Having fun hunting Pokemons? Yes? Then, take a break and think for a second. Those Pokestops and Gyms that you frequent; well, you and the other tens sometimes hundreds of Pokemon hunters, how do you think the people living near those areas feel, be they Pokemon hunters too or not? Then again, how safe are you and the people around you when you’re deeply immersed into the game?
Well, a US couple Scott and Jayme Dodich from St. Clair Shores, northeast of Detroit are infuriated by the unrelenting stream of Pokemon hunters trampling on their landscaping, peering through their home and car windows and even sometimes cussing at them. I am sure they’re not a lone, many people out there are not enjoying the peace, quite, and safety of their neighborhoods all thanks to Pokemon Go.
All the while, Niantic, the developer and publisher of Pokemon Go; Nintendo is racking in millions of dollars at the expense of people safety, and right to enjoy their neighborhood’s peace and quiet.
The couple, Scott and Jayme Dodich claim these so-called Pokestops and gyms (they’re actually GPS coordinates to places where Pokemon hunters can find this virtual creatures) are sometimes located too close or even right on private properties. The property owners are not even told prior or even their consent sought.
The Dodich couple live across from the Wahby Park street, which has become a hotspot for these Pokestops and gyms. On a typical day they say, hundreds of Pokemon hunters come by to hunt these non-existing creatures. The sheer numbers of people coming into their neighborhood and even trespassing on their private property is just too much.
In the lawsuit, the couples complained, “Nobody gets sleep anymore. How is this acceptable? …They hang out on our lawns, trample landscaping, look in vehicles … We don’t feel safe … I don’t feel safe sitting on our porch.”
Scott and Jayme Dodich as the plaintiffs, are suing three defendants: Pokemon Co. based in the headquarters Tokyo, Japan, the Niantic – a software company based in San Francisco developing and publishing Pokemon Go, and Nintendo, owning about 32% of the Pokemon company and gets a cut of the revenues made from the game.
Scott and Jayme Dodich filed the lawsuit in federal court in California, demanding Pokemon to desist from designating GPS coordinates near or on private properties, without the explicit consent from the property owners. Additionally, the lawsuit wants Pokemon to give affected residents whose streets and yards have been affected, as they are also contributing to their games wild success by sacrificing the quietness of their neighborhood.