Protection of rights to computer and board games is an important topic in the modern world of entertainment and information technology. The growth of the gaming industry, both digital and physical, leads to a significant increase in the number of creative works that require legal protection. Copyright provides creators with protection of their intellectual efforts, allowing them to control the use, distribution and commercialization of their works. Nowadays, in the context of rapid technological development and globalization of markets, the issues of intellectual property rights protection are becoming increasingly relevant, as piracy, illegal copying and copyright infringement can cause significant losses to both individual developers and large companies. In this context, it is important to understand the basics of copyright law, the specifics of its application to different types of games, and effective methods of protecting intellectual property in the current environment.
A computer game is the interaction of a person (group of people) with a computer or several people with each other using a computer for entertainment, education or training. Computer games are very popular today. Of course, many developers earn a good income from them. However, not all of them are ready to work honestly and resort to tricks, such as stealing or plagiarizing someone else’s game. As for a board game, it is also a complex copyrighted object, as it consists of many works: texts, images, characters, drawings, diagrams, photographs, three-dimensional figures, and a computer program. Since games differ in their technology and methodology, the protection strategy for each game will be different.
Is it possible to protect the name of a game?
To protect the name (logo) of your work, you can simply register it as a trademark. In addition, you can register the external image and names of your characters, as well as the names of individual parts of the game (episodes). This will increase the chances that ill-wishers will not be able to infringe your copyrights for no reason.
If you need to register a domain name that has the Ukrainian format “ua”, then you must first register a trademark for your game and obtain the relevant Certificate.
However, when registering a patent object, it is always analyzed (patent search) in order to assign it to a certain category (international classes). In the case of game registration, the following categories are used (according to the International Classification of Goods and Services):
- For computer and online games:
- 09th class “Computer games”;
- 41st class “Entertainment and online games”;
- 42nd class “Development of computer programs”.
- For board games:
- 28th class “Games, toys”.
Often games become globally popular, and then the question of protecting intellectual property rights around the world arises. However, if you have registered your game (name or logo) as a trademark only in a certain country, remember that your rights are valid only within the registered territory. In order to protect the right at the international level, you need to file the relevant documents and register the trademark in other countries or draw up and file a general international application under the Madrid system, paying the relevant state fees in Swiss francs.
Do developers have the right to patent their game idea?
Yes, they can. But not the idea itself, but its material embodiment. Registration takes place through copyright and obtaining the corresponding Certificate. In this situation, it is necessary to describe the game in detail (its characteristics, rules and terms of use, characters, and scenario). Obtaining a copyright certificate will give you the opportunity to use property and non-property rights.
Property rights include the ability of the author (copyright holder) of a game to prohibit the use, modification or reproduction of his or her game, which will entail a certain monetary benefit. Interestingly, property rights are valid in Ukraine during the entire life of the right holder, as well as for 70 years after his or her death. Other countries have their own terms and should be carefully studied.
Non-property rights mean:
- -the right to indicate the real name of the author (or vice versa – not to indicate the name and use it anonymously), in case of any public publication or use of the game
- -the right to defend the integrity of the game and prohibit any changes.
- the right to dedicate the game to a certain person, date or event.
Proto, non-property rights do not have a specific term of validity. They are protected in perpetuity.
What are the ways to protect the game graphics?
The game graphics as a whole, as well as its individual elements, can be protected in two ways:
- Obtain an industrial design certificate. This procedure takes 6 months or more. It is important to know that in order for your industrial design certificate to be valid, you must pay special patent taxes every year to maintain its validity.
- Graphics can be characterized in detail and registered as an artistic work. All its details and components will be protected as copyrighted works.
Source code of a computer game. Are there any optns to protect it?
In most countries (Ukraine is not an exception), the law regulates the protection of computer programs using the copyright system, in the same way as the protection of literary works.
In this case, copyright will apply only to the form of description, and principles, system and methods are not protected. Thus, if an unscrupulous third party works on the appearance of your program code and changes some details, but the principle of the game does not change, then in fact your copyright will not apply to such a work.
But there is always a way out. And in this case, in order to protect the technical part of the game, it is necessary to register the game algorithm as an invention. If you make this decision, remember that the object of registration must meet three criteria
- uniqueness (novelty)
- inventive step
- industrial applicability
In addition, it is possible to register an algorithm as a utility model. In this situation, it will be enough to meet two criteria – uniqueness (novelty) and industrial applicability.
What to do if your game idea was stolen by unfriendly persons
If your game copyright has been infringed, you have the opportunity to file a claim against the offender, which will be considered a warning. This solution is possible only if you have the relevant documents for intellectual property rights (trademark registration certificate, copyright certificate, contracts, patents, etc.).
If we turn to the Constitution of Ukraine, we will find in part 2 of Article 54 the following provision, which states that no one has the right to use or distribute certain works of any author without obtaining his or her consent.
In addition, the copyright to a game is protected by such a legal document as the Law on Copyright and Related Rights. The author of a work has unique rights, which consist in granting permission or, on the contrary, prohibiting the use of his game or its elements by other persons.
In addition, you can offer to purchase the game from you for a certain amount, as well as apply to the court for help in resolving the issue of copyright infringement.
To summarize, the protection of rights to computer and board games is important for the development of the industry and support for innovation. Effective protection of intellectual property encourages creators to develop new ideas, providing them with adequate remuneration and protection against unauthorized use of their work. This contributes to healthy competition, improved product quality and the development of new technologies. To achieve this, it is necessary to improve legislation, introduce modern protection technologies and raise public awareness of the importance of copyright compliance. Contact our lawyers for more detailed advice, we have the relevant experience and will protect your rights.
board game / computer game / copyright / intellectual property / rights protection
