Car trouble for the giant.
Reuters reports that AM General LLC, so the company behind the Humvee vehicle, is suing Activision over the appearance of their product in the Call of Duty games.
The plaintiff says that the game’s success is in part based on the unlawful exploitation of the vehicle’s brand and the company’s good name.
The vehicle features extensively in the series and can be found in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Mobilized, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Call of Duty: Heroes and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered.
“In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, multiple in-game missions and multiplayer levels include depictions of vehicles bearing the (or substantially similar) distinctive design elements of the AM General Trade Dress (“Infringing Vehicles”).
“In some instances, the game player is able to (and even required to in order to progress in the game) climb onto the Infringing Vehicles and climb into (viewing the interior) and ride in the Infringing Vehicles while controlling and firing a weapon on the vehicle.
“In others, the player is tasked with manning a weapon from a helicopter to protect Infringing Vehicles that are seen driving on the ground below. At various points in the game, the Infringing Vehicles are explicitly and misleadingly identified using AM General’s marks as, E.g. ,’HUMVEE 01 M1026 HMMWV.”
Activision declined to comment.