Франческо Салічіні з каналу Once Were Nerd, розповідає про свою ситуацію / YouTube
Creators of console games have fought emulators and game copying before, but this case is a new legal level.
Italian YouTuber Francesco Salicini, owner of the Once Were Nerd channel, covers retro games, but his reviews of Anbernic devices seem to have been the last straw. According to him, the financial police showed up at his home and office with a search warrant to investigate the distribution of pirated material by «advertising».
Anbernic is known for its retro consoles that can imitate classic games from Nintendo and Sony. However, the company sometimes ships its products with microSD cards containing hundreds of copyrighted ROM files. This is certainly against the law and a form of piracy, but the YouTuber claims that he was only reviewing the hardware and that no manufacturer sponsored his video. He also refrained from adding affiliate links to this content.
Salicini is now being charged with violating Article 171 of the Italian Copyright Law, which carries a maximum fine of €15,000 and three years in prison. His case is currently still under investigation, but the Italian Guardia di Finanza (Financial Police) has seized more than 30 consoles, including those from Anbernic, TrimUI, and Powkiddy. The police also obtained the YouTuber’s phone and transcripts of his conversations with portable console manufacturers.
The initial investigation will last about six months (from April), after which the authorities will have to decide whether to close or continue the proceedings. But in the meantime, Salicini also runs the risk of being blocked, even without definitive proof of his alleged violations.
It is not yet known which company has launched an official prosecution of the YouTuber. Website Tom’s Hardware notes that it can be Nintendo or Sony, and the incident takes the fight against emulators and pirated content to a new level. However, one Japanese a gaming video blogger has already received 5 years of probation and a large fine.