Protecting and Clearing a Game: A Practitioner's Guide to Mechanics, Assets, User Content, Streaming, and Mods
By Casey Scott McKay ·
This guide runs the legal work of a game studio as a programme rather than a series of emergencies. It starts with the asset register, because provenance is the finding that most often derails a publishing deal or an acquisition, and sets out what to record for every purchased pack, font, plugin, library, and contractor deliverable. It then works title clearance and mark filings before announcement, the registration practice that preserves statutory damages, and the user content licence drafted for what the studio actually does. It covers mod and streaming policies published rather than improvised, safe harbour housekeeping, live operations terms including virtual items and sunset, and the publishing agreement carve-outs that determine whether there is a studio after the first game. It closes with a clone response sequence that starts with the store.
IP and Technology > Copyright | Guide | Published 24 February 2025 - Updated 8 June 2026 | Casey Scott McKay - marksy.us
Summary. This guide runs the legal work of a game studio as a programme rather than a series of emergencies. It starts with the asset register, because provenance is the finding that most often derails a publishing deal or an acquisition, and sets out what to record for every purchased pack, font, plugin, library, and contractor deliverable. It then works title clearance and mark filings before announcement, the registration practice that preserves statutory damages, and the user content licence drafted for what the studio actually does. It covers mod and streaming policies published rather than improvised, safe harbour housekeeping, live operations terms including virtual items and sunset, and the publishing agreement carve-outs that determine whether there is a studio after the first game. It closes with a clone response sequence that starts with the store.
Keywords: game legal programme · asset register · asset licence audit · contractor assignment · open source in builds · copyright registration for games · audiovisual work deposit · title clearance · intent to use filing · user content licence drafting · safe harbour housekeeping · mod policy · streaming policy · stream-safe audio · live operations terms · virtual item terms · clone response · platform takedown · publishing agreement carve-outs · generative tooling provenance
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