WORDLE

NY Times has started to use the DMCA to take down wordle clones. They claim this is necessary to deal with people infringing their "trademarks or copyrighted gameplay". Couple of problems with this:

1) You can't use the DMCA for trademark infringement. It specifically & only deals with copyright (hint: that's what the "C" stands for). Trademark law is separate. Also any worse clones that don't include "wordle" in their name are presumably not infringing.

2) Copyright law specifically carves out game rules & mechanics as being uncopyrightable so the NYT can't even have any "copyrighted gameplay" to be infringed.
 
NY Times has started to use the DMCA to take down wordle clones. They claim this is necessary to deal with people infringing their "trademarks or copyrighted gameplay". Couple of problems with this:

1) You can't use the DMCA for trademark infringement. It specifically & only deals with copyright (hint: that's what the "C" stands for). Trademark law is separate. Also any worse clones that don't include "wordle" in their name are presumably not infringing.

2) Copyright law specifically carves out game rules & mechanics as being uncopyrightable so the NYT can't even have any "copyrighted gameplay" to be infringed.
... And Wordle wasn't an original gameplay idea to begin with. Just a popularized version.
They bought a player base and some code, not an idea.
 
Am I the only one who's having enormous trouble with the Squaredle site today? I have to reload it change tabs after every word.
I'm in an area with terrible internet, so it might be my connection but it doesn't look like it.
 
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