Nintendo has picked up another legal win, this time in The Hague, where a Dutch court ruled against sellers of MIG Switch, a flash cartridge-style device made for the Nintendo Switch. For anyone tracking piracy hardware around Nintendo’s still massively popular console, it’s another serious hit.
The District Court of The Hague said devices like MIG Switch cross the line when they’re used to get around Nintendo Switch security. That means sellers in this case can’t keep marketing them through the European sales channels the court looked at. Nintendo’s argument was straightforward: these aren’t ordinary accessories, they’re circumvention tools. The court sided with Nintendo on that point.
It also lines up with Nintendo’s broader campaign against Switch piracy and modding tools, a campaign the company frames as protection for its IP, its developers, and its software sales. This comes after a $2 million judgment in the US against a MIG Switch seller, the $2.4 million settlement with the Yuzu Nintendo Switch emulator, moves against alleged pirate-file sites, stricter EULA language that allows modified consoles to be disabled, and reported online bans linked to piracy or unauthorized mods.
If you keep an eye on Nintendo Switch piracy cases, this one matters. Still, it doesn’t amount to an automatic ban across all of Europe, because these cases can hinge on how a device is marketed and what its main purpose appears to be. That leaves plenty of room for the usual arguments around legitimate buyers, second-hand owners, preservation work, and mods that don’t infringe copyright.
There’s nothing to download here. But if you sell or use Nintendo Switch circumvention hardware in Europe, one of the strongest legal defenses people have leaned on just got a lot shakier.
Author: Emmanuel Bosque
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