Tom Nook And The IP Rule Book

Rebecca Campbell takes a whimsical look at the impact of virtual interest rate cuts and a lack of IP lawyers in the world of Animal Crossing.

A virtual interest rate change in the Nintendo video game Animal Crossing: New Horizons has made quite the impact in recent months, attracting front page coverage from the Financial Times (FT) in a satirical article. There was much for the newspaper to discuss, as a surprise bank rate cut in a mandatory software update now encourages players to raise money through riskier activities, such as farming poisonous tarantulas and scorpions or investing in the game's turnip Stalk Market. Even Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Lord of the Rings actor Elijah Wood has had to diversify, visiting a stranger's island in order to sell his turnips at a higher price. But amongst all this talk of tropical banks and turnips, one intellectual property (IP) nerd can't help but wonder if there are any IP issues facing characters in the