California, Dutch court rulings favor Upper Deck

A California court has denied Konami’s application for a temporary selling and shipping ban, effectively stopping any restrictions that would have prevented Upper Deck from marketing, selling, distributing and providing game support for the Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game.

The Dutch courts also ruled in favor of Upper Deck Dec. 24, overruling Konami’s alleged termination of its contract with Upper Deck. Accordingly, Upper Deck will continue its role as the exclusive distributor of the Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game in all European territories, plus Australia and New Zealand. The complete release announcing this decision can be found at http://www.upperdeck-international.com/tabid/56/language/en-US/Default.aspx?AnnouncementID=11

Both victories clear the way for Upper Deck to continue distributing, marketing and selling Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG products in territories outside of Asia. “Upper Deck is very pleased with today’s rulings,” said Upper Deck executive Bernd Becker. “We look forward to continuing the superior game support that we’ve been delivering to worldwide Yu-Gi-Oh! players for the last seven years. This is as much a victory for the Yu-Gi-Oh! players as it is for Upper Deck,” said Becker.