Paradox CEO says Game of Thrones is "one license I would consider" - PC Gamer article

[FOARP]

Either way PDS does not appear to have said or done anything that would cause HBO any injury.

If HBO wanted to go after Paradox, the argument would likely run something like this:

- Paradox encourages modders to mod their games, and markets their games on their moddability, including by making mods that infringe copyright.
- Paradox hosts mods that infringe copyright on their website, the same website through which it markets its games.
- Paradox therefore profits from infringing mods.

But like you said, it would be a stupid PR move, and their chances of success far from certain, and even if they did succeed, likely the modders would simply move elsewhere. On the flip-side, the mod is actually good advertising for their show, and keeps up interest in a GOT strategy game.

In my own job, I regularly have to check out complaints that a competitor or counterfeiters are infringing my company's intellectual property, and about half the time when we decide not to take any action it is not because there is no infringement, it is because it is just not worth doing anything.

 

[Lemont Elwood]

Wait, what ? Modders are nice and everything, but in over 90% of the cases modding communities created things the devellopers weren't willing to put time in for some reason, not because those devs weren't able to do it.

Modders make more content and better content as a hobby, FOR FREE, than the developers! That's one reason why I tend to be sore to buy Paradox DLC, their community outdoes them on a regular basis.

 

[jvm504]

Modding is a very grey area when it comes to copyright laws and who's responsible for what. Basically all that's needed is one lawsuit going wrong, for modding to be killed, since game developers would stop making their games moddable. That's why mods like the Game of Thrones mod and the Elder Scrolls mod for CK 2 are very delicate situations, where one can only hope the IP owners choose to ignore them.

I don't think one lawsuit could kill modding. At most a decision could make developers unable to promote specific mods on their own company websites and forums, but making your game capable of being modded doesn't by nature infringe anything. I mean, by that logic you could sue Adobe for producing a program that can scan documents and create pdf files, since they can be used to pirate printed works. There's no way that'd ever happen, it'd be way too dangerous a precedent.

 

[CSARebel]

I don't think one lawsuit could kill modding. At most a decision could make developers unable to promote specific mods on their own company websites and forums, but making your game capable of being modded doesn't by nature infringe anything. I mean, by that logic you could sue Adobe for producing a program that can scan documents and create pdf files, since they can be used to pirate printed works. There's no way that'd ever happen, it'd be way too dangerous a precedent.

This is correct IMHO

 

[IIWW]

- Paradox hosts mods that infringe copyright on their website, the same website through which it markets its games.

They do not. Users are, using a tool provided by PDS. PDS is obliged to remove such content if requested, but they are no more responsible for that than Facebook would be if I put pubicly a copyright infriged picture. (unless You're not talking about this forum, it's the only way PDS is hosting mods, since steam is most definatelly not their site)

 

[grisamentum]

It has nothing to do with killing modding generally, but killing specific mods, which has the effect of making people unwilling to produce mods based on existing fictional worlds.

For example, consider the Middle Earth Roleplaying Project, a Tolkien mod for Skyrim: http://www.moddb.com/mods/merp-middle-earth-roleplaying-project

The mod was shut down Warner Brothers: http://www.theonering.net/torwp/201...-shut-down-free-skyrim-lord-of-the-rings-mod/

Conceivably HBO or the book publisher or whoever could easily shut down the AGOT mod. It's just a matter of if they think it's a good idea or not.

 

[enoofu]

Funny thing is that Warner Brothers is being sued by the Tolkien Estate for the same thing