Re: copyright incidents on the nets

Well, there is an ongoing discussion on one of the Role-Playing Game Newsgroup (rec.games.frp.dnd) and related ftp sites.

Role Playing Games are generally played by creating "characters" to participate in a "story", written by the "Game Master". These games use a set of rules to arbitrate what the characters may reasonably do; and are set in a fictional universe either created by the Game Master or provided by the game company.

TSR, Inc. has claimed that all player created supplemental materials in relation to their game "Advanced Dungeons and Dragons" are in violation of their copyrights and trademarks.

They publish "basic rules" which contain some measure of fiction (such as names of magic spells, etc.) and a number of "game mechanics", such as "1 game scale inch = 10 feet", "1 round = 1 minute", and
"it takes 4 'points' of damage to knock a character unconcious".
(And some/many players do not purchase anything but these rules.)

They also publish "Game Worlds", which contain maps, major "characters", and other fictional elements, but do not contain any actual "stories" for the players to participate in.

They also publish various "rules additions", supplements, blank forms to record information, and anything else they can think of to sell. :-) (The hardcover catalog for $20 was probably a bit extreme.)

They publish pre-written "stories" (or frameworks for "adventures") called "modules" that describe people, places, things, and events a group of "characters" might encounter while pursuing their goals.

In the last few years, they have even published novels and fiction set in their universes. (And they, and other companies, have licensed popular fiction to be used by players, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, James Bond, Tolkein, etc.)

During normal play of these games, participants create blank forms, characters, magical items (such as new magic wands), and new unique spells. The "Game Master" (called a "Storyteller" in some systems) will create new worlds, new monsters, and important personages (and even "unimportant" but interesting characters) for the players to interact with.

And of course, they will create scenarios, both in a form for other
"Game Masters" to let their characters participate in (with perhaps
different outcomes), and "records" of their exploits. (There usually aren't enough published "modules" that are appropriate to keep a group of players busy.)

Pretty much all of the player created materials have been made freely available in the past. This includes blank forms for recording information about characters; completed characters with history; new monsters; new magic spells; new worlds; new stories; new rules to "fix" problems or add new features to the system.

TSR has insisted that all material violates their rights. They have licensed a single ftp site to carry "approved" material, but required that the others remain closed; that all material meet essentially a PG-13 rating; and to include a disclaimer that many of the authors object to.

They have not made any attempts to shut down various mailing lists that carry this material about their products; nor have they chastised anyone for posting the exact material from the ftp sites to the Usenet newsgroup.

While I'm certain some material that was previously available did violate their intellectual property rights, I'm also fairly certain that some of the material did not.

It is, according to a couple of individuals we've consulted, an
"interesting" copyright case. Elements of game rules (which aren't
protected much by copyright) mix fairly freely with "fiction". But in most descriptions, the "game mechanics" could easily be converted back into "real world" measurements. And much of the fictional material was published with the express intent of the purchaser creating these supplemental materials. (In the case of the characters, they *MUST* be created to play the game; and must be exchanged at least among the players of the game.)

If anyone would like to see their announcements, some of their followup posts, or more details about the ongoing discussions, I'd be happy to forward them to individuals or the list. Some of them show an appalling lack of knowledge about copyright, by both members of the Usenet community, as well as the representatives of the company. And I, and others researching the background, would appreciate someone with legal experience making some comments.

I'm fairly certain that this will eventually see court, although most sites aren't willing to fight over providing a free service to the Usenet community. So some individual, possibly not in the U.S., will, with funding from various members of the community, prepare a "test case" against TSR. If it happens, it will be a potential first for Usenet, as a collective anarchy, defending its rights.

Keith Graham
vapspcx[_at_]cad.gatech.edu Received on Sat Dec 10 1994 - 05:13:56 GMT