DiKE Computerspiele

Copyright and Distinction from Other Relevant Intellectual Property Rights in the Video Game Market

Summary:
Video games are characterized by the fusion of information technology and artistic contributions into a work unit that is perceived uniformly in the video game market, providing the recipient with an experience that cannot be conveyed in its typical expressive form by traditional types of works: the interactively designed gaming enjoyment. In legal science as well as in judicial practice, the fundamental classification of video games within the copyright system as computer programs and/or audiovisual works is disputed, especially since video games do not prima facie exclusively fit into any legally mentioned type of work ('copyright dualism of video games'). Based on this central legal question for video games, the present work examines the doctrinal classification of video games within the copyright system. This allows for the presentation of positive copyright for video game works, which is particularly shaped by discrepancies in norms in the application area of special regulations for computer programs (such as in rental and private use rights), along with well-founded proposed solutions. The consideration of other relevant intellectual property rights in the video game market, such as related performance protection rights, trademark rights, and civil personality rights, along with pertinent aspects of unfair competition law, completes the presentation.