EA settles with weapons maker over Battlefield 3 vehicle names

Back in 2012, EA sued aircraft maker Bell over a disagreement on whether EA could use Bell’s aircraft and names in Battlefield 3. Bell is the maker of the Huey and the Viper, both which are playable in BF3. EA argued that it’s a first amendment right — a freedom of expression that video games enjoy just as movies do. Bell wanted EA to pay royalties, but EA argued that when Bells aircraft are used in movies, they don’t have to pay royalties, and neither should games.

Now EA and Bell have settled the lawsuit, but neither party have released any details on the settlement. We doubt this will have any effect on the vehicle and weapon names in the upcoming Battlefield 4, which will also feature the Huey and the Viper helicopters — made by Bell.

As we reported last year, EA and Bell’s parent company, Textron, were in licensing negotiations, which fell through. Afterwards, EA decided to use the real world names of the aircraft anyways, and filed a pre-emptive lawsuit against Textron. Textron wanted EA to stop using all of its aircraft in the game, which would have meant no Viper nor Huey. Since both helicopters are present in BF4, we assume that Bell and EA settled this without sacrificing the the authenticity of the game.

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