Warner Bros. settles “Westworld” game lawsuit; Digital Domain spins off new startup; IBM’s weather app sued by city attorney

Warner Bros. Settle Game Copyright Lawsuit

Bethesda, Md.-based game publisher Bethesda Softworks Inc. settled a lawsuit on Jan. 3 with Burbank-based Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. over its mobile game adaptation of the HBO series “Westworld.” According the Hollywood Reporter, the copyright infringement and breach of contract lawsuit filed in June 2018 described the Warner Bros. game as a “blatant rip-off” of an existing Bethesda game. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

LA City Attorney Sues Weather Channel

The Weather Channel mobile application, owned by IBM Corp., deceptively collected and profited from millions of consumers’ location information and was sued by the L.A. City Attorney Jan. 3, the New York Times reports. More than 45 million people use the app monthly, and the Weather Co. is accused of unfairly manipulating users into leaving location tracking on under the guise of offering accurate, localized weather reports. The data collected was then used for unrelated commercial purposes including targeted marketing, the lawsuit notes.

Digital Domain Announces Startup Spin-Off

Playa Vista-headquartered Digital Domain Content Studio Inc. launched a new startup dubbed Iconic Engine Jan. 4. The venture will be led by Digital Domain executive Amit Chopra and focus on increasing the prevalence of augmented reality devices and VR headsets. Socaltech reports Iconic Engine will begin with a focus on telecom operators, broadcasters and publishers.