Why you should attend
The videogame industry has emerged as a leader in home entertainment, rivaling recorded music, television and motion pictures for the consumer entertainment mindshare. Intellectual property, including videogames, has become one of America’s leading exports in the 21st Century. The emergence of the Internet, Facebook and other social platforms and destinations, Apple iOS, Android, Windows Mobile and other digital delivery vehicles, and the explosive growth of casual and social gaming, have broadened the reach and audiences for games far beyond videogame consoles and personal computers. Any lawyer who represents creators of content, developers of technology or other intellectual property should have a basic understanding of current business and legal issues and practices in this dynamic field.
What you will learn
- The parties to the deal - multiple interests are the norm, not the exception, in games deals
- Understanding and negotiating key IP issues
- Deal terms found in every developer-publisher game development negotiation
- Licensing developer “tools and tech” - how far should rights granted to a game publisher extend?
- Termination clauses in game development contracts - when the deal ends early
- Subcontracting and outsourcing: securing sufficient IP rights from your off-shore suppliers
- Monetizing games - a developer’s and a publisher’s view of the issue
- Contests and promotions - what is legal and what is not?
- Games of skill vs. games of chance: when are your games violating anti-gambling laws?
- Privacy issues and social games: does your online privacy policy meet the latest requirements; special considerations in marketing to children (COPPA)
- Data security - what is required? Making sure you’re in compliance with the law
- The End User License Agreement, Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Making all three of these legal documents work for your client’s business objectives
- User-generated content: applying the DMCA “safe harbor” provisions to user-generated games content
- Financing game development and distribution - methods and strategies to raise or source capital for game development and publishing
- Eavesdrop on a financing negotiation between a would-be start-up and potential equity partners
Who should attend
Attorneys who represent clients in intellectual property-related, technology, or entertainment fields; videogame developers and publishers’ counsel; managers and executives with entertainment industry, interactive entertainment and digital responsibilities. This course will give the intellectual property, corporate, litigation or in-house attorney a broad overview of the business and legal issues in the interactive entertainment industry.
Morning Session: 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
9:00 Opening Remarks and Introduction
Jim Charne, Daniel O’Connell Offner
9:15 Understanding and Negotiating Core IP and Game Development Deal Points
- The (multiple) parties to the deal – who brings what; who gets what
- IP rights issues: the underlying property; source code; developer’s tools and tech; third party engine; middleware; hardware manufacturer
- Developer’s rights: sequels; ports; add-ons; additional content
- Developer’s obligations: reps and warranties; insurance requirements; non-compete; exclusive assignment of “key personnel”
- Publisher’s reps and warranties: what’s in the boilerplate; what additions do developers want
- Subcontracting and outsourcing; publisher approval requirements tying up all the rights with contractors
- Accounting issues; audit rights
- Termination clauses: for cause; not for cause; consequences
- Milestone development: approval process; timing of payments; change order procedures
- Post-development issues: additional content requirements; fixing bugs; maintaining the team
Jim Charne (moderator)
Amy Cano, Lane Kiriyama, Riley R. Russell
11:15 Break
11:30 The Regulatory and Legal Overlay: The FTC, Privacy, Maintaining Personally Identifiable Information, Marketing to Children, Contests and Sweepstakes in a Social Media World
- Why is privacy law and addressing privacy issues proactively critical for today’s videogame developers and publishers? The importance of the Playdom decision for videogame developers and publishers
- What is the regulatory overview in the U.S. with respect to privacy law?
- How do Privacy Policy, EULA, and Terms of Service work with the U.S. regulatory framework? Is your client’s Site or Game compliant? What is the role of the FTC and what are the consequences of non-compliance? How does the service provider protect itself?
- Data security: what is the current state of the law and what steps does a developer/publisher have to take to safely and legally maintain personally identifiable information? What are the consequences of non-compliance?
- Contests and sweepstakes on social media sites: what is the state of the law and what is permitted; what is not?
- Unclaimed gift cards and property: what is the state of the law and why this is a big issue for social gaming?
James Alan Cook, Dona J. Fraser, Nerissa Coyle McGinn
12:30 Lunch
Afternoon Session: 1:45 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
1:45 The Regulatory and Legal Overlay: The FTC, Privacy, Maintaining Personally Identifiable Information, Marketing to Children, Contests and Sweepstakes in a Social Media World (Continued)
James Alan Cook, Dona J. Fraser, Nerissa Coyle McGinn
2:45 Finance of Game Developers from Start-up to Cash Out
- Traditional Publisher Developer Model: advance and royalty; net profits; time and materials; backloading; developer incentives and penalties
- Start-up financing: friends and family; Angels; and Series A rounds
- Second round: when is it time? Who should you approach? What do Series A and B investors look for?
- Alternative Project Financing: Bank Bonding, Crowd Sourcing and Kickstarter
- Cashing Out: when the developer is acquired by a publisher, how are developers valued, what drives publisher acquisitions? What possible deal types and structures?
- Eavesdrop on a negotiation between an angel investor and game developer start-up
Daniel O’Connell Offner (moderator)
Sinjin Bain, Jeffrey Lapin, Greg Roussel
3:45 Break
4:00 Finance of Game Developers from Start-up to Cash Out (Continued)
Daniel O’Connell Offner (moderator)
Sinjin Bain, Jeffrey Lapin, Greg Roussel
5:00 Adjourn
Co-Chair(s)
Speaker(s)
Sinjin Bain ~ Vice President and General Manager, EA Partners
Amy Cano ~ Director, Business & Legal Affairs, Television Distribution, NBCUniversal
Dona J. Fraser ~ Director, Privacy Online, Entertainment Software Rating Board
Riley R. Russell ~ Chief Legal Officer, General Counsel and Senior Vice President Corporate Development, Sony Computer Entertainment America
Program Attorney(s)
San Francisco Seminar Location
PLI California Center, 685 Market Street, San Francisco, California 94105. (415) 498-2800
San Francisco Hotel Accommodations
The Palace Hotel, 2 New Montgomery Street, San Francisco, California 94105. Call (800) 917-7456 seven days a week from 6:00 am to 12:00 am (PDT) and mention you are attending this program at Practising Law Institute to receive the preferred rate. For online reservations, go to www.sfpalace.com/pli to receive the preferred rate.
Due to high demand we recommend reserving hotel rooms as early as possible.
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