The Pokemon Go backlash continued today, as a Detroit couple filed a class action lawsuit against Nintendo and the Pokemon Company, reports the Detroit Free Press.
Scott and Jayme Dodich of St. Clair Shores, Mich. are suing Nintendo and co-developers Niantic and The Pokemon Company because flocks of Pokemon Go players have allegedly been trampling on their landscaping, looking through their windows and cursing at them. The suite claims Nintendo, Niantic, and The Pokemon Company have greatly profited from a game that is ruining the quality of life for many Americans because the game has placed PokeStops and gyms on or near private property without permission from the property owners.
The Dodichs live across the street from a PokeStop that is said to draw hundreds of Pokemon Go players ever day. The stop is located at Wahby Park, a St. Clair Shores park that now has an orange snow fence running the length of seven private properties across the street from the park. Its purpose? To deter players of Nintendo’s ludicrously popular mobile game from playing on private property. According to the lawsuit, the fence isn’t exactly getting the job done.
“Nobody gets sleep anymore,” the suit reads. “How is this acceptable? … They hang out on our lawns, trample landscaping, look in vehicles … We don’t feel safe … I don’t feel safe sitting on our porch.”
The suit, filed in federal court in Niantic’s home state of California, is an attempt to legally block the game from dropping PokeStops and gyms on or near private properties. Additionally, it would force Nintendo, Niantic, and The Pokemon Company to hand over a share of their profits to residents of said properties. The suit claims Pokemon Go has generated more than $35 million in revenue from more than 30 million users.
This is hardly the first legal trouble Pokemon Go has run into since launching on July 6. New Jersey resident Jefrey Marder filed suit in late July, saying the game attracted strangers to his property. A Hollywood condominium association is considering a suit of its own for similar reasons. A Las Vegas lawyer also made headlines last month when he put up a Craigslist ad asking anyone who’s been injured while playing the game to call him about a potential personal injury lawsuit.
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Published: Aug 16, 2016 04:21 pm