Connectix has announced that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has decided to "reverse and remand" a preliminary injunction of the Virtual Game Station on all counts. According to the company, shipments of the Virtual Game Station, a product that allows for PlayStation software to be played on the Macintosh, will begin immediately. Online sales of the product began today at www.connectix.com. Connectix states that a Windows version of the Virtual Game Station will soon be released as well.
"The court has recognized that reverse engineering is a common, legitimate, and valuable development practice, protected under law," stated Roy McDonald, CEO of Connectix. "We are pleased to be able to bring our product back to the Macintosh community and launch it in the Windows market. Now consumers on both platforms will enjoy their right to choose to play PlayStation games on these computers, and Sony and game developers can benefit from the expanded market for their games as a result of this choice. We believe this landmark decision will have broad ramifications throughout the software and other media industries. This ruling supports the clear goal of US copyright law to allow fair use of prior works to create new intellectual property, which broadens consumer choice. This is a great victory for every American."