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Gibson to "vigorously defend its rights" against Activision over GHIII

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Wow. And we thought they were BFFs. Not only is Gibson suing Activision over a patent related to Guitar Hero III, but it's undeterred by the fact the publisher's asked a court to block the action and has said, in no uncertain terms, that it intends to get mediaeval on its maggot-farming ass.

Gibson, based in Nashville, issued a statement today saying that it "intends to vigorously defend its rights and to pursue any rights it may have against Activision and any other persons."

What happened? Guitar Hero III ships with a controller based either on the Gibson Les Paul model guitar or on the Kramer Striker, which is also a Gibson brand, so it's not as if the companies didn't know what they were getting into.

Gibson's complaint is related to the fact Guitar Hero III replicates musical performance, allegedly in contradiction to one of its patents. The guitar-maker is seeking make Activision take out a license to make the game or stop all sales.

Lovers' tiffs are never pretty.

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Patrick Garratt

Founder & Publisher (Former)

Patrick Garratt is a games media legend - and not just by reputation. He was named as such in the UK's 'Games Media Awards', the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award. After garnering experience on countless gaming magazines, he joined Eurogamer and later split from that brand to create VG247, putting the site on the map with fast, 24-hour a day coverage, and assembling the site's earliest editorial teams. He retired from VG247, and the games industry, in 2017.

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