Category: Copyright
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How a Copyright Office Decision Makes Video Game Preservation Harder
During the U.S. Copyright Office’s rulemaking session in October 2024, the office announced that they would not grant an exemption from the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that would have allowed libraries to remotely share digital access to video games. This is a big blow to video game preservation efforts being made by the Video…
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The (Possibly) Illegal World of Video Game Emulators: Understanding Yuzu
On March 4, 2024, Tropic Haze LLC, the creators of the Yuzu Switch video game emulator, announced that they would be ceasing development and stopping distribution. This was the result of a lawsuit by Nintendo, which Yuzu’s development team ultimately settled for $2.4 million. Incidentally, this happened not long after Dolphin, a Gamecube emulator, canceled…
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What Really Changed with Steam’s AI Art Policy? Is Anything Different?
I previously posted about Valve’s stance on AI-generated art on Steam and how their policy – or lack thereof at the time – really doesn’t change anything. It was just Valve not allowing copyright infringement on their platform, and taking a bit of a cautious approach until the law is settled. Since then, Valve issued…
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You Now Own the Mickey Mouse Copyright. How Did We Get Here and What Does This Mean?
It’s finally happened. The Mickey Mouse copyright has entered the public domain. You, and everyone else, now owns Mickey Mouse – with some caveats. The public domain is a wonderful idea. Artists are allowed to profit from their creations, and then after a period of time the work enters the public domain where it can…
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Three IP Pitfalls to Avoid In Video Game Publishing
Video games cost money to make, and for some developers and their games a publisher is a good way to get that money and get a partner that helps make and market their game. Publishers can be huge for what would otherwise only be a moderately successful game and making a true financial success, as…
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Does Valve’s New Rule Against AI Art in Video Games Change Anything?
UPDATE: I wrote this before Valve issued their new policy surrounding AI-generated assets on Steam. Their policy has since changed in that instead of rejecting games outright that make any use of AI-generated assets, they’re now requiring developers to disclose how AI was used. You can read more about this new rule here. Since the…
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IP Dangers When Using AI Assets in Video Games
In my last post, we went over the recent rise of images generated by artificial intelligence (AI), how they work, and some of the legal risks of using AI assets in video games. There are many legal questions surrounding this, including unsettled ones like whether or not incorporating copyright-protected art into an AI model as…
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AI Art: The Future Of Game Development, Or Risky Infringement?
When I was in high school, I wrote a paper on the possibility of music generated by Artificial Intelligence, or AI. At the time, AI art seemed like a distant dream, one that couldn’t possibly be real outside of science fiction. The thought at the time was that AI would always lack some human element…
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Are Game Mods Illegal? All About Duke Nukem and PointCrow
In April of 2023, YouTuber and Twitch streamer PointCrow was issued copyright strikes against his channel by Nintendo. PointCrow makes “videos playing games, sometimes in strange ways.” On occasion, he “modifies the games [he plays] and explore[s] what happens when the game mechanics are a little different.” What drew Nintendo’s ire was the videos of…
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Can You Legally Make a Fan Game? (Probably Not)
Video game development is more accessible than it’s ever been. Today anybody can go download a program and start learning how to make games. Combine that with a games industry that has been around long enough to have games that people are nostalgic for and you can easily understand why fan games have come up…