PopCap loses another $2.7m to MumboJumbo

Not exactly... they sold the distribution rights to MumboJumbo, ("whereby MumboJumbo would produce, distribute and sell certain PopCap games in North America") then decided to turn around and sell the titles on their own... effectively entering into direct competition with their own publisher. I assume this may have something to do with PopCap titles on Steam or being sold through their website, but I'm not really interested enough to go digging.

If they're cutting out the middleman they had an agreement with, it's a violation of contract. Pretty cut and dry, and it looks like the courts agree.

Not confusing at all.

pretty much what freeparn said. So let's remove Popcap and Mumbo Jumbo and take it directly to a metaphor people could understand... Microsoft and Gears of War.

Microsoft, as the publisher, has exclusive distribution rights to Gears of War 1&2 (presumably 3). So Microsoft has the rights to digitally distribute, publish and ship, and in general they have the exclusive publishing rights for it. Epic, despite deving Gears of War, signed away the rights to distribute these games. Many reasons for it. Epic won't have to front the capital for materials, spend the money to advertise, and in general, Epic has nowhere near the reach or distribution partners as Microsoft does. But Epic does it anyway. So Microsoft and Epic both launch their own packages of the exact same game on launch day. Market confusion ensues, consumers get pissed off, and Microsoft essentially paid millions of dollars to their competition.

That's what the Mumbo Jumbo vs PopCap thing is. PopCap didn't have the distribution channels and signed a deal with Mumbo Jumbo who did. Meanwhile high level emails revealed an intention to deceive Mumbo Jumbo and use the money from MJ to finance their own publishing and distribution. It's not a matter of who made what, it's a matter of PopCap being paid by MJ as a publisher to distribute these games exclusively and PopCap going back on that contract, keeping the money, and competing with the financers of their distribution.

"So let's remove Popcap and Mumbo Jumbo and take it directly to a metaphor people could understand... Microsoft and Gears of War."

I think you complicated it more than simplified it.

Basically... Person A makes a game and says Person B is the only one who can sell it. Person A then turns around and sells the game himself. Now Person A and Person B are competing with itself over the same game sales. Simple as that.

You mean Peggle 3?
I guess Nights wasn't particularly impressive but I think it was supposed to be a sequel.

You're so funny.