14 DAY TRIAL // A United States court has decided that Blizzard is right in bringing a law suit against MDY Industries, a company which created the World of Warcraft bot Glider. The court ruled that the company should pay 6 million dollars in damages.
The Glider bot gained a lot of popularity in gaming circles, especially in groups of MMO fanatics and among gold farmers because it allows players to create automated routines that make their characters perform automatic actions in the MMO. You can use the bot to kill monsters and to scavenge loot and players generally appreciate the fact that they can reduce the amount of time spent on such tedious tasks.
Blizzard sued MDY Industries and Michael Donnelly way back in February 2007, claiming “injunctive relief and compensatory damages”. In a previous lawsuit, the bot creator said that Blizzard did not have the right to stop him from distributing the bot. Blizzard says that the creation is infringing on its copyright and that it confers unfair advantages to some of the people playing World of Warcraft.
Donnely is believed to have made a lot of money from the bot, as he is said to have sold more than 100,000 copies of Glider at a 25 $ price tag. The company is currently asking for the court to make him pay the damages to Blizzard out of his own pocket. There's another case that's currently pending related to whether MDY broke the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act or not.
World of Warcraft is getting ready to receive a second expansion, called Wrath of the Lich King, which will open up a new continent for players to explore while also introducing a fresh character class, the Death Knight, the first since the game launched. Blizzard is very much worried that the use of various bot programs can seriously undermine the balance of its MMO.