It’s a contentious and tricky subject, but the time has come for Battlegames to take a lead in investigating the subject of copyright theft in the field of wargaming. This includes the recasting of figures, the piracy of books and digital files, industrial espionage, the defence of Intellectual Property and so on. Some of you may recall Bob Barnetson writing on this very subject for Battlegames magazine.
A recent guest confessed a guilty secret about recasting, and though it happened decades ago, nobody should be under the impression that it was legal even then. And nowadays, with the mass movement to digital publishing and even digital production, the threat of dark forces accessing the files that creatives have worked long and hard to create is ever present.
So, have you ever experienced copyright theft? Are you an author, game designer, sculptor or manufacturer whose work has been stolen? Were you able to prosecute or otherwise force the offenders to cease and desist? Or did you lose income as a result of the infringement? Have you ever unwittingly committed copyright theft and sought to compensate the original copyright owner(s)? Are you a creative with specific fears about your work being stolen?
Do you work in the legal profession, and can talk knowledgeably about the subject, our rights as creatives and the limitations in our ability to pursue miscreants? Do copyright laws apply equally across borders, or are there limitations when our work is stolen and produced illegally in another country? Where can we get help and advice and, if necessary, help with legal costs?
This will be a special Battlechat episode, involving many voices, not just myself and a single guest, so if you would like to contribute something, however brief, either in writing or, even better, in a brief documentary-style interview lasting just a few minutes, I would be extremely grateful and you would be doing a service to the hobby.
I’m going to give us some time to assemble as many facts and data as we can, and carry out the interviews, so I’ll put a deadline of 1st June when I’ll start putting the episode together. Input is invited from ANYONE, regardless of whether you are a trader, manufacturer or hobby gamer, but the focus needs to be on facts, evidence and the law, not opinions. I don’t care if someone thinks copyright theft is okay: it isn’t, under any circumstances, and it’s illegal!
Henry
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