Abstract
The gaming industry is currently one of the most rapidly developing sectors of the economy, generating billions of dollars for developers. A video game represents not a simple, but a complex object of intellectual property law, encompassing various distinct results of intellectual activity, such as music, screenplay, plot, video, and game characters. The issue of regulating relationships arising from video games has been a longstanding one. This article analyzes global and Russian judicial practices regarding liability for actions committed in the gaming world or the real world with the aim of obtaining rights and advantages in the game. It demonstrates that two regulatory spheres actively interact in this domain: the slowly evolving domestic legislation and “soft law” in the form of sets of rules established by game platform owners. The conclusion is drawn that the “soft law” of gaming and technological platforms assumes the role of a new source of law.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Churilov, A.: Legal Regulation of Intellectual Property and New Technologies: Challenges of the 21st Century. Yustitsinform, Moscow (2020)
Analytical Center of NAFI: Attitude of Russians to cybersport [Special project]. https://nafi.ru/projects/it-i-telekom/otnoshenie-rossiyan-k-kibersportu-en-attitude-of-russians-to-cybersport-/
Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation: Brief description of the crime situation in the Russian Federation for January-December 2021 (2021). https://мвд.pф/reports/item/28021552
TASS: Criminal case initiated in Belarus for hijacking a virtual tank in the game World of Tanks (2014). https://tass.ru/proisshestviya/958774
Burhanova, Y.I., Novokshonova, N.A.: Digital rights as objects of civil rights. Vestnik Chelyabinskogo Gosudarstvennogo Universiteta. Bull. Chelyabinsk State Univ. Ser. Law. (3), 35–40 (2022). https://doi.org/10.47475/2618-8236-2022-17306
Verdict of the Verkh-Isetsky District Court of Yekaterinburg, dated July 6, 2022, case number 1–382/22. https://verhisetsky--svd.sudrf.ru/modules.php?name=sud_delo&srv_num=2&name_op=doc&number=258206328&delo_id=1540006&new=0&text_number=1
Chinese gamer who killed over online game is sentenced. Videogamer. https://www.videogamer.com/news/chinese-gamer-who-killed-over-online-gameis-sentenced
Duranske, B.T.: Virtual Law: Navigating the Legal Landscape of Virtual Worlds. ABA Publishing, Chicago (2008)
Fairfield, J.: The magic circle. Vanderbilt J. Entertainment Technol. Law 11(4), 823–840 (2009)
Nazarov, V. N.: Digital double as a subject of information ethics. Ethic Thoughts. 1, 142–154 (2020). https://doi.org/10.21146/2074-4870-2020-20-1-142-154
Belsky, V.Y., Maikova, V.P., Molchan, E.M., Levitskaya, A.A.: Digital transformation of personality in virtual reality. Socio-Humanitarian Knowl. 4, 131–137 (2021). https://doi.org/10.34823/SGZ.2021.4.51637
Shipunova, O.D., Pozdeeva, E.G., Evseeva, L.I.: Digital applications and models of personality in the context of cyberanthropology. Sociology. 5, 234–239 (2021). https://doi.org/10.24412/1812-9226-2021-5-234-239
Bylieva, D.S.: A semiverse of games. In: Bylieva, D., Nordmann, A. (eds.) The World of Games: Technologies for Experimenting, Thinking, Learning: XXIII Professional Culture of the Specialist of the Future, LNNS. Springer, Cham (2024)
Ivanov, V.V., Zuev, D.I.: Digital double and digital identity: concept, correlation, significance in the process of cybercrime and in law as a whole. Rule of Law Theory Pract. 4(70), 138–144 (2022). https://doi.org/10.33184/pravgos-2022.4.19
Nizhny Novgorod Regional Court.: Appellate ruling of the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Court in case No. 22–1216/2018 (2018). https://sudact.ru/regular/doc/QZbcQM3R4XlJ
Magistrates’ Court of Judicial Unit No. 352, Basmanny District, Moscow.: Decision of the Magistrates’ Court of Judicial Unit No. 352, Basmanny District, Moscow, No. 2–01/11 (2011)
Lefortovo District Court, Moscow.: Decision of the Lefortovo District Court, Moscow, in case No. 2–3379/2011 (2011)
Leninsky District Court, Kemerovo.: Appellate determination of the Leninsky District Court, Kemerovo, No. 11–59/2013, in case No. 1159/2013 (2013). https://sudact.ru/regular/doc/uQ81NVpYhP1v/
Moscow City Court, Civil Collegium.: Appellate determination of the Moscow City Court, Civil Collegium, in case No. 33–21065/19 (2019). https://mos-gorsud.ru/mgs/services/cases/appeal-civil/details/0de6b77e-95c8-4707-8921-f762e36dd67d
Glushko, B.: Tales of the (Virtual) city: governing property disputes in virtual worlds. Berkeley Technol. Law J. 1, 507–532 (2007)
Hanyue, W.: Intangible property: protection of virtual property in electronic games in China and US. J. Finance Res. 4, 119–123 (2020). https://doi.org/10.26549/jfr.v4i2.3752
Chew, M.: Virtual property in China: the emergence of gamer rights awareness and the reaction of game corporations. New Media Soc. 13, 722–738 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444810378480
Joshua, A.T.: Fairfield. Virtual Property Boston Univ. law Rev. 85, 1047–1102 (2005)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Ivanov, V.V., Trubnikova, T.V., Churilov, A.Y. (2023). Liability in the World of Games: The Interaction of Positive and Soft Law. In: Bylieva, D., Nordmann, A. (eds) The World of Games: Technologies for Experimenting, Thinking, Learning. PCSF 2023. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 830. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-48020-1_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-48020-1_12
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-48019-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-48020-1
eBook Packages: Intelligent Technologies and RoboticsIntelligent Technologies and Robotics (R0)