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Right of Publicity First Amendment Video Games

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Video Gaming / E-Gaming Law Update – September 2021

Main Quest - ‘Mint’ Conditions: NFTs and Video Games - Over the course of the past year, nonfungible tokens (NFTs) have transformed from a relatively niche product for those in the cryptocurrency sector to an increasingly...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Video Gaming / E-Gaming Law Update - June 2020

Does My Video Game Violate Consumers’ Privacy Rights? The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is the first broad-based state statute aimed at enhancing personal privacy rights for consumers. Following the example set by...more

ArentFox Schiff

Court Body-Slams Wrestler’s Claim That Gears of War Video Game Character Infringed His Publicity Rights

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Lenwood Hamilton, also known as Hard Rock Hamilton, claimed that Gears of War character Augustus Cole infringed his publicity rights because the video game character had a number of features he felt were identified with him....more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Celebrity Entertainer Sues Over Video Game Avatar

As real-world celebrities continue to expand the reach of their persona into the digital realm, the potential benefit for advertisers, game developers and esports event promoters is exceedingly high. But with increased...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

U.S. Supreme Court Punts on Dispute Involving NFL Players’ Publicity Rights

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The Supreme Court passed on an opportunity to review a recent appellate court decision holding that a video game publisher is not protected by the First Amendment for using the likenesses of former NFL football stars in the...more

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

Advertising Law - October 2015 #4

Eleventh Circuit Rejects Application of VPPA to Free App - The latest decision interpreting the application of the Video Privacy Protection Act in the context of twenty-first century technology provides positive news for...more

Jackson Walker

Stacy Allen Speaks: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly: Unpopular Celebrities And The Right Of Publicity

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In retrospect, the victories won by former college football stars in their right of publicity lawsuits against Electronic Arts and its hugely popular NCAA Football videogame franchise are hardly surprising. How could anyone...more

Weintraub Tobin

Electronic Arts and its Disrespect for the Game

Weintraub Tobin on

On September 11, 2014, the Ninth Circuit heard oral argument on the appeal in Davis v. Electronic Arts (Case No. 12-15737), a class action lawsuit brought by three former NFL Players against Electronic Arts (“EA”), the...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Litigation Alert: California Superior Court Finds Use of Likeness of Former Panamanian Dictator Manuel Noriega in Video Game...

Fenwick & West LLP on

Manuel Noriega v. Activision Blizzard, Inc., No. BC 551747 (Cal Super. Ct. filed October 27, 2014) - In recent years, federal and state courts have wrestled with how to assess right of publicity claims in the video...more

Greenberg Glusker LLP

Leggo My Likeness Part V: Grand Theft Right of Publicity?

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This year, several important video game lawsuits helped clarify the parameters for using a celebrity’s likeness in video games. Generally speaking, courts have found that, unless you get permission, you can’t put a celebrity...more

K&L Gates LLP

When Does the Right of Publicity Trump a Video Game Maker’s First Amendment Rights?

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On September 24, 2013, Electronic Arts, Inc. (“EA”) reached a $40 million dollar settlement of lawsuits over the use of college athletes’ likenesses in EA’s popular college football video game series NCAA Football. EA also...more

Farella Braun + Martel LLP

Balancing Freedom Of Expression And The Right Of Publicity: Implications For The Future Of Interactive Entertainment

Freedom of expression bowed to the right of publicity on July 31, 2013, when a divided panel at the Ninth Circuit ruled that college athletes could proceed in litigation against Electronic Arts (“EA”) for making sports-based...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Ninth Circuit Fumbles The Ball In Videogame Likeness Cases

Creating a new rule that gives videogames much more limited protection than other expressive works, the Ninth Circuit has ruled that realistically depicting college athletes in videogames showing them doing what they became...more

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

Evolving Case Law on the Fair Use of Famous Trademarks in Video Games

A recent spate of cases has generally upheld, on First Amendment grounds, a developer’s right to include unlicensed trademarks in video games. However, until the body of case law becomes so prevalent that trademark owners...more

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

Advertising Law -- Aug 15, 2013

FTC Updates COPPA Guidance - As promised, the Federal Trade Commission has provided additional updates to its Frequently Asked Questions guidance regarding the new Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule which took...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Litigation Alert: Ninth Circuit Assesses Use of Player Likenesses in Video Games

Fenwick & West LLP on

On Wednesday, July 31, 2013, the Ninth Circuit issued two opinions assessing the parameters of use of individual player likenesses in video games in two highly watched cases...more

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

Jim Brown's Right Of Publicity Claim Revived By Keller Victory On Appeal

A Ninth Circuit panel decision issued on July 31, 2013, has revived NFL legend Jim Brown's state law right of publicity claims against video game maker Electronic Arts, Inc. ("EA"). Back in March 2009, Brown filed an action...more

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP

Football & Free Speech: Third Circuit Vidgame Decision Has Broader Implications for Reality-Based Works

42, 127 Hours, Act of Valor, Argo, Dolphin Tale, Fair Game, Green Zone, I Love You Philip Morris, Moneyball, People Like Us, Sanctum, Secretariat, Soul Surfer, The Bling Ring, The Fighter, The Runaways, The Whistleblower,...more

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

Rights of Publicity: Contradictions in the Courts

The legal controversies over athletes' rights-of-publicity rage on. Two pending appellate decisions offer some hope that a rational conclusion might be in sight. The head of Manatt's Sports Law Practice Group, Ron Katz, had...more

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