The legal scrap between Oculus VR and ZeniMax continues, with the VR company filing its response to the publisher’s allegations. These allegations include the claim that John Carmack stole technology from ZeniMax when he moved to Oculus.
“ZeniMax’s Complaint falsely claims ownership in Oculus VR technology in a transparent attempt to take advantage of the Oculus VR sale to Facebook,” the defence begins. “By deliberately misstating some facts and omitting others, ZeniMax makes the incredible assertion that it, a video game software publishing company for personal computers and consoles like the Sony PlayStation, invented and developed a virtual reality hardware and software system. The truth is quite different”
What Oculus VR claims is the truth is that there’s not a line of code from ZeniMax in any Oculus product. “ZeniMax had never identified any ‘stolen’ code or technology in any Oculus VR product, although ZeniMax had the full source code for the Oculus VR software for over a year and a half (having received it directly from Oculus VR well before it was even released publicly), and could have analyzed it online anytime (at developer.oculusvr.com),” the defense continues. The claim is written off as an attempt by ZeniMax to get a quick payout after the Facebook acquisition.
The defence goes on to chart the history of the Oculus Rift, with special attention paid to the involvement of Carmack and ZeniMax. It also echoes what Carmack said about his reasons for leaving id, which was owned by ZeniMax.
“Prior to the Facebook acquisition, ZeniMax appeared to have lost whatever interest it hadin VR,” it reads. “It even instructed Carmack to stop developing virtual reality videogames for the Rift orany other VR HMD. Only after the Facebook acquisition announcement did ZeniMax suddenly begin asserting supposed ownership rights over Oculus VR’s technology. By that time, OculusVR had already developed and shipped the DK1 and had written and published its SDK.”
Like ZeniMax, Oculus VR is demanding a jury trial.
Cheers, Polygon.