PAWTUCKET – The battle over Scrabulous, an unauthorized but hugely popular Web version of Scrabble, has become a massive public relations headache for Hasbro Inc.

Early yesterday, the two India-based creators of Scrabulous abruptly removed their unauthorized application from Facebook – the popular social-networking Web site – in response to a federal lawsuit the Pawtucket-based toy manufacturer had filed on Friday.

The online word game, a near-total knockoff of the Scrabble board game, had garnered a reputation as one of the most popular methods of procrastination for bored workers since it was added to Facebook last year. More than 500,000 people reportedly played Scrabulous each day, compared with only about 15,000 who played the more elaborate authorized version.

Just hours after the unauthorized application was removed from Facebook, however, Hasbro was forced to take down its own official version of Scrabble. The official Facebook Scrabble game was developed for Hasbro by video-game producer Electronic Arts Inc. (READ MORE) It was still in a test version before its removal on Tuesday, and was working only intermittently and slowly.

A message posted on Facebook – on the site’s official Scrabble page – said the game had been removed due to “tech problems.”

But a Hasbro spokeswoman told Providence Business News today that the authorized version actually was brought down by “a malicious attack.” The spokeswoman directed further questions to Electronic Arts, which did not immediately respond to a PBN phone call seeking comment.

Meanwhile, nearly 50,000 people have joined “Save Scrabulous,” one of a number of Facebook groups that have sprung up to defend the unauthorized game.

Users have lambasted the design of Hasbro’s official Scrabble game and called for the company to come to an agreement with the two Calcutta students who created Scrabulous – Rajat and Jayant Agarwalla – to allow their version of the game to remain online.

In a statement, Hasbro said it was pleased that Scrabulous had been removed; the company defended its handling of the situation. “In deference to the fans, we waited in pursuing legal action until Electronic Arts had a legitimate alternative available,” Hasbro said.

Facebook says it is not taking sides in the Hasbro-Scrabulous dispute because the Web site wants to be “a neutral platform.”

Outside the United States and Canada, where Hasbro owns the Scrabble trademark and copyright, Scrabulous is still available to Facebook users. The unauthorized game is also available to users in North America via a separate Web site, scrabulous.com.

Still, not everyone prefers Scrabulous to Scrabble. A reviewer for CNET, a top technology Web site, wrote earlier this month that players “will find [the official] Scrabble easier to get into, easier to use, and just as competitive and fun” as Scrabulous.

The idea for Scrabble dates back to 1938, but the game was given its famous name and design in 1948 by James Brunot. In 1972, Brunot sold the game’s trademark to Selchow & Righter, which in turn sold it to COLECO Industries in 1986, according to the National Scrabble Association.

Hasbro acquired the rights to Scrabble after COLECO declared bankruptcy in 1989.

Hasbro Inc. (NYSE: HAS) is a world leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of traditional and high-tech games and toys under brands including Playskool, Tonka, Milton Bradley, Parker Brothers, Tiger and Wizards of the Coast. Additional information is available at www.hasbro.com.