The internet is so core to how modern life operates that it’s easy to forget how much of the technology that went into building the world wide web has patent protections. And some of those patents are still being enforced today. Zynga may be learning that the hard way, as a court ruled last week that the gaming company infringed on IBM patents dating back to the pre-internet telecom platform Prodigy from the 1980s. As a result, Zynga could be facing damages of $44.9 million. IBM’s “Method for presenting advertising in an interactive service” patent from 1993 accounts for $40 million of the recommended damages.
For anyone still playing the once-ubiquitous Zynga games, this decision shouldn’t interrupt your game time. The company said in an SEC filing that it would not have to modify or end operation of its games as a result of the court decision. Intriguingly, not every game in the Zynga catalog was found to be infringing on the patents. For instance, Crosswords with Friends was deemed an offender, but none of the Words With Friends titles were. A representative from Take-Two told Ars Technica that the company would appeal the ruling.
IBM has a long legacy of collecting intellectual property rights. Zynga, which was acquired by Take-Two Interactive in 2022, isn’t its first target for potentially infringing on these Prodigy patents, and it’s likely not the last. The computer company has had many online businesses in its crosshairs over the years, from the long-time giants (like Amazon and X, formerly Twitter) to the flashes in the pan (like Groupon). But some defendants, like pet retail platform Chewy, have successfully fended off IBM’s legal charges.
