Copyright law issues in the context of video game Let's Plays and livestreams

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-130
Author(s):  
Anna-Lisa Tie
Keyword(s):  
Video Game ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
Fair Use ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Compulsory Licensing ◽  
Video Game Content ◽  
Legislative Amendments ◽  
Automated Tools ◽  
Game Developers

Video game content has grown increasingly popular on internet service providers such as YouTube and Twitch. This genre of uploaded material includes the gameplay of internet users, in the form of pre-recorded ‘Let's Play’ videos, as well as livestreamed playthroughs. However, the application of current copyright law principles to these kinds of content is still a grey area. This legal uncertainty can be attributed to the absence of binding judicial precedent on whether video game Let's Plays and livestreams constitute copyright infringement or fair use. More recent legislative provisions intended to update copyright law for current digital technology provide little assistance, as their implementation by internet platforms has perpetuated a practice of favouring the interests of game developers over users who produce Let's Plays and livestreams. This article discusses the problems of applying existing copyright law to video game playthroughs uploaded online, as well as the drawbacks of the automated tools YouTube and Twitch have developed to manage these types of content in their systems. In order to address these issues, suggestions for copyright law reform will be explored. However, in the absence of imminent legislative amendments, I conclude that compulsory licensing arrangements, and making modifications to YouTube's and Twitch's content scanning tools are the most viable means of achieving a better balance between the interests of game developers, the internet platforms, and Let's Play creators and game streamers.

Robbery under arms: Copyright law and the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement

First Monday ◽  
2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Rimmer
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Free Trade ◽  
Free Trade Agreement ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Trade Agreement ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
Fair Use ◽  
Internet Service Providers ◽  
Protection Measures ◽  
Internet Service

This article considers the radical, sweeping changes to Australian copyright law wrought by the Australia–United States Free Trade Agreement 2004 (AUSFTA). It contends that the agreement will result in a “piracy of the public domain”. Under this new regime, copyright owners will be able to obtain greater monopoly profits at the expense of Australian consumers, libraries and research institutions, as well as intermediaries, such as Internet service providers. Part One observes that the copyright term extension in Australia to life of the author plus 70 years for works will have a negative economic and cultural impact — with Australia’s net royalty payments estimated to be up to $88 million higher per year. Part Two argues that the adoption of stronger protection of technological protection measures modelled upon the Digital Millennium Copyright Act 1998 (U.S.) will override domestic policy–making processes, such as the Phillips Fox Digital Agenda Review, and judicial pronouncements such as the Stevens v Sony litigation. Part Three questions whether the new safe harbours protection for Internet service providers will adversely affect the sale of Telstra. This article concludes that there is a need for judicial restraint in interpreting the AUSFTA. There is an urgent call for the Federal Government to pass ameliorating reforms — such as an open–ended defence of fair use and a mechanism for orphan works. There is a need for caution in negotiating future bilateral trade agreements — lest the multinational system for the protection of copyright law be undermined.

scholarly journals Os direitos autorais no marco civil da internet | Copyrights in the Civil Rights Framework for the Internet

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Allan Rocha de Souza ◽  
Luca Schirru
Keyword(s):  
Civil Rights ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Legislative Process ◽  
Private Regulation ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Digital World ◽  
Internet Regulation ◽  
Public Consultations

RESUMO Este artigo tem por objetivo analisar a representação das questões sobre os direitos autorais no mundo digital conforme expostas na construção do Marco Civil da Internet. Para tal, recorre-se aos debates travados nas consultas públicas conduzidas pelo Poder Executivo Federal e no decorrer do processo legislativo. A discussão central revolve em torno da forma de retirada do ar de conteúdos alegadamente protegidos por direitos autorais e a responsabilidade do provedor. Não resolvidas por um consenso político-social mínimo, essas situações são objeto de regulamentação privada e suas discordâncias levadas ao Judiciário, privilegiando, com isso, o poder econômico dos agentes.Palavras-chave: Direitos Autorais; Regulamentação da Internet; Direitos Digitais. ABSTRACT This article aims to analyze how the issues pertaining to copyrights in the digital world are presented in the Brazilian Civil Rights Framework for the Internet. To this end, we refer to the debates in public consultations conducted by the State and throughout the legislative process. The central questions revolve around the procedures for removal of content allegedly protected by copyrights as well as internet service providers' responsibility over it. Unsolved by political and social consensus, these situations end up subject to private regulation and the disagreements are taken to the judicial system, thus favoring the economic power of agents.Keywords: Copyright Law; Internet Regulation; Digital Rights.  

17. Enforcement issues

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian J. Lloyd
Keyword(s):  
Information Society ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Digital Economy ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
Internet Service Providers ◽  
Internet Service

This chapter considers two main topics. It first examines the provisions of the EU’s Copyright in the Information Society Directive, which sets out to amend some provisions of copyright law better to fit the realities of an online world. It then looks at some of the issues associated with enforcement of copyright, considering the extent to which intermediaries such as Internet Service Providers (ISPs) might be held liable for infringing acts committed by their users. Attention is increasingly paid to the possibility that rights owners might proceed against users whose actions infringe their rights. In many cases this will require the cooperation of ISPs and a major component of the Digital Economy Act 2010 is concerned with the manner in which this process might be managed.

17. Enforcement issues

2020 ◽  
pp. 321-336
Author(s):  
Ian J. Lloyd
Keyword(s):  
Information Society ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Digital Economy ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
Internet Service Providers ◽  
Internet Service

This chapter considers two main topics. It first examines the provisions of the EU’s Copyright in the Information Society Directive, which sets out to amend some provisions of copyright law better to fit the realities of an online world. It then looks at some of the issues associated with enforcement of copyright, considering the extent to which intermediaries such as Internet Service Providers (ISPs) might be held liable for infringing acts committed by their users. Attention is increasingly paid to the possibility that rights owners might proceed against users whose actions infringe their rights. In many cases this will require the cooperation of ISPs and a major component of the Digital Economy Act 2010 is concerned with the manner in which this process might be managed.

scholarly journals People’s Republic of China Legal Update: Supreme People’s Court’s Guiding Opinion on Refund Requests Relating to Unauthorised Online Video Gaming Transactions Paid for by Minors (Published 15 May 2020)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leon Y. Xiao
Keyword(s):  
Video Game ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
People’S Republic Of China ◽  
Video Gaming ◽  
Online Video ◽  
People's Republic Of China ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Republic Of China ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Online Video Games

The Supreme People’s Court (SPC) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) promulgated its Guiding Opinion on Several Issues Concerning the Lawful and Proper Handling of Civil Cases Involving the Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia (COVID-19) Epidemic No. 2 (hereinafter, the ‘Guiding Opinion’) on 15 May 2020. Paragraph 9 of the Guiding Opinion declares that: ‘If a person with “limited capacity for civil conduct,” without the consent of their guardian, engages with paid online video games [e.g., purchases a video game software or makes in-game purchases through microtransactions], or “donates” to content creators or makes other similar payments on livestreaming platforms, to such a sum which is “incompatible with their age and intellectual abilities,” the courts shall support claims from their guardians demanding refund from the internet service providers [e.g., the game company or the livestreaming platform] for such payments.’

scholarly journals MED's Position Paper on Digital Technology and the Copyright Act: Legislation without a Solution?

2005 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 45
Author(s):  
Jens U Nebel
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Digital Technology ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Copyright Law ◽  
Position Paper ◽  
Legal Issue ◽  
Digital Environment ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Apparent Problem ◽  
Take All

Courts in various jurisdictions have had to deal with the question of whether Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can be held liable for infringing acts committed by their subscribers. It is perhaps the most controversial legal issue emerging in the digital environment. Although New Zealand courts have yet to deal with the issue of ISP liability for copyright infringement, the Ministry of Economic Development (MED) has suggested a statutory solution for this apparent problem, which was put down in the 2002 Digital Technology and the Copyright Act 1994 Position Paper. In the Position Paper, MED proposes to exempt ISPs from liability for primary and secondary infringement under certain requirements. The suggested amendment to the Copyright Act 1994 raises several issues and questions, which will be addressed in this paper. The author argues that a total liability exemption fails to take all relevant policy factors into account and favours ISPs unilaterally. The paper suggests that ISPs do not need an exemption clause, because New Zealand's copyright law, although full of uncertainties, appears to be relatively narrow compared to other jurisdictions. The proposed reform causes more problems than it addresses. The constructive knowledge standard, which ISPs have to meet in order to fall under the liability exemption clauses, is difficult to determine and amplifies the existing uncertainties. The author suggests that instead of curing the symptoms, the legislator should get at the root of the problems, which is the cluttered secondary infringement provisions and the nebulous concept of authorisation, which is the true reason for the legal uncertainty copyright owners and ISPs are currently facing. 

scholarly journals Top 10 video game cases (US): how video game litigation in the US has evolved since the advent of Pong

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 89-102
Author(s):  
Ross Dannenberg ◽  
Josh Davenport
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
The United States ◽  
Fair Use ◽  
Legal Limits ◽  
Art Form ◽  
The Us ◽  
Game Developers ◽  
The Impact

Video game litigation in the United States is neither new nor infrequent, and video game developers can learn valuable lessons from cases won, and lost, by others before them. This article examines the evolution of United States intellectual property law from historically narrow roots to classifying video games as an art form deserving broad free speech protection. This article examines seminal cases in a variety of IP areas, including not only copyrights, but also reverse engineering, derivative works, patents, trademarks, rights of publicity, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, contracts, and freedom of speech. These cases explore the factual and legal limits of American jurisprudence in video game law, including how one's own expression can be limited by the rights of others, permissible and fair use and of others' IP, and the impact these cases have had in the industry. As video games have leveled up into a multi-billion dollar industry, the law has leveled up, too, and this article is the primer you need to level up with it.

Cyberpolitik

ADALAH ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Munadhil Abdul Muqsith
Keyword(s):  
Political Communication ◽  
Total Population ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Mailing List ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Internet Service Providers ◽  
Internet Service ◽  
Internet Users ◽  
Internet Media ◽  
First Time

Abstract:The internet developed for the first time in Indonesia in the early 1990s. Starting from the pagayuban network, it is now expanding without boundaries anywhere. A survey conducted by the Indonesian Internet Service Providers Association (APJII) said that the number of internet users in Indonesia in 2012 reached 63 million people or 24.23 percent of the country's total population. Next year, that figure is predicted to increase by close to 30 percent to 82 million users and continue to grow to 107 million in 2014 and 139 million or 50 percent of the total population in 2015. million people. This matter also results in political communication with the internet media, or is often said to be cyber politics. Cyber politics in Indonesia has faced growth in recent years. There are many facilities that support the growth of cyber politics, such as Facebook, Twitter, mailing list, YouTube, and others.Keywords: Cyberpolitik, Internet  Abstrak:Internet berkembang pertama kali di Indonesia pada awal tahun 1990-an. Diawali dari pagayuban network kini berkembang luas tanpa batas dimanapun juga. Suatu survei yang diselenggarakan Asosiasi Penyelenggara Jasa Internet Indonesia (APJII) mengatakan kalau jumlah pengguna internet di Indonesia tahun 2012 menggapai 63 juta orang ataupun 24,23 persen dari total populasi negeri ini. Tahun depan, angka itu diprediksi naik dekat 30 persen jadi 82 juta pengguna serta terus berkembang jadi 107 juta pada 2014 serta 139 juta ataupun 50 persen total populasi pada 2015. juta orang. Perihal ini pula berakibat pada komunikasi politik dengan media internet, ataupun kerap diucap dengan cyber politic. Cyber politic di Indonesia hadapi pertumbuhan sebagian tahun terakhir. Banyaknya fasilitas yang menunjang pertumbuhan cyber politic semacam terdapatnya facebook, Twitter, mailing list, youtobe, serta lain-lain.Kata Kunci: Cyberpolitik, Internet 

Variations on a Theme by a Rogue A.I.: Music, Gameplay, and Storytelling in Portal 2 (Part 1 of 2)

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Reale
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Theme And Variations ◽  
Scientific Experimentation ◽  
Game Developers ◽  
Variations On A Theme

This two-video series explores how the scoring to the video game Portal 2, published by Valve Corporation, not only helps tell the game’s story, but also comments on the game developers’ philosophy of puzzle design. The first video explores how the game’s title theme 9999999, including its texture, voice leadings, and chord qualities, musically enacts dual aspects of the character of the game’s central antagonist GlaDOS: once human, her personality was uploaded into a computer mainframe where she has become a sociopathic, homicidal artificial intelligence who takes delight in subjecting humans to hazardous scientific experimentation. The second video demonstrates that 9999999 serves as the theme for a set of double variations in the game’s middle act. Since Valve’s philosophy of player training centers on iterative puzzle-design that systematically increase in complexity, and the musical accompaniments for these puzzles feature coordinated developments in musical complexity, the scoring here lets us parse the puzzle design into a kind of set of gameplay theme-and-variations.

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