Ex-Warner Anti-Piracy Boss Joins Nintendo

Nintendo has hired Warner Bros’ ex-anti-piracy boss to go after UK retailers that are still selling the R4 backup-enabling device.

Backup devices for cartridge-based games consoles are nothing new, but traditionally have been bulky and slow – such as the original ‘Wildcard’ device for SNES/Super Famicom.

In recent years the whole process has become much more streamlined, culminating in the R4 storage device available for Nintendo DS.

While they can be used to store ‘homebrew’ code, R4 devices are usually used to play commercial games which have been downloaded from the Internet.

Nintendo has been waging war against manufacturers and distributors of R4-like devices and has just enabled its latest weapon -  a new recruit.

Neil Boyd, who worked previously as head of Warner Music’s director of anti-piracy activities in Europe, has this week joined Nintendo UK. He is warning stores in the UK that if they continue to stock R4 devices, they risk permanently damaging their relationship with Nintendo.

According to a mcvuk report, Boyd has also called on ISPs to put more pressure on subscribers “they know” are illegally downloading games.