4 ms·

Expecting publishers to behave isn't the answer, since there will always be those who won't behave as well as those that simply disappear. What is needed is la

by beloch 4y ago

Expecting publishers to behave isn't the answer, since there will always be those who won't behave as well as those that simply disappear. What is needed is laws that classify games in situations such as this as abandonware and grant users who have paid for the game carte blanche to get it operating. If copyright holders want to maintain control of a title, then there must be certain consumer expectations met under the law.

jquery 4y ago
This, 100%. I already act like this is the law because it only seems fair.
- lxmfldmsn 4y ago
ekianjo 4y ago
> What is needed is laws that classify games in situations such as this as abandonware This will never happen as long as they can milk games and keep on making money on 40 years old games. Mario 1 is still not abandon-ware. Its Disney's Mickey Mouse all over again.
- wyldfire 4y ago
  That's not totally accurate, is it? The US LoC has made administrative exemptions [1] to things like the 'circumvention' teeth of the DMCA for the sake of archive/curation of historical works. While not a total reclamation of the copyright or a mandate for companies to support preservation, it's also not a complete denial of some games' abandonwarw status. [1] https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/10/28/2021-23311/exemption-to-prohibition-on-circumvention-of-copyright-protection-systems-for-access-control https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/10/28/2021-23...
- iforgotpassword 4y ago
  If they're still "milking the game" it's not abandonware? The original release of Mario 1 still starts up and plays just fine.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
mindslight 4y ago
That would be such a limp remedy. It's basically just what can be done right now without the legal blessing. Rather what we really need is that in order to qualify for copyright protection at all, source code (ie the original creative work) should be put in escrow. When the copyright expires or the work is abandoned, then the source code gets published as part of the public domain.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- happymellon 4y ago
  And it's at that point the escrow code is found to be incomplete.
  - mindslight 4y ago
    Fines, losing the ability to copyright things going forward, bonding/insurance, verification that the published works are derived solely from what's in escrow. There are many ways to regulate enforcement. It's very odd to point out the possibility of attempts to skirt the law as a reason to not consider such law to begin with.
- SilasX 4y ago
  For software, you’d need to archive the whole build process too. The dependencies have their own issues with bit rot.
  - account42 4y ago
    Sure, but ideally copyright terms should also be short enough for that to not be a big issue.
    - SilasX 4y ago
      Lol if you've dealt with the NPM ecosystem at all, you've seen builds break in months, and even the most avid copyright reformers don't want terms that short.
_heimdall 4y ago
This really doesn't feel like an important enough area to demand fresh government regulation. Consumer protection laws are meant to be a last resort when a broad chunk of the population are being actively screwed over by monopolies or entire industries. If losing access to a game originally released a decade ago fits that bill the consumer protection agency is going to be very busy. Think of it this way - if you learn you don't like a company's practices and chose not to buy their next video game release, does that really derail your life? If not, or if a big chunk of the population wouldn't say yes, we really don't want Uncle Sam rolling in with even more reach than he already has.
- account42 4y ago
  That argument makes no sense. Just because something only affects those that enjoy a particular hobby does not mean that those consumers don't deserve protection. This also isn't really just about games as other forms of copyrighted content also often disappear when the would-be owners can't be bothered to keep it available. Remember that copyright which is only allowed to exist because we think it will result in more creative works that will eventually be part of the commons. If a company is taking active steps to take something away then they are abusing this deal and should forfeit any copyrights.

by beloch 4y ago

jquery 4y ago

This, 100%. I already act like this is the law because it only seems fair.

lxmfldmsn 4y ago

ekianjo 4y ago

> What is needed is laws that classify games in situations such as this as abandonware This will never happen as long as they can milk games and keep on making money on 40 years old games. Mario 1 is still not abandon-ware. Its Disney's Mickey Mouse all over again.

wyldfire 4y ago
That's not totally accurate, is it? The US LoC has made administrative exemptions [1] to things like the 'circumvention' teeth of the DMCA for the sake of archive/curation of historical works. While not a total reclamation of the copyright or a mandate for companies to support preservation, it's also not a complete denial of some games' abandonwarw status. [1] https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/10/28/2021-23311/exemption-to-prohibition-on-circumvention-of-copyright-protection-systems-for-access-control https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/10/28/2021-23...
iforgotpassword 4y ago
If they're still "milking the game" it's not abandonware? The original release of Mario 1 still starts up and plays just fine.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

mindslight 4y ago

That would be such a limp remedy. It's basically just what can be done right now without the legal blessing. Rather what we really need is that in order to qualify for copyright protection at all, source code (ie the original creative work) should be put in escrow. When the copyright expires or the work is abandoned, then the source code gets published as part of the public domain.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
happymellon 4y ago
And it's at that point the escrow code is found to be incomplete.
- mindslight 4y ago
  Fines, losing the ability to copyright things going forward, bonding/insurance, verification that the published works are derived solely from what's in escrow. There are many ways to regulate enforcement. It's very odd to point out the possibility of attempts to skirt the law as a reason to not consider such law to begin with.
SilasX 4y ago
For software, you’d need to archive the whole build process too. The dependencies have their own issues with bit rot.
- account42 4y ago
  Sure, but ideally copyright terms should also be short enough for that to not be a big issue.
  - SilasX 4y ago
    Lol if you've dealt with the NPM ecosystem at all, you've seen builds break in months, and even the most avid copyright reformers don't want terms that short.

_heimdall 4y ago

This really doesn't feel like an important enough area to demand fresh government regulation. Consumer protection laws are meant to be a last resort when a broad chunk of the population are being actively screwed over by monopolies or entire industries. If losing access to a game originally released a decade ago fits that bill the consumer protection agency is going to be very busy. Think of it this way - if you learn you don't like a company's practices and chose not to buy their next video game release, does that really derail your life? If not, or if a big chunk of the population wouldn't say yes, we really don't want Uncle Sam rolling in with even more reach than he already has.

account42 4y ago
That argument makes no sense. Just because something only affects those that enjoy a particular hobby does not mean that those consumers don't deserve protection. This also isn't really just about games as other forms of copyrighted content also often disappear when the would-be owners can't be bothered to keep it available. Remember that copyright which is only allowed to exist because we think it will result in more creative works that will eventually be part of the commons. If a company is taking active steps to take something away then they are abusing this deal and should forfeit any copyrights.