THE BUSINESS OF GAMING
A GREAT GAME REQUIRES MORE THAN A
GREAT IDEA.
Whether you are an independent developer, an established studio, a publisher, or a business entering the gaming industry, the legal issues surrounding a game begin long before launch. Ownership, intellectual property, contractor relationships, publishing terms, licensing, privacy, platform rules, and enforcement can all affect the future value of the project.
Lee Law helps game developers and gaming businesses structure projects correctly from the start, protect the creative and commercial assets behind the game, and address the legal issues that arise as the project grows.
FROM IDEA TO RELEASE
FORM. DEVELOP. PROTECT.
LAUNCH.
FORM.
We help developers establish the appropriate business entity, define ownership interests, structure founder relationships, and put the legal foundation in place before significant value is created.
DEVELOP.
We prepare and review work-for-hire agreements, contractor agreements, developer agreements, confidentiality provisions, and other contracts governing the people who contribute code, artwork, music, writing, design, and other creative elements.
PROTECT.
We assist with trademark registration, copyright registration, licensing, ownership documentation, and strategies designed to protect the title, characters, artwork, code, music, story, and other intellectual property associated with the game.
LAUNCH.
Before release, we help address Terms of Service, privacy policies, publishing and distribution agreements, platform requirements, licensing arrangements, and other legal issues that affect how the game reaches players.
OWN THE GAME
EVERY CONTRIBUTOR CREATES
OWNERSHIP ISSUES.
Games are collaborative works. Programmers, artists, writers, musicians, voice actors, designers, animators, contractors, and outside studios may all contribute protectable content to the finished product.
Without proper agreements, a developer may discover too late that it does not own all of the assets incorporated into its own game. Lee Law helps establish clear ownership through work-for-hire provisions, assignments, licenses, contractor agreements, and other documentation designed to ensure the company controls the rights it needs.
WHEN THE GAME BECOMES A BUSINESS
THE DEAL MATTERS AS MUCH AS THE
GAME.
Publishing, distribution, licensing, platform, merchandising, sponsorship, and development agreements can determine who controls the game, how revenue is divided, what rights are granted, how long those rights last, and what happens if the relationship ends.
Lee Law helps developers and gaming businesses evaluate and negotiate commercial agreements with an eye toward ownership, control, revenue, intellectual property rights, future expansion, and long-term business value.
PROTECTING THE GAME AFTER LAUNCH
BUILD THE GAME.
DEFEND THE RIGHTS.
Successful games can attract unauthorized clones, copied artwork, confusingly similar titles, counterfeit merchandise, unauthorized apps, copied gameplay elements, infringing digital content, and other uses that threaten the value of the intellectual property behind the game.
Lee Law assists with marketplace and platform enforcement, cease-and-desist demands, trademark and copyright claims, takedowns, settlement negotiations, investigations, and litigation designed to stop unauthorized use and protect the value of the game and the brand surrounding it.
GAME DEVELOPMENT
|
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
|
PUBLISHING & LICENSING
|
ENFORCEMENT
FROM IDEA TO PLAYER
CREATE THE GAME.
PROTECT WHAT MAKES IT YOURS.
Whether you are building your first game, negotiating a publishing agreement, protecting a growing studio, or confronting unauthorized use, Lee Law can develop a legal strategy around the game, the business, and the intellectual property behind both.
