After the recent striking of several modders’ YouTube videos, Bandai Namco has taken their anti-mod stance a step further by sending a notice of infringement to a popular Tekken 8 mods website. The letter asks the site owners to remove all references to Tekken or its copyrights.
Early yesterday morning, the admins of popular Tekken 8 modding side TekkenMods received a letter from publisher Bandai Namco requesting that the site be stripped of all Tekken copyrighted images, logos, or other text:
bandai namco's sent a notice of infringement to tekkenmods pic.twitter.com/Ny5FPkSBar
— Dennis Stanistan (@DennisStanistan) April 9, 2024
Site admin Dennis Stanistan shared the letter and his response on Twitter. The notice reads as follows:
“Dear Registrant,
Bandai/Namco is the owner of numerous registered trademarks, including the Bandai/Namco trademark(s) – Tekken. As you are no doubt aware, these trademarks are used to identify, advertise and promote Bandai/Namco’s products and activities.
It has come to our attention that you are using Tekken(S) copyrighted image(s), logo(s) or other visible or concealed text within your website located at tekkenmods.com without having obtained prior written authorization. By doing so, you intentionally seek to attract Internet users to your website. This unauthorized use of Bandai/Namco’s intellectual property falsely suggests Bandai/Namco’s sponsorship or endorsement of your website. This practice infringes on Bandai/Namco’s exclusive intellectual property rights.
We demand that you immediately remove all Tekken(S) copyrighted images, logos or other visible or concealed texted within your website located at the following URL(s):
https://tekkenmods.com/mod/3161/reina-devil-form
Please respond within 5 business days indicating the actions you have taken to resolve this matter.
Sincerely,
Bandai/Namco Brand Protection”
Stanistan responded to the letter by mentioning that the website clearly states that it has no affiliation with Bandai Namco and that all trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Additionally, he confirmed that the author of the specific mod that Bandai Namco linked to has since removed it from the website. He also reminded the company that the alleged “infringing” elements only exist to celebrate and promote Tekken as opposed to competing with it.
This is no doubt going to sit poorly with Tekken 8’s player base. Modding is a big part of enhancing the overall experience for many gamers, and it can often prolong a game’s lifespan or even give it a new one entirely. It’s understandable that Bandai Namco is a little wary of mods after the somewhat recent Street Fighter 6 tournament incident where a competitor used a nude mod, but such an issue could be easily remedied without resorting to the destruction of the game’s entire modding community.
Hopefully, the admins are able to keep the site up and allow players to continue sharing custom content for Tekken 8. We’ll be sure to update readers whenever we get an update on the situation.