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Tecmo Says Team Ninja Exodus Rumours False, Calls Out U.S. Media
Posted by Michael McWhertor at 12:40 PM on June 19, 2008
Tecmo is not pleased. It says that rumoured talk of some three dozen Team Ninja members bolting from the company along with Tomonobu Itagaki and filing suit against Tecmo, reports of which originated at 1UP, are false and inaccurate. "No such action is taking place at the company", reads an official statement forwarded to Kotaku.
According to Tecmo, only two employees have filed a lawsuit against the company. Tecmo claims that it notified "all affected employees that they would be appropriately compensated and is currently in the process of resolving the matter". It also goes on record as saying that reports that it had withheld information from shareholders regarding the lawsuit filed by Itagaki were, in short, hogwash.
Apparently, recent reporting on Tecmo's legal kerfuffle has caused "unrest" amongst company staffers, so the publisher and developer has asked us to "handle news reports concerning the above matters with care". It is our policy to handle all news reports as if they were a brittle nest filled with the precious and fragile eggs of a hummingbird.
June 18, 2008
On and around June 15, 2008, various websites in the US reported a rumour about "dozens" of development staff members resigning and filing a lawsuit against Tecmo, LTD., following Tomonobu Itagaki's departure from the company. The rumours are false and no such action is taking place at the company.
On June 16, 2008, two employees filed a lawsuit against Tecmo, LTD. with accusations of withholding overtime pay. Although a lawsuit was filed by the two employees, on April 1, 2008, Tecmo, LTD. did notify all affected employees that they would be appropriately compensated and is currently in the process of resolving the matter. There are several inaccurate reports stating that all 300 company employees are named in the lawsuit and the company would like to clarify that only two employees are involved in the suit.
In addition, there were reports that Tecmo, LTD., a publicly traded company on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, withheld information from its shareholders regarding the lawsuit filed in May 2008 by Tomonobu Itagaki. The company has observed the provisions defined by the Exchange and has released information accordingly and in a timely manner.
It is unfortunate that false and inaccurate reporting of our organisation and employees' actions have caused some unrest among our development staff members. Tecmo, LTD. would like to assure its partners and loyal fans that its teams continue to focus and work on several projects to be released and announced in the future. The company is committed to providing high quality, entertaining products for our fans around the world.
Your continued support of Tecmo, LTD. is appreciated and it is kindly asked that you handle news reports concerning the above matters with care.
Tecmo, LTD.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
HaydenTenno
Posted 1:29 PM 19/6/08
Tecmo claims that it notified "all affected employees that they would be appropriately compensated and is currently in the process of resolving the matter."
That says it all...
HaydenTenno
dapoktan
Posted 1:28 PM 19/6/08
I'm not for either side, but a reputable news source in the industry such as 1up shouldnt sling around rumors without decent proof or sources..
I could go on forums and find or start rumors.. if that can be the start of a news story someone like cnn picks up, there's a problem..
Maybe they do have sources.. who knows.
dapoktan
SG79
Posted 1:27 PM 19/6/08
@theALLseeingEYE:
This particular portion wasn't posted as a rumor though, and any company would be riled up by such an accusation.
The fact that Itagaki had actually filed a complaint against Tecmo in Tokyo District Court on May 14, but Tecmo management withheld this information from shareholders, possibly as late as when the notorious developer released his high-profile public statement on June 2, creates even bigger problems for the game publisher.
SG79
Cactuar
Posted 1:21 PM 19/6/08
I'm loving the tag for this article.
Cactuar
theALLseeingEYE
Posted 1:18 PM 19/6/08
@xMindPrintsx:
What the.. you dont work for Tecmo by any chance do you?
No worries if you do, but I'n not sharing the beleif that 1up necissarily did anything wrong here. They posted a rumor, they didn't really state otherwise. And if it turns out to be false, then the joke is on them.
I'm sure it will be interesting seeing how this all pans out.
theALLseeingEYE
xMindPrintsx
Posted 1:04 PM 19/6/08
I don't know the exact details, but I will say this - 1UP has become a little funky of lately (within the last year and a half). Also, this articles leaves a LOT to the imagination!
First off, the article lists 1UP staff as the writers.
Second, who is the source of the information?
Bad reporting! Bad reporting! Bad reporting!
Hey 1UP, are your sources now "word on the street?"
And why not list the writers involved in writing that article? Huh? Did no one want their names involved in the article?
I wonder why?
As a journalist, I blame U.S. Media. . . .
xMindPrintsx
SG79
Posted 1:03 PM 19/6/08
Quite a bit of difference between fact and rumor this time. Though posted in a rumor article, 1UP certainly didn't post the part about the company withholding information from stockholders as one.
How did two multiply to 300 is beyond me. I found it quite absurd that the suit was reported to be for ~$70K on behalf of a large number of people.
SG79
TheNocturnalSun
Posted 12:57 PM 19/6/08
team ninja should bail
TheNocturnalSun
Mr.DuckSauce
Posted 12:56 PM 19/6/08
I bet they paid off the workers and made a contract statement of payment that they would not say anything more after that, way to go shady companies.
Mr.DuckSauce
shichi
Posted 12:55 PM 19/6/08
how about another DoA volleyball game and we'll call it even?
shichi
Sailorcancer
Posted 12:54 PM 19/6/08
I feel really sorry for Tecmo =(
Sailorcancer
sir_carrot
Posted 12:51 PM 19/6/08
It's okay, Itagaki is probably giving you props for it.
sir_carrot
AkageNoKeri
Posted 12:50 PM 19/6/08
I don't believe them.
AkageNoKeri
insanejedi
Posted 12:49 PM 19/6/08
My response is... "Yeah, whatever Tecmo. It was nice knowing you."
insanejedi
Cpt-Jobert
Posted 12:49 PM 19/6/08
ubisoft, now tecmo, who's gonna get pissed at 1up next?
Cpt-Jobert
SortaKindaAGamer
Posted 12:48 PM 19/6/08
Well of course they're not leaving anymore, they paid up.
SortaKindaAGamer
icegoat
Posted 12:47 PM 19/6/08
Absolutely Ridiculous! But a fun story to follow.
icegoat
ChemicalWedding
Posted 12:46 PM 19/6/08
Trying to cover their ass, I see.
ChemicalWedding
Lezard
Posted 2:02 PM 19/6/08
I'm withholding any judgment on my part until this news gets cleared up. It's just too much of a mess right now.
Lezard
DrunkenNinja12
Posted 1:57 PM 19/6/08
I take everything coming from anyone affiliated with 1UP and dismiss it as trash.
Just as I do with the Electronig Gaming Monthly I get in the mail every month.
DrunkenNinja12
mfwahwah
Posted 1:48 PM 19/6/08
I'll just wait till the end since I don't trust either side enough to follow through and know which one is "true."
mfwahwah
Neo-Senku
Posted 1:42 PM 19/6/08
I smell bullshit.
Neo-Senku
maraxusofk
Posted 1:42 PM 19/6/08
@HaydenTenno:
thats bullshit. given tecmo's history, the company probably promises to pay all unpaid bonuses when the matter is resolved at which point they can go back to not paying anything. this statement seems more like an attempt to salvage the rapdily deflating stock value of the company. if itagaki and co. play their cards right, they can get much more than wut the company promises as of breach of contract. go itagaki and team ninja stick it to tecmo and form ur own company with ur winnings.
maraxusofk
xMindPrintsx
Posted 2:29 PM 19/6/08
@theALLseeingEYE:
The article was filed under NEWS.
Since when did rumor qualify as NEWS?
RUMOR ("word on the street") has it that Sony and Microsoft will be joining and creating a new system.
Does me stating the above make it news? No!
xMindPrintsx
Ultrasinc
Posted 2:19 PM 19/6/08
HAHA, Tecmo notified to resolve this problem was an April fools!
Also, all the lawsuits came after that date. XD
Ultrasinc
GnatB
Posted 2:18 PM 19/6/08
I believe the 2->300 was 2 people filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of the 300 tecmo employees.
Almost no knowledge of the law, but the way I understand how class action lawsuits work, is some number of complainents come forward, establish the "class", take the case to court, and everybody who is considered part of the "class" are eligible to recieve a portion of whatever rewards result, whether they've actively taken part in the lawsuit or not. So 2 people could feel that a class of people, (i.e. tecmo employees who worked from 2004-2008 or whatever) have unfairly been denied their bonuses, thereby establishing a class of 300 people. 298 of them could be completely happy with their jobs.
GnatB
Replica23
Posted 2:53 PM 19/6/08
@ChemicalWedding: "Trying to cover their ass, I see."
Perhaps, but media in all countries are notorious for fanning the flames of false information to generate drama. After all that is the kind of stuff the masses continuously bite down on. I'm not discounting the possibility of what has been reported is anymore accurate than what Tecmo would have people believe, I just wouldn't be surprised if it was largely overblown media flare.
Replica23
StupidDufus
Posted 2:40 PM 19/6/08
I don't understand why so many people are jumping to the defense of Tecmo here. It's not infrequently that gaming journalism gets stuff incorrect.
StupidDufus
extratightpants
Posted 12:52 AM 20/6/08
1up has a history of publishing untrue rumors. They are the national enquirer of gaming.
extratightpants
Snokie
Posted 6:32 AM 20/6/08
In addition, there were reports that Tecmo, LTD., a publicly traded company on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, withheld information from its shareholders regarding the lawsuit filed in May 2008 by Tomonobu Itagaki. The company has observed the provisions defined by the Exchange and has released information accordingly and in a timely manner.
Note how Tecmo implies that the reports of withholding information are false, without saying they were false.
Note also now Tecmo dismissed the withholding of information by stating that they "observed the provisions... etc." They never said they didn't withhold information, only that they weren't required to share it.
Way to spin, Tecmo!
Snokie