Dice Game Targeted By 20th Century Fox

I’m doubtful that anyone out there needs yet more proof that the biggest companies in the movie industry also happen to be the greediest and most sue-happy, but leave it to 20th Century Fox to give us another source anyway. This one is more interesting than most, though, as the company seems to believe it has control over wordage that has been used for hundreds, if not thousands of years.

Its target is a Kickstarter project called ‘Dice Age‘, a new table dice game being built from the ground up that aims to be unlike any other dice game out there. The die available will be unique, almost toyish to look at, and result in atypical game rules. The project must’ve struck the right chord with many, as it received a total of $34,134 in funding (to date), when only $10,000 was required.

Nonetheless, as 20th Century Fox has produced a handful of ‘Ice Age‘ films, the company seems to believe that it can push a project such as Dice Age around. The name ‘Dice Age’ was not chosen as a result of the movie series, but rather the actual ice age. It goes without saying that ‘ice age’ is a generic term and not one anyone should be able to copyright. Fox’s stance is that the name ‘Dice Ice’ could lead to confusion with Ice Age fans. It seems Fox is yet another company that must believe all of its customers are idiots.

If Dice Age was destined for the big screen, there might just possibly be some merit to 20th Century Fox’s complaint. But this a board game, while Ice Age is a movie. Neither product is in the same market; so where exactly is the potential for confusion? Perhaps the universe should C&D Fox for using the term ice age for a movie!

As difficult as it is to do battle with companies that have loaded pockets and more lawyers that anyone would care to count, the founder of the Dice Age project is willing to fight this to the end, as he believes that “Ice age is a geological era before it is a movie“.

Let’s just hope he doesn’t need to start another Kickstarter project to help pay the legal fees.