Well, I have an inquiry that is probably held by many people on BYOND:
"What is the extent that Copyright reaches in regard to individual creations?"
Here is the question in example:
A friend of mine created a character for personal uses, which wound up being a character on one of the well played BYOND games, Megaman Wars by Dixon. However, it was not designed for use in a Megaman game, but still did end up within it. This was by her consent.
However, another developer now has the same character in his possession. The character is even implemented into one of his games. My friend does not show consent for this person to have the character.
Does this go against any of BYOND's policies?
NOTE: I'm not asking for action, just information on if any action can be taken.
Also, if this is in the wrong forum, please correct me by moving it to the proper forum.
ID:293419
 Jan 10 2009, 3:49 pm
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So in other words you won't be able to protect the game from Copyright when the icons were stolen by the use of an RSC extractor or devices like that? Gotta wonder what else isn't protected by Copyright.
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Copyright, as the name implies, is a legislative term.
As such, a court is best suited to enforce such an issue. The fact that only few people are willing to take this step is another story. | |
Oh, what you create is protected by copyright law, but it is your job to enforce it, not ours. Generally speaking, any creative work is protected under copyright law. However, it is rather hard to enforce it if it is based off another copyrighted form of art.
For example, if you made a Dragon Ball Z game, and somebody copied and reused your custom made Goku icons, you would likely have to get Fundimations permission to pursue those people legally. I, however, am not a lawyer. If you want legal advice as to how to pursue someone infringing on your copyright, contact a lawyer. | |
Although this is likely a breach of copyright law, the BYOND developers do not make it a habit to police in game content. It is just too much of a task, and can actually be more legally troublesome than doing nothing at all.
As for your case, I recommend trying to contact the person who is using the material without permission. Other then that, there is little you can do. It is possible to raise the case in court, but I doubt any of the offending material is worth all that trouble, and BYOND is unlikely to give you any more information on the real person misusing the material then you can already find on the website without a court order.
In my personal experience, the only way to prevent someone from misusing your work is to either not release it, or release it in a way that any replication would be worthless.
Thanks Much.
Danial.Beta