Are my projects going to be destroyed by Hasbro?

[Bucky McGillyCuddy 956]

 

If they were to 'lose' a copy, it would only end up coming back to them and getting them in legal trouble at this point.

 

I'm sure there'd be some way to throw the blame haha. It's only jail time after all, actually... can you imagine what would become of a Brony in a prison cell with big bob *shutters*...

[Shanks 10,816]

Hasbro can turn a blind eye. But if they were made aware in such a way that they are known to be aware. Then they have only two choices, losing the trademark, or shut them down. This is per US trademark law, not some arbitrary rule someone came up with.

Yes but what confuses me is how this seems to apply to games like Fighting is Magic but I don't see this being brought up for fanfics or fanart.

[Killian Jones 2,655]

Yes but what confuses me is how this seems to apply to games like Fighting is Magic but I don't see this being brought up for fanfics or fanart.

Trademarks again work differently then copyright, the specific trademark applies to making video games of My Little Pony.

 

Also the only reason this is so devastating is that a game is a much longer project to make.

[Shanks 10,816]

Trademarks again work differently then copyright, the specific trademark applies to making video games of My Little Pony.

 

Also the only reason this is so devastating is that a game is a much longer project to make.

Okay so video games are covered by trademark while fanfics and fanart are not, okay now this is making a bit more sense. They seriously make these laws a lot more complicated than they need to be.

Edited February 9, 2013 by EarthbendingProdigy

[Yourmomsponies 444]

This is the internet bro.

They can't do shit. All they would know is your username if they were worried about your game. 

The absolute worst they could do is get you banned. Even then you can just make another account.

They can piss right on off.

Copyrights and trademarks are null and void on the internet! 

Corporations just aren't willing to accept that fact so they try and try and try to combat it but they cant.

If someone posts a good torrent that gets shut down someone with the same files will just repost it,

Such is the way of the internet.

[Zacharias 191]

Alright, readin a lot of brony comments and opinions on this and the termination of Fighting is Magic, I'm going to take these projects underground and completely hide them until they're ready and fans will reupload, and spread them even if they get taken down. And if any of the project leaders think I'm wrong, I'll quit right away.

They'll never be as popular as FiM was, but still, I'M NOT GOING TO END UP LIKE THIS.

 

Thanks for all the responses.

As a developer and as a game musician, I'm singing off for now!

[SBaby 660]

Trademarks again work differently then copyright, the specific trademark applies to making video games of My Little Pony.

 

Also the only reason this is so devastating is that a game is a much longer project to make.

 

Generally speaking, it's just video games of any kind.  So if anyone out there is making games, don't advertise them until they're completed and they have a download link.  If you have any demo videos of them or any information about the games on any sites, I stress, remove the information and videos until you are ready to release the game.

 

This minimizes the chance of Hasbro being able to shut you down (and the worst thing that can happen with a filesharing site is that the file gets removed).  Stay anonymous when making your games.

Edited February 9, 2013 by SBaby

[Twilight Sparkle ✨ 8,527]

Ok, so I'm basically bucked either way...maybe I should just stop wasting my time right now then and never do anything creative about anything. (I also had an idea about trying to "resurrect" the Crash Bandicoot series with a fangame but I guess not)

Generally speaking, it's just video games of any kind.  So if anyone out there is making games, don't advertise them until they're completed and they have a download link.  If you have any demo videos of them or any information about the games on any sites, I stress, remove the information and videos until you are ready to release the game.

 

This minimizes the chance of Hasbro being able to shut you down (and the worst thing that can happen with a filesharing site is that the file gets removed).  Stay anonymous when making your games.

 

The best thing to do is to get in touch with Hasbro and seek a license from them. If you have that license, it is legal evidence that Hasbro is okay with your use of their trademark. Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to get a license, too; Double Rainboom is one project a lot of you may be familiar with that has one.

 

If you work with Hasbro to get their stamp of approval on your project, you have nothing to worry about.

 

Staying anonymous until the game is released is not optimal at all. That's fighting Hasbro before you've even tried to be reasonable with them. Seriously... Hasbro is just a bunch of human beings working together toward a few common goals. You can and should talk to them if you want to do something that conflicts with a trademark of theirs. The best time to do that is before the serious development begins, in case you need to make any changes to your project plan to fit their licensing rules.

 

Honestly, it is Mane6's fault if they put two years into development without so much as trying to get a Hasbro license. Hasbro's getting an awful lot of heat for something that they barely had anything to do with.

 

 

Fighting is Magic is one of the few cases in which I have seen Hasbro actually issue a cease and desist and I have heard people on here say that it is because if Hasbro didn't issue the cease and desist that it would cause them to lose their trademark which is very confusing to me. Can someone explain why they would lose their trademark if they didn't take action over Fighting is Magic but how they have not already lost that with how many other numerous fanworks they could have taken against against but didn't? I have done some research about copywrite laws and trademarks but have not run into a situation like this so any explanation from someone who knows a bit more about this than me would be appreciated. Is there some kind of bogus loophole in copywrite or trademark law that does this because that is what it is sounding like?

 

I don't understand. If they let people make it, how do they loose control over it? Is the FBI going to go to Hasbro and say "These people made a game based on your show. Im taking the company" Who is going to take control over it?

 

This is just the way US trademark law works. If there is written proof that a trademark owner is aware of an unauthorized infringement of their trademark, they must shut it down or risk losing the trademark. If the trademark is lost, the concept of My Little Pony video games effectively becomes public domain.

 

Hasbro can look the other way and play ignorant for some time, which is the only reasonable explanation for why this just happened, but a single email to their legal department is enough to constitute written proof that they're aware of the infringement. It is a particularly curious detail that two team members left Mane6 shortly before the C&D was issued...

 

Yes but what confuses me is how this seems to apply to games like Fighting is Magic but I don't see this being brought up for fanfics or fanart.

 

Hasbro has a trademark specifically on "My Little Pony computer games". You can search for the trademark filing itself on the US Trademark Office's website; it has been there since 2002, so it's nothing new. Fan fiction and fan art aren't trademarked, so they aren't bound by trademark law.

[SBaby 660]

The best thing to do is to get in touch with Hasbro and seek a license from them. If you have that license, it is legal evidence that Hasbro is okay with your use of their trademark. Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to get a license, too; Double Rainboom is one project a lot of you may be familiar with that has one.

 

If you work with Hasbro to get their stamp of approval on your project, you have nothing to worry about.

 

Staying anonymous until the game is released is not optimal at all. That's fighting Hasbro before you've even tried to be reasonable with them. Seriously... Hasbro is just a bunch of human beings working together toward a few common goals. You can and should talk to them if you want to do something that conflicts with a trademark of theirs. The best time to do that is before the serious development begins, in case you need to make any changes to your project plan to fit their licensing rules.

 

Honestly, it is Mane6's fault if they put two years into development without so much as trying to get a Hasbro license. Hasbro's getting an awful lot of heat for something that they barely had anything to do with.

 

 

 

 

This is just the way US trademark law works. If there is written proof that a trademark owner is aware of an unauthorized infringement of their trademark, they must shut it down or risk losing the trademark. If the trademark is lost, the concept of My Little Pony video games effectively becomes public domain.

 

Hasbro can look the other way and play ignorant for some time, which is the only reasonable explanation for why this just happened, but a single email to their legal department is enough to constitute written proof that they're aware of the infringement. It is a particularly curious detail that two team members left Mane6 shortly before the C&D was issued...

 

 

Hasbro has a trademark specifically on "My Little Pony computer games". You can search for the trademark filing itself on the US Trademark Office's website; it has been there since 2002, so it's nothing new. Fan fiction and fan art aren't trademarked, so they aren't bound by trademark law.

 

Getting in touch with Hasbro directly isn't the easiest thing to do.  I'm just offering an alternative method to get fan games to be available to the public without getting harrassed by them.  But if you have a number that can allow us to get in touch with someone there that isn't a switchboard, I'm all for it.

 

 

By the way, I'm not trying to derail the topic.  But why does this site keep freezing when I try to reply to posts?  Does anybody know?  Seriously, this is the fourth time I've tried posting this.  Now I'm having to repost every other sentence.

Edited February 10, 2013 by SBaby

[Zacharias 191]

This sounds all great, but:

1. I don't live in the US.

2. I don't have the money to buy a proper PC, let alone a b*cking licence for >$10.000.

3. I have no means to contact Hasbro for reasons mentioned above.

4. None of these project will get the popularity of over 10.000 potential players. (probably not even 5.000)

5. These games are virtually impossible to be mistaken as Hasbro products, as two of them are for vintage video game consoles, and one uses public domain material. (Desktop pony sprites)

6. I'll never trust a big company like Hasbro. All of these organizations care nothing about money and possibly ruining whatever is possible to ruin in the meanwhile.

7. This is the last time I'm ever talking about this. End of Story.

[SBaby 660]

Here's the thing.  People that make fan games of any kind all know that these are the risks involved.  Most big fan games never see the light of day, and out of the few that get close to completion, about half of them end the way Fighting is Magic ended.  This is why I suggested not publicizing the fan game until you've either released it as a download or you're about to release it (read:  ONE DAY AWAY).  Once a fan game is released on the internet for download, it is 1000 times harder for a company to shut it down.  This is why Story of the Blanks and all the Luna games can still be downloaded even after the crackdown started, and they were featured on EQD too.

 

As I said before, if you want the public to ever see your work with any fan game, only advertise it after it's completed, and stay anonymous until then.  Pretend nothing's going on until you're ready to release the game.  This isn't a call for some kind of cyber protest or anything.  This is just a safety measure to avoid ending up in the same situation as mane6 are in.