EA settles Gibsons Rock Band lawsuit

Electronic Arts is no longer being sued by music firm Gibson Guitar Corporation over its Rock Band controllers.

The companies have told Magistrate Judge Juliet that they had reached a full settlement” and will be seeking dismissal of the case by June 14, according to a federal court filing. Terms have not been disclosed.

Gibson sued EA, Viacom and Harmonix in 2008, claiming that Rock Band infringed a 1999 patent for a way of performing in a simulated concert with a musical instrument.

Interestingly, the company also attempted to sue Activision over Guitar Hero for the same reason, but failed when the courts ruled that the game’s plastic approximations of instruments did not infringe any existing patents.