from Hacker News

NY Times issues DMCA takedowns of Wordle clones

by igitur on 3/6/24, 5:14 PM with 55 comments

  • by pwahs on 3/6/24, 6:35 PM

    Can confirm, my version here also got a notice: https://github.com/pwahs/fillominordle

    Full notice is here: https://enterprise.githubsupport.com/attachments/token/cx6V4...

  • by sp332 on 3/8/24, 1:00 AM

    Well I had a NYT games subscription, but I just cancelled it. I can't believe they used my money to take down a bunch of games I also played.

  • by nesswit on 3/7/24, 2:16 AM

    I received the same email. My repository is yf-dev/mahjong-hand-guessing-game, and it's a variant of the Wordle game with Japanese Rich Mahjong rules. I don't think it's the same game as Wordle, because it's not a word-guessing game, and it has a 14x6 grid. The name of the game is also inspired by Wordle, hence Mahjong Handle, but handle is a common noun that already exists, so I don't think there's a problem.

  • by jamestimmins on 3/6/24, 6:16 PM

    Can anyone speak to how/why they have this ability?

    Isn't Wordle effectively just a game UX pattern? How is that copyrightable?

  • by logicalfails on 3/6/24, 6:45 PM

    I bet some NYT is planning some changes to Wordle use/tracking so they have to clamp down on the competition. They will likely requiring NYT login just to play, or adding additional ads to page

  • by josephcsible on 3/7/24, 11:22 PM

    Game mechanics aren't copyrightable, right? So unless these clones copied the code, aren't these takedowns invalid?

  • by usmansme on 3/6/24, 9:13 PM

    I got the same email today for a fork of `thesam73/wordle`

    I still have mixed feelings about this one. Because if let's say someone is learning web dev and thinks of building such clone and open sources it on GitHub, isn't that stopping people from learning?

    Edit: Seems like the author does not want to fight NYT and hence disabled the repo. I think that's ok and I'll do the same (they also want all forks to be gone)

    https://web.archive.org/web/20240306171920/https://github.co...

  • by SKCarr on 3/6/24, 5:28 PM

  • by qarl on 3/7/24, 11:57 PM

    So... just how long did the NYT run crosswords without license of the inventor?

  • by templeosenjoyer on 3/6/24, 7:48 PM

    Gross. Reminder that NYT ripped off the 'connecting walls' of Only Connect, though their version—Connections—is low quality in comparison. PuzzGrid[1] does it better, for anyone who plays Connections.

    [1] https://puzzgrid.com/

  • by MrKey on 3/6/24, 8:19 PM

    I got the same. Did make a clone and localised it, and then forgot about it. Apparently, every cloned project was in the notice list. Deleted and forgot.

    Treating it as a case study how to protect the rights. One might say that it is against freedom etc., but in my opinion this makes intellectual capital a value. E.g. I now believe it is worth to invest in innovations and so on. (It does not mean I will do it as I lack the will and resources.) When I was younger I didn't know how to protect my code and capitalise it, therefore this case resonates with me in such way.

  • by lacoolj on 3/8/24, 10:30 PM

    here is the full record that comes from copyright.gov (https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?Search_Arg=P...):

    Type of Work: Computer File

    Registration Number / Date: PA0002342355 / 2022-03-28

    Application Title: Wordle.

    Title: Wordle.

    Description: Electronic file (eService)

    Notes: Videogame.

    Copyright Claimant: The New York Times, Transfer: By written agreement.

    Date of Creation: 2021

    Date of Publication: 2021-06-20

    Nation of First Publication: United States

    Authorship on Application: Josh Wardle; Domicile: United States; Citizenship: United Kingdom. Authorship: computer program code and text of instructions.

    Rights and Permissions: William Patterson, Swanson, Martin & Bell, 330 North Wabash Avenue, Suite 3300, Chicago, IL, 60611, wpatterson@smbtrials.com

    Copyright Note: C.O. correspondence.

    Names: Wardle, Josh New York Times

    ===============================================================================

  • by suddenclarity on 3/6/24, 7:42 PM

    Archived: https://archive.is/D03zW

    The relevant part seems to be the mention of "React Wordle" as well as:

    > The Times owns U.S. Copyright Reg. No. PA0002342355 in Wordle as an electronic file and computer file for a videogame. The Times’s Wordle copyright includes the unique elements of its immensely popular game, such as the 5x6 grid, green tiles to indicate correct guesses, yellow tiles to indicate the correct letter but the wrong place within the word, and the keyboard directly beneath the grid.

  • by leotravis10 on 3/7/24, 10:37 PM

  • by nubinetwork on 3/6/24, 9:32 PM

    I'm getting Tetris Corp vibes...

  • by zzo38computer on 3/10/24, 1:34 AM

    Charles Reid invented a game called "Word" in 1973 and wrote the code in BASIC and published the code in a book of "BASIC Computer Games".

  • by ChrisArchitect on 3/6/24, 10:29 PM

    Related/not-related: Did Spotify retain any trademark over Heardle, their music-based intro game that appeared shortly after the Wordle boom (and then they shut down abruptly)

  • by slimebot80 on 3/7/24, 11:59 PM

    Wordle isn't an original game. The game mechanics pre-existed before the inter webs.

  • by squigz on 3/6/24, 8:21 PM

    This is pathetic. The AI lawsuit sort of makes sense, but this just makes them seem like assholes. Oh well... I'm sure this will stop people from writing and hosting the code they want to.

    And, I mean, it's really too bad it's archived... https://web.archive.org/web/20240306172335/https://github.co...

  • by ametrau on 3/6/24, 7:24 PM

    That’s fair enough imo. They do own the rights.