The business is cold in the back! An Italian Youtubeur could receive 3 years in prison for having tested Android consoles from Anbernic, Powkiddy and Trimui.
History is cold in the back. Francesco Salicini, Italian Youtubeur of the chain ” Once Were Nerd“, Could receive 3 years in prison for having tested Android portable consoles.
On April 15, 2025, the Guardia Di Finanza landed at his home with a search warrant and seized more than 30 aircraft from Anbernic, Powkiddy and Trimui. His crime? Having tests of apparatus sold legally, but which contained Roma of games Nintendo and Sony. A case that could create a terrifying precedent.
When testing products becomes an offense
The case is surreal: Salicini tested Android portable consoles sold openly on Amazon and Aliexpress. These devices, mainly manufactured in China by Anbernic, Powkiddy and Trimui, make it possible to emulate retro consoles (SNES, Nintendo 64, PSP, GameCube) for less than 100 €. The problem ? Many arrive with preinstalled Roma files.
The Italian authorities accuse him of raping article 171 of the law on copyright law of 1941. This law provides up to € 15,000 fine and 3 years in prison for violation of the copyright. Worse still: the authorities can block its YouTube channel even before the trial!
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Francesco Salicini insists that none of his tests was sponsored and that he was not inclined to affiliate. He simply did product tests available for sale.
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The preinstalled Roma trap
The real problem is that these Chinese manufacturers play with Western laws. They use wandering formulations as “compatible with more than 7,000 games” without saying that they directly include the Roma. Buyers therefore receive devices with Nintendo and Sony games already installed.
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Emulation itself is legal, but Roma files evolve in a legal gray area. Technically, you have the right to emulate a game that you have physically, but downloading Roma remains illegal. These manufacturers use this ambiguity to sell their products.
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Francesco Salicini is therefore taken between two fires: on the one hand, products sold legally, on the other, potentially illegal preinstalled content. And it is he who knocked out for daring to talk about it.
Nintendo in the shade?
The complaint explicitly mentions content protected by Nintendo and Sony, but the complainant’s identity remains mysterious. Speculations point to Nintendo, known for its ultra-aggressive intellectual protection policy.
Nintendo has already closed many emulation projects and fans with formal notices. The Japanese company does not laugh with its licenses and may well be behind this case to make an example.
If this is the case, the message is clear: even talking about these devices can attract you from trouble. An intimidation strategy that could cool the entire gaming youtubeurs community.
If Francesco Salicini is condemned, this could cause massive self -censorship in the YouTube Gaming community. The creators will hesitate to test certain products for fear of reprisals.
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