Mario Kart-themed go-karts may soon vanish from the boulevards of Tokyo following a decisive legitimate success by Nintendo. On Wednesday, the gaming giant declared that Japan’s Intellectual Property High Court had ordered Mari Mobility, one of the more famous go-kart operators in Tokyo, to pay a 50 million yen (roughly $458,000) fine for encroaching on its IP rights.
The court order closes a multi-year fight in court between the two that began in 2017 when Nintendo sued Mari Mobility, at that point known as MariCar, for copyright encroachment. In 2018, a court ordered the organization to pay a 10 million yen (roughly $91,600) fine. While a few different organizations offered Mario-themed go-kart visits, MariCar was one of the more famous ones. It managed to get a respite by engaging the ruling and endeavoring to separate itself from Nintendo by rebranding itself as a superhero-themed attraction called Street Kart. The severity of the fine is probably going to frighten off a portion of MariCar’s imitators.
Most Tokyoites will probably welcome the decision too. In one case, a Tawainese visitor was engaged with an attempt at a hit-and-run with a local cyclist. If go-karting as a Nintendo character has been on the bucket list, fortunately, Nintendo plans to open a Mario Kart ride as a major aspect of its upcoming Super Nintendo World theme park in Osaka.
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