twiz11 wrote on 2024-05-03, 23:17:

if vogons archived games privately without publicly distributing them then i could see that as legal as theres no law against using copyrighted work privately

It's still 'public distribution' even if your 'public' is 'a select chosen inner circle'. It'd just be on the 'down low' to avoid getting caught. You're just inventing an invite only Warez group, but with new branding so you can pretend it's not warez.

Look, I'm all for preserving abandonware and other dead games to ensure they can be accessed. However, doing so def violates the law, so doing so requires you to navigate around the existing legal structure or to just not get caught/gain the attention of motivated copyright holders. But you're just trying to imagine up a fantasy scenario where it doesn't violate copyright, but in the real world it would still violate copyright.

Laws can change, but those who can pay for lobbyists have opposing interests. So as nice as it would be, I don't see it happening. Especially not globally.

Though some games are made permanently freeware by the copyright holders, like TES: Arena and Daggerfall or SWINE and I could imagine that after let's say 20 years (I'd prefer 10) all games should get this treatment. Or at least those that are completely abandoned by their rights holders.

But licenses can make this difficult. Race Driver: GRID, Colin McRae Rally: DIRT, the Need for Speed series up to Carbon have been all abandoned for years but the music and car licenses also expired so I don't think it's legal for the rights holder to do anything with them officially.

Hi, I'm no lawyer, but I think there be could be exceptions. For example, if the platform has a couple of physical copies (originals) of a game in their HQ.
Then, users could play those copies online.
The physical copies (originals) are basically being assigned to a given number of users.
Maybe even by using serial numbers, if needed.
Again, it's just an idea, a concept. Laws around the world are all different, also.

Jo22 wrote on 2024-05-04, 22:48:

Hi, I'm no lawyer, but I think there be could be exceptions. For example, if the platform has a couple of physical copies (originals) of a game in their HQ.
Then, users could play those copies online.

Again, it's just an idea, a concept. Laws around the world are all different, also.

You are not the first one to have this idea. This is the key idea of "controlled digital lending" (CDL).

To make CDL work legally, you need to run the games on a controlled server ("cloud gaming"), so you can make sure that only a defined number of instances run at the same time, or you need to emply DRM on client systems to make sure you don't continue playing a copy offline after the lending is over. For example, the Internet Archive uses a Javascript version of DOSBOX to play old DOS games inside the browser of the visitor of that site. Unless you emply DRM stuff, nothing prevents hosting a copy of the files your brwoser downloaded while playing that game from the Internet Archive on your own server, and get as much playing hours as you like without the Internet Archive being able to count the number of active copies and making sure that the number of running copies does not exceed the number of physical copies owned by the Internet Archive (or a similar online service).

Don’t think anyone can efficiently preserve software without committing piracy in the current legislation.
The best way in my opinion is to host such software in countries which are less likely to enforce their anti-piracy laws and wait for their license to expire. This is fair because is the very same tactic billionaires who make money from such software use to evade taxes, labor regulations, etc.

gaffa2002 wrote on 2024-05-05, 15:19:

Don’t think anyone can efficiently preserve software without committing piracy in the current legislation.
The best way in my opinion is to host such software in countries which are less likely to enforce their anti-piracy laws and wait for their license to expire. This is fair because is the very same tactic billionaires who make money from such software use to evade taxes, labor regulations, etc.

ah off shore gaming accounts

I do have the same thoughts with ExoDOS for example.
The boxed version is officially sold on Etsy.
How can this be legal?
Thousands of games on a 2TB HDD.

crusher wrote on 2024-05-06, 06:28:

I do have the same thoughts with ExoDOS for example. The boxed version is officially sold on Etsy. How can this be legal? Thousa […]
Show full quote

I do have the same thoughts with ExoDOS for example.
The boxed version is officially sold on Etsy.
How can this be legal?
Thousands of games on a 2TB HDD.

It's not.

I thought so.
Still wondering he is able to sell it on Etsy.

IANAL but no.

What does "IANAL" mean?
Sorry, but i can't google this term at work 🤣

crusher wrote on 2024-05-06, 09:16:

What does "IANAL" mean?
Sorry, but i can't google this term at work 🤣

I Am Not A Lawyer

Thanks!

I just hope the google search was not too traumatizing 😁

🤣 I did not do it as I'm at work actually.

lots of games have multiple copyright issues though, like when music is licensed to a game and that license runs out, like with gta sa

in simpler times maybe, but i suspect lots of dependencies would sink any attempt with "newer" games, even those 20 years old