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December 20, 2006 10:13 PM PST

Nintendo slapped with suit over Wii strap

by Leslie Katz
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File this under "c'mon, you had to see it coming." Just days after Nintendo announced that it would voluntarily exchange 3.2 million Wii remote straps due to reports of the parts breaking and even causing bodily harm comes news of a lawsuit against the company.

Wii graphic

The nationwide suit seeking class action status was filed by law firm Green Welling in the U.S. District Court of the Western District of Washington. "Nintendo's failure to include a remote that is free from defects is in breach of Nintendo's own product warranty," the law firm said in a statement.

The suit, according to the law firm, seeks to "enjoin Nintendo from continuing its unfair or deceptive business practices as it relates to the Nintendo Wii." It also seeks an injunction requiring the company to correct the defect in the Wii remote and either provide refunds to buyers or replace the ailing Wii remote.

Nintendo's Wii game console was released November 17 to great fanfare, much of it centered around the so-called Wiimote. The controller lets players physically interact with a game--swinging it like a baseball bat or a tennis racket, for example, or holding it like a gun in a shooting match.

Leslie Katz, senior editor of CNET's Crave, covers gadgets, games, and most other digital distractions. As a co-host of the CNET News Daily Podcast, she sometimes tries to channel Terry Gross. E-mail Leslie.
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Some people are just Silly
by tango_fox1 December 21, 2006 6:03 AM PST
Are these people kidding they're paying lawyers to sue AFTER Nintendo is replacing the strap.

Come on.

Some people and their lawyers obviously have a lot of free time to spend on frivolous lawsuits like this. A fault caused mostly by improper use of the remote. You lawyers in a America certainly know how to make fools of your clients.
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Missed the boat.
by kevjohn2007 December 21, 2006 6:20 AM PST
I KNEW I should have bought a Wii!. Not only for the sweet and juicy semi-nexgen gaming, but for the sake of getting in on a frivolous lawsuit as well. That makes me a two-time loser. Bummer.
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Stop Frivolous Lawsuits by...
by johnjana December 22, 2006 8:31 AM PST
Suing lawyers and their clients who start them...tying up the courts and wasting tax dollars...or does that seem frivolous?
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Give me a break...
by mc_alicea December 22, 2006 8:42 AM PST
All those idiots that are suing because the remote flew from their hands?? That's ridiculous!!! If they held onto the remote, they wouldn't have to rely on the strap to keep it on their wrists. Please!! What they need is to send back their Wii, because they are too stupid to own one. That's just the truth of it. If they can't hold onto the controller, give it to someone who can.
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Absolutely agree, and....
by pj-mckay December 22, 2006 10:32 AM PST
When did you last see a bat with a strap, or a golf club with a strap. Just take it off completely, and watch the muppets complain when they smash the ornaments!

Tell the prats to get a life and enjoy the ****** games for what they are!
Leave your fanboyism aside...
by Ryo Hazuki January 11, 2007 4:54 AM PST
You say that, I say: all those idiots that are calling idiots to these people because this happened to Nintendo and not to Microsoft? That's fanboyism. If it would be their fault, Nintendo wouldn't suddenly voluntarily exchange 3.2 million Wii remote straps because of it. Please! What *you* and other Nintendo fanboys need is to stick to playing with your little defective toy for little kids, because you are too short-minded to admit anything that goes against Nintendo. *That* is just the truth of it. Otherwise no company in this world would ever replace any defective material on the basis that at least one of their costumers is happy with it.
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