Valve Forced to Pull Player-Created DotA 2 Mace for Copyright

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tului

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You can copyright a mace? In a game? Seriously? Adding the graphic for one mace to another game isn't considered fair use? Maybe if it is the ultra ueber mace that Aion uses in all it's commericals, and even then I'd think it should be fair use. A fscking mace.
If this isn't another clue we need to rework copyright law, I don't know what is.
 

tului

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[citation][nom]killerclick[/nom]Was it so hard to just mention what DotA 2 is? I had to waste precious seconds of my life just to find out it's nothing that interests me.[/citation]
You're not the only one, I've seen the name popping up on youtube and I finally decided to look it up. DotA always made me think of DatY which is nothing like a video game!
 

radon_antila

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[citation][nom]tului[/nom]You can copyright a mace? In a game? Seriously? Adding the graphic for one mace to another game isn't considered fair use? Maybe if it is the ultra ueber mace that Aion uses in all it's commericals, and even then I'd think it should be fair use. A fscking mace. If this isn't another clue we need to rework copyright law, I don't know what is.[/citation]

1) Distinctive art assets are considered intellectual property and thus, copyright.

For example, the fireman's axe is NOT distinct, so any game developer can use the art of a fireman's axe in any game. But start with a fireman's axe then, for example, color it black, add a few more spikey bits and draw glowing runic symbols all over it and call it the "Sacred Axe of Malice" and it becomes distinctive enough to warrant copyright.

In this case, that item happened to be Aion's "Marchutan's Blessed Mace".

2) The article fails to mention that "Sithil's Summer Stash", the way to get this mace, was sold on Steam, and the banned modder would have been granted a cut of these sales. In short, Valve unwittingly sold the art asset another company owned because their community approved an art asset they shouldn't have.

Btw, the above info was taken from the more detailed post on The Escapist.
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/119006-Valve-Drops-the-Hammer-On-Infringing-Dota-2-Mace
 

demonhorde665

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[citation][nom]Pennanen[/nom]I think banning steam account for sucha small violation is unnecessary[/citation]
[citation][nom]tului[/nom]You can copyright a mace? In a game? Seriously? Adding the graphic for one mace to another game isn't considered fair use? Maybe if it is the ultra ueber mace that Aion uses in all it's commericals, and even then I'd think it should be fair use. A fscking mace. If this isn't another clue we need to rework copyright law, I don't know what is.[/citation]

this is NOT a small deal. Valve could have seriously gotten their a-- sued off by the developer and the publisher of Aion over this. just on the mace design alone. now i'm not clear on the facts but it could be worse if the player had actualy lifted the exact model from the other game and converted it to DOTA2 for use. So no this was not a small deal, it's quite big actually, the fact that some amature modders think it's quite ok to sell some one else's design and make money on it is quite disturbing , this is exactly why i stopped creating huge online displays of my student work in 3ds max.
 

demonhorde665

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[citation][nom]tului[/nom]You can copyright a mace? In a game? Seriously? Adding the graphic for one mace to another game isn't considered fair use? Maybe if it is the ultra ueber mace that Aion uses in all it's commericals, and even then I'd think it should be fair use. A fscking mace. If this isn't another clue we need to rework copyright law, I don't know what is.[/citation]

wanted to add
you seriously think you have a right to an artist's mace design ? how in the hell can you see that as fair use ? it's no different than if you design a completely new car and some one else jacks your design. it took an artist to design said mace , that is unique from any other game's maces your citing this as "another clue we need to rework copyright law" only shows your total lack of respect for other peoples creativity and property. IT"S A UNIQUE DESIGN!!!! it's not like every other mace on every other rpg. Think before you speak , according to your logic if you invent schematics for some miraculous millionair making gadget , i'd have a right to come and make a million dollars off your gadget. cos according to your logic .. that's fair use.
 

Pennanen

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[citation][nom]demonhorde665[/nom]wanted to add you seriously think you have a right to an artist's mace design ? how in the hell can you see that as fair use ? it's no different than if you design a completely new car and some one else jacks your design. it took an artist to design said mace , that is unique from any other game's maces your citing this as "another clue we need to rework copyright law" only shows your total lack of respect for other peoples creativity and property. IT"S A UNIQUE DESIGN!!!! it's not like every other mace on every other rpg. Think before you speak , according to your logic if you invent schematics for some miraculous millionair making gadget , i'd have a right to come and make a million dollars off your gadget. cos according to your logic .. that's fair use.[/citation]

I designed a rock, it looks like all rocks but its unique. Going to sue everyone about it. Learned from the best: Apple.
 

Camikazi

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[citation][nom]john_4[/nom]This kind of BS why I get all my mods for Oblivion, Fallout and Skyrim from the Nexus and none from STEAM[/citation]
It's not BS, selling another artists design is a big deal and something that could have landed Valve in court. The modder didn't do this without knowing, it was the same design meaning he took it from the game or copied it exactly and tried selling it, so he was basically selling something he did not make without paying the original artist at all. I am sure you would sue if you created something and found out some random person was selling your product without giving you any money or asking permission.
 

A Bad Day

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[citation][nom]Pennanen[/nom]I think banning steam account for sucha small violation is unnecessary[/citation]

Lawsuit or one lost customer. Pick your poison.
 

xerroz

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Items in the dota 2 workshop are either copyrighted (seen my share, some more obvious than this mace) or complete crap. That this happened doesn't surprise. The person who submitted was pretty blatant on the plagiarism. In his submission he acted like it was actually creation and went as far as to say he had "recolored" it.
 

nullifier

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I understand the legalities involved and why Steam did what they did, but I still think copyright laws are over the top and rarely serve to protect the monetary assets of the copyright holder - record breaking ticket sales at the movie theaters despite leaked versions prove this fact in at least one facet of the entertainment industry.

MPAA would rather you think that movie stars live in grasshuts because of the amount of earnings they've lost due to piracy.
 

alidan

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you cant stop people from modding in weapons. that will never happen.

however, that is also protected under fair use for the most part, so long as you aren't selling it.

valve is protected under current laws so long as they don't knowingly sell things like that.
 

jl0329

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[citation][nom]tului[/nom]You can copyright a mace? In a game? Seriously? Adding the graphic for one mace to another game isn't considered fair use? Maybe if it is the ultra ueber mace that Aion uses in all it's commericals, and even then I'd think it should be fair use. A fscking mace. If this isn't another clue we need to rework copyright law, I don't know what is.[/citation]

I am pretty sure the sword Ashbringer or the Portal gun are copy righted. They are not talking about generic weapon model.
 

Pherule

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[citation][nom]killerclick[/nom]Was it so hard to just mention what DotA 2 is? I had to waste precious seconds of my life just to find out it's nothing that interests me.[/citation]

[citation][nom]tului[/nom]You're not the only one, I've seen the name popping up on youtube and I finally decided to look it up. DotA always made me think of DatY which is nothing like a video game![/citation]

Maybe you guys need to stop living under a rock. DotA has been hugely popular since 2005.
You not knowing what DotA is, is akin to someone not knowing what World of Warcraft is.
 

rantoc

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[citation][nom]Pherule[/nom]Maybe you guys need to stop living under a rock. DotA has been hugely popular since 2005.You not knowing what DotA is, is akin to someone not knowing what World of Warcraft is.[/citation]

So what is DotA? Have it had over 11,5 mil players along with several TV commercials for the word to spread so wide that even non-gamers know what it is!? Since you compare DotA to WoW like it should be just as known...
 

gm0n3y

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This article really needs to mention that there was actual money involved here. From the text here it sounds like some free item which wouldn't really cause any harm, but in actuality it was being sold for real money and the person that created it was going to get a cut. That is definitely wrong.
 
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