the whole thing even more potentially damaging.
Y’all are smart; if you were a Nintendo executive, either here or in Japan, what would you do?
If I were a Nintendo exec, I would immediately reach out demand compensation for unauthorized use of my IP, -but- I would make no mention (pro or con) of the way it was used. Because it would create a very expensive precedent if I was perceived as abandoning my rights to the IP. I wouldn’t deny the use (as you say, too likely a retribution) but would publicly demand payment and that the administration contact us prior to any further use.
I would probably (thinking again as a Nintendo exec) not push for a huge payment, just enough to protect me. Figuring the damage already done is done, but preventing (hopefully) any further use, protecting my IP, and being able to show in public that it was A) used without prior permission B) avoiding a direct challenge on any political grounds and C) that the government had acknowledged the rights.
So, yeah, classic compromise that makes no one happy but should just skate by and preserve my rights while minimizing current and future risks.
I do not state this is the best or most moral route, but what I’d do if I was answerable to Nintendo.
The Pokemon Company (half-owned by Nintendo) should send a C&D like they always do. No one is going to start a fight with Nintendo while a new console is out, a new Pokemon game is imminent, and Christmas is approaching.
I read something (I forget where) that said they probably won’t do anything, because a lot of their executives in the US are on green cards, making them vulnerable to retaliation. They were quoting a lawyer that used to be in the Pokemon Company’s legal department.
Which is stupid, because if they don’t fight back now, it’s going to make it much harder to fight back when (not if, when) the big important fight comes.
Coming back to this now that I have a chance for more opinions… Still curious, since i don’t know of major updates to this since my OP…
…Have you not read about this administration? They pick all kinds of fights unnecessarily.
What “important fight” do you have in mind? I’m trying to envision Nintendo’s role in a civil uprising.
And I’m still not convinced that this decision is as easy as some think. Surely the very real possibility that the feds could arrest and/or deport all foreign born employees in retaliation is real enough. Haven’t we said constantly not to put anything past this administration? Isn’t a major purpose of all this to keep immigrant families together?
The important fight comes when (again, not if) the Feds try to deport all of Nintendo’s foreign workers. Which they will do regardless of whether Nintendo fights back now or not. As to their role in that fight, if nothing else, they can generate bad PR for the administration.
Do you happen to know how many workers Nintendo has in the USA and what proportion is foreign?
While I am at it: Is that something I will have to look into from now on if I want to asses a company’s economic perpectives, for instance, should I consider investing in them? Is that going to play a role for other companies too? Looks like a lot of randomness and a lot of work.