ESA urged the US authorities to combat the spread of pirated handheld consoles
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) wants the US government to include portable retro consoles with pre-installed pirated games in the Notorious Markets List. This is a list of suspicious platforms and markets used to combat counterfeit products.
In its communication with the authorities, the ESA stated that such consoles often appear to be legitimate devices: they even come with warranties, and sales are conducted through major marketplaces. However, they include memory cards containing hundreds or thousands of games, for which the console manufacturers do not have licenses. By doing so, the ESA claims, they are infringing on copyrights.
According to the association, the proliferation of pirated portable consoles harms the sales of licensed game re-releases, subscriptions, and consoles.
In its address, the ESA specifically highlighted Anbernic—a Chinese company specializing in such consoles. The association pointed out that the company's activities contribute to the normalization of piracy.
Additionally, the ESA asked US authorities to include hacker voices38, who cracks Denuvo protection in games, and repacker FitGirl in the Notorious Markets List.