In February 2025, the Guangdong Higher People’s Court facilitated a settlement in the appellate case filed by The Pokémon Company, Japan. against the operators of the mobile game Pokémon: Re-Edition for copyright infringement and unfair competition. On February 18, defendants Guangzhou Mai Mou Network Technology Co., Ltd. and Huo Mou Network Technology Co., Ltd. publicly issued an apology statement and undertook to cease all acts infringing the relevant intellectual property rights. The settlement agreement has now been fully performed.

The case originated in July 2015, when the defendants launched and operated the mobile game Pokémon: Re-Edition. Its core elements, including characters, maps, and numerical systems, were highly similar to those of the Pokémon video game series, and the defendants also engaged in unfair competition practices.

The Pokémon Company filed the lawsuit in December 2021. At first instance, the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court found the defendants liable for infringement and awarded damages of 107 million yuan, setting a record for the highest damages award in a game infringement case in China at that time.

Dissatisfied with the judgment, the defendants filed an appeal. The Guangdong Higher People’s Court held a public hearing in December 2024. Relying on the litigation-mediation connection mechanism with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and adopting the model judgment plus entrusted mediation approach, the court ultimately facilitated the settlement.