Overview
In early 2024 Nintendo faced two court‑ordered blocking orders against piracy sites that distribute Switch games in Europe. The rulings in the Netherlands and Germany illustrate how anti‑piracy groups are using legal mechanisms and voluntary ISP cooperation to curb illegal downloads.
Netherlands: Blocking NXBrew.net
The Rotterdam District Court, acting on a request from Dutch anti‑piracy organisation BREIN, ordered ISP Delta Fiber to block access to NXBrew.net. The injunction also contains a dynamic clause that forces the ISP to block any future domains, sub‑domains, proxies or mirrors that the site may use.
Key points:
- First gaming‑related site‑blocking order in the Netherlands.
- Only Delta Fiber was named, but other Dutch ISPs have voluntarily joined the block under the 2021 site‑blocking covenant.
- BREIN must follow a step‑by‑step “notice‑and‑take” plan before seeking court action.
- BREIN also sent the ruling to Google to request removal of NXBrew links from search results.
Germany: Blocking NSWPedia
On 27 January 2024 the Cologne Regional Court issued a similar injunction against the piracy portal NSWPedia. German ISPs implement the order through the CUII (Clearing Body for Copyright on the Internet) framework, which triggers voluntary blocks across participating providers.
Notable aspects:
- Blocking is coordinated centrally via CUII, so a single court order leads to widespread ISP compliance.
- Germany lacks an official public blocklist, prompting developer Lina to create the monitoring site CUIILliste.de to expose errors.
Impact and Transparency
Both orders expand the reach of anti‑piracy enforcement beyond the targeted ISP. In the Netherlands the dynamic clause allows BREIN to add new domains without returning to court, while in Germany the CUII system spreads the block automatically. However, the lack of a public blocklist in Germany raises transparency concerns, as highlighted by the unofficial monitoring initiative.
What’s Next for Nintendo
These rulings suggest that additional Nintendo‑related piracy sites could face similar blocks throughout Europe. Rights‑holders are likely to continue leveraging court orders and voluntary ISP agreements to protect their content, while monitoring groups will keep tracking the effectiveness and accuracy of the blocks.