In a landmark case for intellectual property rights in China's gaming sector, the Guangdong High People’s Court of successfully mediated in a copyright and unfair competition dispute between Japan’s Pokémon Company and four Chinese gaming companies in February 2025. 

The defendants, the four Chinese companies, issued a public apology and fully complied with the terms of the settlement agreement involving the payment of compensation to the plaintiff, the Pokémon Company.

The case centered around the mobile game Pokémon: Remastered which had been operated since 2015 by the defendants. The game closely resembled the official Pokémon series in characters, maps, storyline, and gameplay. Marketing phrases such as “faithfully remastered,” “highly accurate restoration,” and “officially licensed” were used to attract users, further blurring the line with the original Pokémon IP. By the following year, the game had generated over 300 million yuan ($41.172 million) in revenue. 

The defendants were sued by the Pokémon Company in December 2021. The Japanese company filed a lawsuit with the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court, accusing the defendants of copyright infringement and unfair competition. The plaintiffs requested that the defendants immediately cease the infringing activity, issue a public apology, eliminate negative impact, and pay 500 million yuan in damages.

During the first-instance adjudication, the court determined that the defendants’ game constituted copyright infringement, ordering the defendants pay a compensation of 107 million yuan to the plaintiff. The Chinese companies filed an appeal against the judgment, leading the case to the second-instance procedure.

On Dec 18, 2024, the Guangdong High People’s Court held a public hearing on the case. On the basis of further investigation of the facts, the court narrowed the discrepancies between the parties on matters such as factual determination, legal application, and compensation calculation, providing an opportunity for mediation. 

The public hearing of the second adjudication of the Pokémon case at the Guangdong High People's Court. [Photo/court.gov.cn]

In preparation, the court had held multiple pretrial conferences, meticulously reviewing evidence and comparing the game elements in question.

In the interim, the Guangdong High People’s Court accelerated a parallel case involving the game Rise of Kingdoms, which shared similar legal disputes. The court ruled that gameplay rules alone were not eligible for copyright protection, and that such “reskinning” of games should be assessed under unfair competition law. The judgment helped clarify legal standards for similar disputes and was shared with the Pokémon case litigants to align expectations.

Armed with this demonstrative judgment, the court initiated multiple rounds of both “face-to-face” and “back-to-back” mediation sessions. Mediators adjusted proposals to balance the interests of both sides. 

To ensure effective resolution of what was an international intellectual property dispute, the court invited professional mediators from the World Intellectual Property Organization’s Arbitration and Mediation Center to assist in mediation. 

Ultimately, the court facilitated a settlement agreement through a combination of “scrutinized review”, “model judgment” and “international mediation”.

In addition to public apology and compensation, the four Chinese companies also promised to correct their mistakes and operate their businesses with integrity in future. The Pokémon Company said the mediation outcome significantly enhances their confidence in the judicial environment of China and its intellectual property protection efforts. 

The successful mediation of this case underscores the important role of the Chinese judicial system in intellectual property protection. In recent years, China has made significant strides in enhancing intellectual property protection, improving judicial efficiency, and fostering innovation, particularly in the context of the rapid development of the digital economy and the gaming industry, where intellectual property disputes have become a common issue for businesses. 

Zhang Haibo, president of the Guangdong High People's Court, said that the case is the first intellectual property right protection case involving the globally renowned game and animation IP Pokémon in China. 

Against the backdrop of Chinese games going global and Chinese cultural exports increasing, the Guangdong High People’s Court will continuously improve its mechanism to enhance the quality and efficiency of adjudication, safeguard the development of new quality productive forces, promote the building of a world-class, market-oriented business environment governed by a sound legal framework, and contribute Chinese wisdom to the construction of an open, inclusive, mutually beneficial global innovation ecosystem, Zhang said.

Lu Xiaokun, executive president of the Guangdong Entertainment and Game Industry Association, said that the Pokémon case had set a demonstrative benchmark for the high-quality development of the gaming industry, holding profound significance for innovation and regulated development within the gaming industry. 

It plays a positive role in fostering a law-based business environment that respects innovation, ensures equal protection, and promotes fair competition, Lu said. 

The Guangdong High People's Court, through mechanisms such as citing similar cases and coordinating litigation and mediation, bridged differences, safeguarded the legitimate rights and interests of rights holders while considering the rights of enterprises for survival and development, embodying judicial wisdom that equally protects domestic and foreign entities, and balances legal governance with industry realities, he added.