Scrabulous rankles Scrabble's creators

By Michelle R. Smith The Associated Press

Published: Jan 17, International Herald Tribune

PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island: The companies that make Scrabble are trying to shut down Scrabulous, an online version of the game that is one of the most popular applications on the social networking site Facebook.

Hasbro, which owns the rights to the crossword game in the United States and Canada, and Mattel, which owns the rights elsewhere, say the Facebook game infringes their copyrights and trademarks.

Scrabulous listed more than 600,000 daily active users on Facebook as of Wednesday and is one of the 10 most-used applications on the site. The game also can be played at Scrabulous.com.

The companies jointly issued cease and desist notices to four entities involved in the development, operation and marketing of Scrabulous, according to a letter Hasbro is sending consumers.

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photo: An online game with a different name has found many fans. (Leon Neal/Agence France-Presse)