ABSTRACT
The paper aims to argue that the term of copyright protection for video games is unreasonably too long to realize the objective of copyright, which is to promote the development of science and creativity. First of all, two preconditions would be explained in detail, including the nature (as products or services) and the extent of video games. Subsequently, the relationship between term and objective of copyright would be stated in general and then focus on unique features of creative industries. As one of such industries, video games generally demonstrate a short-lived lifecycle, which would be detailed by means of the product life cycle theory and the Boston Consulting Group growth-share matrix in the domain of marketing. Following such description, five factors would be clarified to explain the short lifespan of video games, which are relevant with the unique characteristics of games and the taste of players.
Hence, the conflicts of the lifespan and term of games would be unfolded and concluded later. In addition, the following explanation about the profitability of games would amount to a more serious unbalanced circumstance. Followed by a potential resolution of preservation to resolve the tensions discussed, failure to realize the interactive nature of games and the difficulty to conservation would be argued against the effect of preservation. Furthermore, emulation would be considered a solution to replay a game, but it may be confronted with the issue of legality and the high technological barrier of it would also be analyzed further. Yet, emulation fails to resolve certain type of games even with the favor of private servers. Finally, some possible measures would be put forward, while such approaches may also cause other issues.
Xiang, Miaohua, Rethinking the Term of Protection for Video Games (January 20, 2023).
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