Game developer Cygames and its parent company CyberAgent announced on Wednesday that game and entertainment company Konami filed a lawsuit in the Tokyo District Court against Cygames on March 31.
According to the legal complaint which was delivered to Cygames on May 10, Konami alleges that Cygames' Uma Musume Pretty Derby game has infringed on Konami patents, reports Anime News Network.
Konami is requesting the court an injunction to halt the digital production, usage, and provision of Uma Musume Pretty Derby, and is also seeking 4 billion yen (about US$29 million) in damages (including relevant delay charges).
CyberAgent's announcement noted that Cygames had been in discussions with Konami regarding patent rights for the "game system and program" of Uma Musume Pretty Derby, but that Konami did not accept Cygames' opinion, thus leading to the lawsuit.
CyberAgent's announcement did not specify which patents Konami is claiming Uma Musume: Pretty Derby has violated.
The Uma Musume Pretty Derby launched for iOS and Android in February 2021. The game was originally slated for a release in the winter of 2018 and was delayed in order to raise the game's quality.
The game was released on PC via DMM Games in March 2021. According to mobile app data analysis organization Sensor Tower, the game has earned more than $2 billion as of March earlier this year, with 95 per cent of those earnings coming from Japan.
According to Sensor Tower, in the two weeks after the game launched its second two-year anniversary celebration event on February 24, the game earned the equivalent of $55 million.
