Questions for Me? Come to SGC!
I mentioned a while back that I would be likely back at SGC this July, but I didn't provide many other details. Now that the preliminary schedule is up, I can say with some certainty that I will be back at SGC with a panel on July 3 (Saturday). While this year won't be another epic debate, it should still be a lot of fun. The session will be "The Law and Our Digital Life," and the focus is on you. After all, there are a lot of legal issues facing simple internet dwellers as well as those with aspirations to publish content, whether those be videos or games or other material.
If you're not going to be at SGC this year, don't lose all hope. To make this session as big and diverse as possible, I've also started a thread on the ScrewAttack forums asking for more input on what people want to hear about. My plan is to get through as much of that thread and as many of the audience questions as I can in the time I have. So if you've got a question and can't make it, be sure to head over to the ScrewAttack forums and get the question in the thread.
See you all at SGC!
Speaking at UTD on April 18
This Sunday, April 18, 2010, I will be speaking at the Game Engineering Conference at UT Dallas from 3:30 to about 5 pm. More information can be found here. The topics to be covered will be the iPhone Developer Agreements and a mini-primer on derivative works.
I hope to see some of my readers out at the event.
Game::Business::Law 2010 Video
I just wanted to take a moment to link to the video of the panel I moderated at Game::Business::Law 2010 back in January.
In unrelated news, GDC10 last week was a great conference, and thanks to anyone who I met there who may be checking out the blog. Some of the discussions I had have given me some great ideas for piecess both on Law of the Game and Joystiq, so look forward to seeing some new articles very soon.
Speeches Galore in 2010
There are quite a few speaking engagements already lined up throughout 2010. Here's a quick overview if you're hoping to catch up with me at an event this coming year.
Game::Business::Law 2010 - January 27-28, 2010, SMU Law School, Dallas TX
I will be moderating a panel in the afternoon on January 27. More details are available on the conference site as well as on Law of the Game.
Business of Animation Part II: Legal and Financial Advice - January 30, 2010, Collin County Community College, Dallas, TX
I will be on a panel sponsored by A Bunch of Short Guys, a Dallas-based animation guild.
GDC 2010 - March 9-13, 2010, San Francisco, CA
I will be presenting two sessions at the GDC Summits this March, and information on both sessions can be found here.
SGC 2010 - July 2-4, 2010, Dallas, TX
Yes, it sounds like I will be returning to SGC. For those hoping for another big debate, I hope you're not being let down, but this year's session will probably just be me. More details are forthcoming.
International Bar Association Annual Conference - October 3-8, 2010, Vancouver, Canada
I'll be participating on a panel about the nexus between the leisure industry and technology that should be very interesting.
While this year is already looking pretty busy, I'm sure additional events will come up as the year progresses. As I have more information about these and other conferences I'll be speaking at, I'll be sure to post that information on Law of the Game.
Game::Business::Law 2010 and Other 2010 Events
I wanted to take a moment to remind you that Game::Business::Law 2010 is coming up in January, and seats are limited. More details can be found here, and I will be moderating what is shaping up to be an excellent panel on the intersection of legal and financial issues on digital distribution. The panel includes speakers:
Robin Bynoe, Senior Counsel, Charles Russell, LLP
Sean F. Kane, Kane & Associates LLC
Jeffrey A. Levenstam, Partner, International Tax Services, Ernst & Young, LLP
Game::Business::Law was outstanding last year, and I expect it will be excellent this year as well. If you are interested in attending, please be sure to register soon as space is limited.
2010 is looking to be a busy year for speaking, and more details on other 2010 events will be posted on Law of the Game as details become available. I certainly hope to see at least some readers at all of the conferences throughout the year, including GDC2010 where I will be presenting at both the Social and Online Game Summit and the iPhone Games Summit.
And, as a note from me to all of you, I sincerely hope you all have a happy holiday season and a great new year.
Game::Business::Law 2010 is Official
I wanted to take a moment to post the following press release. Last year's event was outstanding, and I think the upcoming conference will be even better. I will be a speaker again this year, and hope to see some readers in the audience. Registration is limited, so be sure to secure a spot soon.
News Release
Registration for 2010 Game::Business:: Law Summit Now Open via game-business-law.com
2nd Annual International Summit on the Law and Business of Video Games to be Held January 27-28, 2010 at SMU
SMU/Dallas-October 5, 2009- Registration is now open for the 2010 Game::Business::Law Summit, the second annual international summit on the law and business of video games, to be held January 27-28, 2010, at Southern Methodist University.
Hosted by SMU Dedman School of Law, The Guildhall at SMU, and The Center for American and International Law, the summit will once again bring top game industry leaders, developers, publishers, lawyers and members of the venture capital and financial industry from around the world to discuss current business trends and legal issues in the games industry.
“If you are a business development person, a member of the legal affairs team or financial staff of a video game studio or publisher, you really should attend this conference,” Zack Karlsson, senior director of business development at NAMCO BANDAI Games America, said. “What makes this conference so great is the strong interaction of the audience with the panel members. It is really more like a discussion of key issues affecting the growth of our industry rather than a series of presentations and lectures.”
In order to foster the interactive nature of the conference between the audience and speakers, space will be limited. Attendees are encouraged to sign up early.
In response to the success and feedback from the 2009 Game::Business::Law Summit, organizers have announced an initial slate of notable speakers:
- John B. Attanasio, Dean, SMU Dedman School of Law
- Keith Boesky, Principal, Boesky & Company
- Robin Bynoe, Senior Counsel, Charles Russell LLP (London, UK)
- Roxanne E. Christ, Partner, Latham & Watkins
- Ken Doroshow, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, ESA
- Zack Karlsson, Senior Director of Business Development, NAMCO BANDAI Games America, Inc.
- Joseph Olin, President, Academy for Interactive Arts and Sciences
- David McCombs, Partner, Haynes and Boone, LLP
- Shane McGee, Partner, Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, LLP
- Mark Methenitis, Electronic Entertainment Section, The Vernon Law Group, PLLC
- Xuan-Thao Nguyen, Professor, SMU Dedman School of Law
- Dr. Peter E. Raad, Executive Director and Founder, The Guildhall at SMU
- J. Paul Raines, Chief Operating Officer, GameStop Corporation
For additional information on the conference and possible sponsorship opportunities, contact Ron Jenkins, Deputy Director, The Guildhall at SMU, at jenkinsr AT smu dot edu or (972) 473-3546.
About The Guildhall at SMU:
The Guildhall at Southern Methodist University is the premier graduate video game education program in the US. Many of the school’s founders are industry icons, and classes are taught by industry veterans. In six short years, over 300 Guildhall graduates have worked at more than 80 video game studios around North America. SMU offers both a Master’s degree and a graduate Professional Certificate of Interactive Technology in Digital Game Development, with specializations in art creation, level design, and software development. For more information, visit www.guildhall.smu.edu.
About Dedman School of Law at SMU:
The Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University enjoys a strong national and international reputation, having produced successful leaders who live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, throughout Texas, across the United States, and in more than 70 countries. Dedman Law is among the top 25 most selective of law schools for admission in the United States. With a small entering class size in the day and evening programs, an outstanding teaching faculty with superb credentials, and numerous distinguished guest lecturers, we forge an invaluable link between legal theory and the reality of legal practice––providing one of the best legal educations in the country. For more information, please visit www.law.smu.edu.
About The Center for American and International Law:
The Center is a nonprofit institution founded in 1947 and dedicated to the continuing education of lawyers and law enforcement officials in the United States and throughout the world. Tens of thousands of lawyers and law enforcement officers from all 50 states and more than 125 countries have participated in its programs. The Center for American and International Law is located at 5201 Democracy Drive at Legacy Park in Plano, Texas. For more information about The Center, please visit online at www.cailaw.org.
Reminder: The Big Debate is This Weekend!
I just wanted to take a moment to remind everyone that the big debate between Jack Thompson and me is this coming Saturday, July 4, 2009, at 4 pm in Dallas, TX, at the ScrewAttack Gaming Convention. The convention is at the Westin Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport, starting this Friday and ending on Sunday.
They've updated the event page to note that it will be on the main stage in Trinity VI. Be sure to get there early, space is limited. I'm looking forward to seeing all the g1s at the event. I'm still waiting to hear from Craig, but I imagine I will be around the convention on Friday and Saturday before the debate.
A Video and An Announcement
First, I wanted to let everyone know that video from the Play-Machinima-Law conference at Stanford Law School is now available online. For those looking to view the panel I was on, here is the direct link.
Second, some of you may have noticed a few small changes on Law of the Game, and they hint at the announcement that I'm formally making in this post. The Vernon Law Group has officially joined Munck Carter, LLP. I had been waiting for the press release to appear, but now that our bios have been at least partially moved to the new site, I thought it was appropriate to make an 'official' announcement on Law of the Game. For those who may be concerned about the move's impact on this blog, rest assured Law of the Game and LGJ will continue in essentially the same manner they have in the past.
Reminder: Speaking at Play-Machinima-Law Conference at Stanford
As a reminder, I've been invited to speak on a panel at the Play-Machinima-Law Conference at Stanford on April 24-25, 2009. I will be on the The Rules of Play: The Role of the EULA and other issues in Machinima Creation and Distribution panel, which is at 1:15 pm on Friday, April 24th. If you're in attendance, please come by and say hello.
Speaking at Play-Machinima-Law Conference at Stanford
I've been invited to speak on a panel at the Play-Machinima-Law Conference at Stanford on April 24-25, 2009. I will be on the The Rules of Play: The Role of the EULA and other issues in Machinima Creation and Distribution panel, which is at 1:15 pm on Friday, April 24th. If you're in attendance, please come by and say hello.
Reminder: Law of the Game at GDC2009
Reminder, I will be speaking at the Worlds in Motion Summit at GDC 2009. The current session details can always be found here.
Here's the information as it stands now:
(306) How to Avoid New Legal Pitfalls in Virtual World Design and Policy
Speaker: Mark Methenitis (Attorney, The Vernon Law Group, PLLC)
Date/Time: Tuesday (March 24, 2009) 3:15pm — 4:00pm
Location (room): Room 132, North Hall
Experience Level: All
Track: Worlds in Motion Summit
Format: 45-minute Lecture
Session Description
There are always new legal pitfalls and challenges emerging in relation to virtual worlds, especially as the field continues to grow. This lecture gives attendees an opportunity to hear from a foremost legal scholar on virtual world legal issues and discuss new areas of concern, including updates on well known cases. The focus of the lecture will be an exploration of recent cases and emerging legal issues involving game and virtual world producers with an emphasis on �lessons learned,� including areas such as user disputes with virtual world owners, intellectual property enforcement, in-world gambling, and privacy concerns. Mark Methenitis will also be open to audience questions about virtual world concepts and design elements that may have unforeseen legal consequences.
Game::Business::Law Conference Audio/Video Now Available
I was just forwarded a press release (which appears below) notifying me that all of the sessions from the Game::Business::Law Conference are available for download via iTunes, or can be requested on DVD from the Guildhall at SMU. The iTunes U link is: http://deimos.apple.com/WebObjects/Core.woa/Browse/smu.edu.1925295653
(requires Apple iTunes be installed, available for free at Apple.com). The iTunes downloads are available at no charge, so enjoy! If you are looking for my portion of the presentation, download the 'Games and Gaming Litigation' segment (Direct Links: Video and Audio).
Press Release
Second Game::Business::Law Summit Slated for January 27-28, 2010 in Dallas at SMU
DVDs and Audio Downloads of 2009 Panel Sessions Now Available at www.guildhall.smu.edu
SMU/Plano-February 23, 2009- The success of this year’s Game:: Business::Law, an international summit on the law and business of video games, has prompted sponsors of the event to begin planning for next year’s event by announcing its conference date of January 27-28 in Dallas.
The event was hosted by SMU Dedman School of Law, The Guildhall at SMU and The Center for American and International Law. A group of approximately 165 game industry leaders, developers, publishers, lawyers and members of the venture capital and financial industry were on hand to discuss in depth the latest business trends and legal issues of the game industry.
“The conference exceeded our expectations,” Dr. Peter Raad, executive director, The Guildhall at SMU, a graduate video game development program, and co-chair of the summit. “It looks like the conference fulfilled a need for the business and legal side of the game industry to get together and take a long, hard and personal look at our future.”
“Attendees came from all across North America and as far away as Asia and Europe. We were glad to see representation from major game publishers such as Activision and EA as well as independent studio business development leaders and their attorneys. In addition, we had good representation from a nationally known research analyst and venture capitalists,” Dr. Raad added.
The Guildhall at SMU has made it possible to download the Game:: Business::Law Summit video and audio through the program’s website at: www.guildhall.smu.edu.
On the home page, under Guildhall Journal, are instructions and a link to hear the individual summit’s keynote speakers and panel sessions through SMU’s iTunes U. Alternatively, if you would like to order a complete DVD set of the Game:: Business::Law Summit keynote speakers and panel sessions, there is a link on the home page as well.
Notable speakers at the Game:: Business::Law Summit included:
• Chris Baker, Wired Magazine
• Zach Bishop, Hunton & Williams
• Edward A. Cavazos, Fish & Richardson P.C.
• Roxanne E. Christ, Latham & Watkins
• John W. Crittenden, Cooley Godward Kronish LLP
• Dan Ferguson, Blockdot, Inc.
• J. Holt Foster, III, Thompson & Knight LLP
• Richard Garriott, Astronaut and Game Industry Legend
• Christian S. Genetski, Sonnenschein Nath and Rosenthal LLP
• Dan Hewitt, Entertainment Software Association
• Mike Hogan, GameStop Corporation
• Jason Holtman, Valve
• Zack Karlsson, Sr., NAMCO BANDAI Games America, Inc.
• Michael Klotz, NPD Group
• Mitch Lasky, Benchmark Capital
• David L. McCombs, Haynes and Boone, LLP
• Mark Methenitis, The Vernon Law Group
• Steve Nix, id Software, Inc.
• Xuan-Thao Nguyen, SMU Dedman School of Law
• Joseph Olin, The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
• Patrick Pugh, PricewaterhouseCoopers
• JJ Richards, Microsoft Corporation
• Barry Seaton, Barry C. Seaton, P.C.
• Rob Seaver, Vivox
• Colin A. Sebastian, Lazard Capital Markets
• Greg Short, Electronic Entertainment Design and Research (EEDAR)
• Edward Williams, BMO Capital Markets
• Michael Yatsko, PricewaterhouseCoopers
• Jerry Zhang , Shanda Games
About The Guildhall at SMU: The Guildhall at Southern Methodist University is the premier graduate video game education program in the US. Many of the school’s founders are industry icons, and classes are taught by industry veterans. In five years, the program has graduated over 250 students and alums have worked at more than 80 video game studios around the world, with several graduates now serving in leadership positions. SMU offers both a Master’s degree and a graduate Professional Certificate of Interactive Technology in Digital Game Development, with specializations in art creation, level design, and software development. For more information, visit guildhall.smu.edu.
Contact: Ron Jenkins, jenkinsr at smu.edu, 972.473.3546
Law of the Game at GDC: Speaking Engagement
I wanted to take a moment to mention that I will be speaking at the Worlds in Motion Summit at GDC 2009. Information about my session, "How to Avoid New Legal Pitfalls in Virtual World Design and Policy," can be found here. As it currently stands, here is the session information:
(306) How to Avoid New Legal Pitfalls in Virtual World Design and Policy
Speaker: Mark Methenitis (Attorney, The Vernon Law Group, PLLC)
Date/Time: Tuesday (March 24, 2009) 3:15pm — 4:00pm
Location (room): Room 132, North Hall
Experience Level: All
Track: Worlds in Motion Summit
Format: 45-minute Lecture
Session Description
There are always new legal pitfalls and challenges emerging in relation to virtual worlds, especially as the field continues to grow. This lecture gives attendees an opportunity to hear from a foremost legal scholar on virtual world legal issues and discuss new areas of concern, including updates on well known cases. The focus of the lecture will be an exploration of recent cases and emerging legal issues involving game and virtual world producers with an emphasis on �lessons learned,� including areas such as user disputes with virtual world owners, intellectual property enforcement, in-world gambling, and privacy concerns. Mark Methenitis will also be open to audience questions about virtual world concepts and design elements that may have unforeseen legal consequences.
Hope to see some of you there! Please feel free to come up and say hi if you're a Law of the Game or LGJ reader.
Speaking at Dallas IGDA Panel: “START-UPS: ARE THEY WORTH IT?”
Just a note for my Dallas-Ft. Worth area readers:
I will be on the Dallas IGDA panel “START-UPS: ARE THEY WORTH IT?” this coming Wednesday, February 11. The event is at 7 pm at the DeVry campus in Richardson. If you're a Dallas IGDA member, an IGDA member, or just interested in the topic (and possibly becoming an IGDA member), come out an join us.
More information can be found here.
Speaking at Game::Business::Law Conference
There has been a slight change in the speaker line up for the Game::Business::Law Conference within the past 24 hours or so. I will now be participating in Panel V on Thursday, January 15, at 1:15 pm.
Anyone in the Dallas area should consider attending, and registration is still available online for the bargain rate of $200 for the general public and $75 for students.
Please feel free to come say hello if you are in attendance at the conference.