Law at GameDev GameDev – the front line of technology
The GameDev industry is absolutely unique. She is not only on the front line of technology development – she is creatively pushing that frontier .
The speed with which this industry assimilates new technologies – combined with the enormous scale in which games are sold – makes the margin for error virtually zero.
At dotlaw – for our GameDev partners – we bring order and a stable structure to the organization’s operations – thus minimizing the risks associated with introducing new technologies into the consumer space.
Our partners that we have worked with in the GameDev industry:
Competitive advantage in the GameDev industry
The GameDev market is undisputedly growing – and all indications are that it will continue to grow.
Competition is also growing. Not just for new projects – especially for talent. What is the basis for competitiveness in this industry?
First – on talent able to effectively use technological innovations. The ability to attract and retain talent is one of the keys to business in this industry.
Secondly – the main factor with which games enchant players is the world created in them. Sometimes very ambitious and sophisticated. It is the magic of the universe that often determines which game a player will reach for. That is why it is so important to adequately protect the intellectual property of the created world.
Third – new technologies. On a daily basis, we observe the incredible speed at which the GameDev industry implements technological innovations. Any mistakes and shortcomings in the use of the latest technologies can have very far-reaching consequences. This is not only about relationships with consumers – but also with game distributors, for whom a mature approach to consumer relations is a vital interest.
A huge brake on any of the above is the traditional approach to law.
The freshness of the legal problems emanating from the GameDev industry means that there are no established paths of action. According to the traditional approach to law – the insurance against the lack of beaten paths is the over-regulation of all uncertain activities. Innovation is thus stifled as part of risk management.
In the traditional approach to law:
1
Dozens of contradictory internal regulations – often created just to formally fulfill a legal obligation – make it impossible to operate effectively in crisis situations – which are never in short supply if you use innovative technologies.
2
The internal legal mess resulting from such a strategy makes it impossible to obtain various types of certifications that build trust in the market (for example, ISO certification) – which can affect the relationship with the game distributor.
3
Traditional B2B or employment contracts are indistinguishable to the employee. Everyone – both honest and dishonest businesses – uses similar ones. So they do not build real trust.
4
Seeing the law as an unpleasant obligation results in delaying the adoption of a comprehensive strategy for protecting intellectual property, which – after the success of a game and the emergence of imitators – can bring considerable problems in obtaining full protection.
The traditional approach to the law is a law disconnected from life.
What if legal solutions served to introduce technology instead of preventing it?
Traditional approach to law
The law of the digital revolution era
dotlaw for the GameDev industry
Understanding the challenges of the GameDev industry – we base our services on four pillars:
Practicality
Successful legal solutions must carefully address your challenges and move your business forward whenever possible.
Describing abstract legal risks is not enough! We are always looking for solutions.
Full transparency
There will be no fruitful cooperation without full trust.
On our side, we understand that this means full transparency in the relationship with you.
Modern working methods
If legal solutions are to be tailored to your unique challenges – they must be created with you! That’s why we work through modern tools: Slack, Asana and Google Docs.
Plain Language
All our activities are based on the best practices of legal design. This ensures that the language remains understandable – further fully securing your business legally.
Our specialists in the GameDev industry
Typical projects in the GameDev industry that we implement:
- Company formation and cooperation with creators;
- Intellectual property, including IP protection strategy, licensing of games and their components, acquisition of rights from developers;
- Distribution, e.g., preparing agreements with distributors and resellers, reviewing distribution models;
- evaluation of open source elements;
- Preparation of contracts in the life cycle of games – development, testing, localization, porting;
- player data protection.
However, we will take on almost any challenge in the GameDev industry – contact us!