News

What are the legal implications of Pokemon GO's success?

Ryan Garcia ponders the phenomenon

What are the legal implications of Pokemon GO's success?

In almost every respect - popularity, reach, healing the lame and raising the dead - Pokemon GO has been a very different sort of successful mobile game.

And for that reason, it raises some very different legal questions; something Professor of Law & Social Media at University of Texas School of Law and Social Media attorney for Dell, Ryan Garcia has highlighted on his Some Law blog.

What could go wrong?

These range from whether developer Niantic would be able to make a legal claim over real-world locations using Pokemon GO in their advertising, to whether the game encourages people to trespass, loiter, and the more tricky issue of 'appropriate play'.

This arises because of the interaction of players with special locations such as the Arlington National Cemetery in the US and the Yasukuni Shrine in Japan.

Anyhow, given the number of lawyers in the US, it seems certain someone will attempt to sue Niantic over activities experienced by Pokemon GO players at some stage.

In other words, watch this space.


Contributing Editor

A Pocket Gamer co-founder, Jon is Contributing Editor at PG.biz which means he acts like a slightly confused uncle who's forgotten where he's left his glasses. As well as letters and cameras, he likes imaginary numbers and legumes.