Copyright and Trademark Issues for the Video Game Client

The video game industry is larger than the music industry and Hollywood combined. Over a billion people worldwide will spend about $90 billion playing video games this year. Trademarks and copyrights are more important than ever to the industry, and an attorney with a video game client must understand circumstances exclusive to the business in order to protect their clients’ valuable brands. 

In this program, attorney Stephen McArthur examines case law copyright trends - including the particularly interesting movement in the 2nd, 9th, and 5th Circuits towards granting copyright protection to game rules and mechanics, which had previously been an area that only patents could protect. The evolution of copyright law in videogames is examined from 1981 through 2015, from Atari’s Asteroids through Machine Zone’s Game of War.

Next, Stephen answers practical questions regarding copyright and trademark registration such as:

• At what point in development should you register a copyright and trademark for a video game?
• Why it is so important that you do so?  
• What are some unique quirks when filling out applications to register IP for a video game?
• And how do those registrations, or lack thereof, affect enforcement of your client’s video game IP on the Apple iOS Store and Google Play?

Learning Objectives:

I.     New trends in copyright case law and how copyright can sometimes apply to rules and game mechanics

II.    Unique issues with handling video game copyright and trademark registration applications