author: Bart Swiatek
Epic Games sued again due to Fortnite dance
Epic Games was sued by another person who believes that Fortnite has illegally used the dance they created. This time the sue is the so-called Orange Shirt Kid - more specifically, the mother of a teenager.
IN A NUTSHELL:
- Epic Games was sued for using Random / Orange Justice dance in Fortnite;
- The claimant is represented by Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP, which also handles the previous three cases of this type;
- The creator of the dance himself submitted it to a competition aimed at creating a new emotion for Fortnite;
- The regulations of the competition did not provide for any sort of payment for the content.
Epic Games has been sued again due to the Fortnite dance. This time the claimant is the mother of a boy known as 'Orange Shirt Kid'. This is the fourth case after "Backpack Kid". (i.e. Russel Horning, author of "The Floss" dance), rapper 2 Milly and actor Alfonso Ribeiro. Mother of the child is another person who started a lawsuit against a well-known producer in connection with an alleged copyright infringement and the use of dance movements without the consent of the original performer.
The plaintiff is represented by Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP - exactly the same law firm that deals with the affairs of all other "dancers". However, Orange Shirt Kid's situation is extremely interesting, as the lawyers don't say a word about it - the young man entered his dance for the BoogieDown competition by himself, which aimed.... to create a new emotion for Fortnite. The conditions of the competition were clear - the rules and regulations explicitly stated that the participants would not receive any money for their applications. Emote was never sold (it was distributed for free). Tweets through which the boy entered the competition were deleted, but the original dance can be seen below.
Interestingly, Orange Shirt Kid was not the winner of BoogieDown - his dance went into the game due to the enthusiastic reaction and insistence of the community. Maybe the boy's mother should consider suing millions of players? Considering all the circumstances, the chances of winning the trial with Epic Games are rather low.
One thing is certain: the confusion over copyright and Fortnite dances is growing and has already scared another company - Playground Games has removed smiles from the Forza Motorsport 4 racing game using movements known from two dances (The Floss and Carlton) that are the subject of Epic Games' legal problems.
