Re: Stupid companies.
Posted by Rorenado on .
Yeah, copyright laws are far too broad, and treat all media the same. Video games are already a pretty ephemeral medium, with console generations being anywhere from 4 to 8 years at any given time. With many of them never having much of a chance to see the light of publishing again, the laws should be rewritten with media like this that can't be easily ported like movies, TV, or books can. Somewhere around 10–20 years if the company has no plans to use it, the company is dissolved, or the IP is no longer in use.
Mine's a bit of a basic suggestion, and greater legal minds than mine would probably be able to put together a better legal framework. But, it really should be discussed more broadly. 95 years is far too long, when the lifespan for a game is often at most 8 years if released at the beginning of a console generation, or longer if it is backwards compatible and available on modern platforms.
"Video games are cultural heritage. Preserve them."
Mine's a bit of a basic suggestion, and greater legal minds than mine would probably be able to put together a better legal framework. But, it really should be discussed more broadly. 95 years is far too long, when the lifespan for a game is often at most 8 years if released at the beginning of a console generation, or longer if it is backwards compatible and available on modern platforms.
"Video games are cultural heritage. Preserve them."
And copyright lasts for 95 years thanks to Disney and co. Without any changes to current laws, Pong won't enter the public domain until 2067.