After first attempting to block public view of the Ouya’s unofficial E3 presence with semi-trailers, the ESA then called the police to “check its permits.”
The Ouya has a presence at this year’s E3. Sort of. The creators of the Kickstarter-backed Android-based console rented out a “parking lot” opposite the Los Angeles Convention Center where E3 is being held, where it is displaying the console to anyone who wants to see it. The ESA, the folks behind the main E3 event, are seemingly not very happy with the Ouya team going around the official E3 channels, and have attempted to diminish the console’s presence by first physically blocking it from view, and then calling the police to harass them.
Earlier in the week, the ESA rented out the space directly in front of the Ouya booth and planted a couple of semi-trailers there, effectively blocking the console from public view. In response, the Ouya team then played the one-up game by renting the space in front of those trucks and putting up Ouya banners. Julie Uhrman, the founder of the Ouya, then claims that the ESA got Johnny Law involved, calling the LAPD in an attempt to shut the Ouya’s booth down permanently.
Uhrman says the police showed up and demanded to see all of the company’s relevant permits. After proving that everything was in order, and that the Ouya’s “E3 presence” was entirely law-abiding, the police left.
Uhrman believes that her company is being unfairly targeted because they refused to play ball with the ESA. She has vowed to increase the Ouya’s street presence in the upcoming days of E3 week, and refuses to be intimidated by the ESA’s scare tactics. “If ten more trucks show up, we’ll come up with another idea. I have a few up my sleeve,” she said.
Source & Image: IGN
Published: Jun 12, 2013 08:02 am