Noobcrew, the creator of the original Skyblock map for Minecraft, has been trying to trademark their creation. Microsoft has allowed several other companies to sell Skyblock maps using the name on...
Noobcrew, the creator of the original Skyblock map for Minecraft, has been trying to trademark their creation. Microsoft has allowed several other companies to sell Skyblock maps using the name on their Minecraft Marketplace on Bedrock edition, even using the name "Original Skyblock" when they aren't the original creator.
If you didn't know, there are two editions of Minecraft: one made in Java, and one made in C++. The Java version (just available on Windows/Mac/Linux) has a community of free mods and sharing maps online, while the C++ version (called Bedrock, sold on Windows, consoles, and mobile) relies on microtransactions made by third parties and sold in the in-game store, where Microsoft takes a cut. which means that Microsoft is making money off of other companies recreating someone else's idea and claiming to be the "original".
Of note, Microsoft/Mojang don't claim copyright over the things that you build inside Minecraft. They claim copyright over the items in Minecraft themselves like the blocks, but in their own words:
Your creation of a Gothic Cathedral with a rollercoaster running through it - we don't own that.
Other games, such as Fortnite and Roblox, have complied with Noobcrew's request to change the name of popular Skyblock clones on their platform, which were renamed them to "Block Tycoon" and "Islands".
The linked video by PhoenixSC goes more into the details. Phoenix does have a background in copyright law in Australia, but not in American trademark law, which is what applies to this case. He shared a post by Noobcrew with details here.
Minecraft players and legal experts of Tildes, what's your opinion on the situation?
I can see both sides of the argument, and the courts are the right place for debates about legal arguments, so let it go to court and see who wins, I'd say. Which is what's happening, I suppose....
I can see both sides of the argument, and the courts are the right place for debates about legal arguments, so let it go to court and see who wins, I'd say. Which is what's happening, I suppose.
When it comes to third-party content related to Skyblock, I have always supported the free use of the "Skyblock" name across the Minecraft platform. The game's collaborative nature is embodied in inspired worlds, multiplayer servers, mods, and other user-generated content. Minecraft operates within a relatively open system where community-driven innovation is encouraged. Issuing cease and desist orders to those who wished to create and share their own inspired versions of Skyblock on platforms like Planet Minecraft, or targeting competing multiplayer servers like Hypixel, would have gone against the very essence of Minecraft and its community. Yet surprisingly, my decision not to take such actions has become one of the primary arguments used against me and serves as Microsoft's main defense.
Sorry, but that's how it goes with trademarks. You have to actively defend them, or this happens. That's why many companies are very active in defending their trademark (cough nintendo cough disney), often to the chagrin of "the community", but this is why!
That's also my understanding of how trademarks work in the USA: if you don't defend it, you lose the trademark. The underlying concept is that trademark protection is there to avoid consumer...
That's also my understanding of how trademarks work in the USA: if you don't defend it, you lose the trademark. The underlying concept is that trademark protection is there to avoid consumer confusion. If people are alredy used to seeing things named "skyblock" that are not made by the original creator, then there isn't much risks of poeple seeing skyblock and wrongly assuming it's from the trademark holder.
The other way he could try and defend his creation would be through copyright. As far as I'm aware, there isn't the same "if you don't defend it, you lose it" rule. However, I don't think the word "skyblock" can be copyrighted. The copyright would apply on the concept itself and it would be difficult to defend it outside of pure rip-offs. Or maybe, it can't be copyrighted at all.
Not a lawyer but as I understand it protecting mechanics and game design elements of Skyblock would be more patent territory, which aren't automatically granted and you have to explicitly file...
Not a lawyer but as I understand it protecting mechanics and game design elements of Skyblock would be more patent territory, which aren't automatically granted and you have to explicitly file for.
Noobcrew, the creator of the original Skyblock map for Minecraft, has been trying to trademark their creation. Microsoft has allowed several other companies to sell Skyblock maps using the name on their Minecraft Marketplace on Bedrock edition, even using the name "Original Skyblock" when they aren't the original creator.
If you didn't know, there are two editions of Minecraft: one made in Java, and one made in C++. The Java version (just available on Windows/Mac/Linux) has a community of free mods and sharing maps online, while the C++ version (called Bedrock, sold on Windows, consoles, and mobile) relies on microtransactions made by third parties and sold in the in-game store, where Microsoft takes a cut. which means that Microsoft is making money off of other companies recreating someone else's idea and claiming to be the "original".
Of note, Microsoft/Mojang don't claim copyright over the things that you build inside Minecraft. They claim copyright over the items in Minecraft themselves like the blocks, but in their own words:
Other games, such as Fortnite and Roblox, have complied with Noobcrew's request to change the name of popular Skyblock clones on their platform, which were renamed them to "Block Tycoon" and "Islands".
The linked video by PhoenixSC goes more into the details. Phoenix does have a background in copyright law in Australia, but not in American trademark law, which is what applies to this case. He shared a post by Noobcrew with details here.
Minecraft players and legal experts of Tildes, what's your opinion on the situation?
I can see both sides of the argument, and the courts are the right place for debates about legal arguments, so let it go to court and see who wins, I'd say. Which is what's happening, I suppose.
Sorry, but that's how it goes with trademarks. You have to actively defend them, or this happens. That's why many companies are very active in defending their trademark (cough nintendo cough disney), often to the chagrin of "the community", but this is why!
That's also my understanding of how trademarks work in the USA: if you don't defend it, you lose the trademark. The underlying concept is that trademark protection is there to avoid consumer confusion. If people are alredy used to seeing things named "skyblock" that are not made by the original creator, then there isn't much risks of poeple seeing skyblock and wrongly assuming it's from the trademark holder.
The other way he could try and defend his creation would be through copyright. As far as I'm aware, there isn't the same "if you don't defend it, you lose it" rule. However, I don't think the word "skyblock" can be copyrighted. The copyright would apply on the concept itself and it would be difficult to defend it outside of pure rip-offs. Or maybe, it can't be copyrighted at all.
Not a lawyer but as I understand it protecting mechanics and game design elements of Skyblock would be more patent territory, which aren't automatically granted and you have to explicitly file for.
Or you know, I could be totally off the mark.