The case of Hayden v. 2K Games, Inc. involving a tattoo artist’s copyright battle against the gaming giant, 2K Games, was decided earlier this month.1 In 2017, tattoo artist James Hayden filed the lawsuit over 2K Games’ realistic portrayals of his tattoo designs on its popular basketball player avatars.2 Wilson Sonsini previously reported on this lawsuit here and here.
In mid-April 2024, an Ohio federal jury finally reached a verdict in favor of the gaming company, after finding that 2K Games had an implied license to use the images.3 This development closely follows U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyoko’s ruling back in February 2024, on Hayden’s failure to disclose that four of the six tattoos in question incorporated preexisting works in his original copyright registration filings.4 Consequently, Judge Boyoko dismissed those four tattoos from the lawsuit.5
As a result of the April jury verdict, which addressed the remaining two tattoos, 2K Games is in the clear from this lawsuit. This could be viewed as a crucial development for other gaming companies who, like 2K Games, leverage photorealism to capitalize on real world crossovers. The verdict is also a favorable outcome to the tattoo artist industry. As one of the defendants’ attorneys put it, a “contrary verdict could have discouraged people from getting tattoos at a time when the art form is flourishing,” likely from fears of unexpected copyright challenges being held up in court.6
[1] https://www.law360.com/ip/articles/1827648?nl_pk=bb2d8ea5-87c4-46ec-8582-dcf8ad65f0da&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ip&utm_content=2024-04-22&read_main=1&nlsidx=0&nlaidx=1.
[2] https://www.wsgr.com/en/insights/courts-offer-further-insight-on-video-games-tattoos-and-copyright-infringement.html.
[3] https://www.law360.com/ip/articles/1827648?nl_pk=bb2d8ea5-87c4-46ec-8582-dcf8ad65f0da&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ip&utm_content=2024-04-22&read_main=1&nlsidx=0&nlaidx=1.
[4] https://www.wsgr.com/en/insights/courts-offer-further-insight-on-video-games-tattoos-and-copyright-infringement.html.
[5] Id.
[6] https://www.law360.com/ip/articles/1827648?nl_pk=bb2d8ea5-87c4-46ec-8582-dcf8ad65f0da&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ip&utm_content=2024-04-22&read_main=1&nlsidx=0&nlaidx=1.
