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Blizzard, Microsoft Codify Licenses for Machinima

Posted by Zonk on from the gotta-love-those dept.

Wired has up a piece looking at two recent licenses released by Microsoft and Blizzard clarifying their policies towards player use of their games to create Machinima. It's an interesting discussion, because while Blizzard's license grants rights for the first time since World of Warcraft was released (essentially deliberately opening holes in their EULA), Microsoft's new policy takes rights away from enthusiastic Halo players at a time when everyone has just been given the capability to create their own in-game videos. Despite some trepidations, both licenses seem to be well received: "Even digital rights advocacy group the Electronic Frontier Foundation signed off on the rules ... Fred von Lohmann, an EFF senior staff attorney who examined both sets of rules, said the main difference between them lies in a user's base set of rights ... 'It's great news that both of these companies are taking machinima seriously enough that they have been willing to come out and authorize some kinds of machinima ... That's a huge improvement over where we were before, which was (that) no one wanted to give machinima guys any kind of guidance at all.'"

6 of 63 comments (clear)

  1. Well received? by apdyck · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Despite some trepidations, both licenses seem to be well received How can one really say if a license is well received? Doesn't everybody just click "I accept"?
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    1. Re:Well received? by toleraen · · Score: 4, Interesting

      A while back the Everquest EULA was modified to read that SOE was able to dig through your processes to see if you're running any programs that were hooking into the client (back then it was mainly for ShowEQ). It was not well received (a whole lot of complaining on the forums, subscriptions canceled, etc), and that part of the license, as well as their process identifying program, got removed.

      People can and have stood up to overly infringing EULAs, but it doesn't happen too often.

    2. Re:Well received? by HTH+NE1 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      It does seem to make Rooster Teeth's sale of any new DVDs of Red vs. Blue in the future to be against the terms, unless they negotiate alternate terms. Everything they've made so far predates this license.

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  2. Re:Only for Halo? by MrBandersnatch · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Errrm, my 11 and 9 year olds spend a lot of time creating machinima using Garry's mod. Most of it is drivel (hey they're my kids but Ive got PERSPECTIVE), some of it is genuinely amusing and I am absolutely amazed by some of their results when they have gone to pains with the gmod poser.

    Point being that I can well see machinima becoming a commercialised gaming sub-genre over the coming years (e.g. "The Movies" but with the sort of engine credibility/hype surrounding ID5/UT3/Crysis) since, at least in the case of my pair of high functioning aspergertons, there is a hell of a lot of entertainment value in what is rapidly becoming an "art".

  3. Re:Imagine a real hollywood set by Hausenwulf · · Score: 2, Interesting

    "If in EITHER of these cases, Random Joe comes in and uses any of these creative resources (the models, sets, props, actors) and makes an entertainment product and sells it... What do you call that?" I think it's called "fair use."

  4. Red vs Blue by Cryophallion · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Well, it's a good thing Red vs Blue just ended, or else it would have to end now.

    From TFA:

    The creation of anything "pornographic or obscene ... or otherwise objectionable." The vagueness of this rule upset many creators.

    I'm sure some parents would call the language used in RvB "obscene" (and if parents don't, I know a lawyer who will...)

    The sale of any works that use Microsoft intellectual property. The company said it's OK to sell ads on sites that host machinima, but that's it.

    And that is the death of RvB right there. In fact, I hope it isn't retroactive, or else they can't sell the dvds anymore. And then there will be the giddy microsoft junior lawyer trying for a promotion who gets a part of the t-shirt sales too because it was quotes used in a video using microsoft ip, so it is "fruit of the poisonous tree". (IANAL)

    On the other hand, this may not apply to roosterteeth at all, as they were even invited to bungie to try out the new versions before they were released.

    Of course they could be making roosterteeth anti-comptetive like they are, by not allowing anyone to do what they did, so they have the monopoly :^) (no I don't think they'd ever do that)