Abandonware now legal?

[Allnatural]

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162308.html?tag=latestnews;title;1

I wonder what impact (if any) this will have on the emulation scene. Free romz for all...? h34r:

 

[smcd]

It's nice to see that something sensible might be coming out of our countries leading men... however I was reading about this and it's only enabled for 3 years and will be subject to renewal, I think (the decision)?

 

[Hexidecimal]

3 words:

Oh. Hellz. Yeah.

 

[smcd]

Ah here we go, "take effect Monday (27th) and will expire in 3 years..." http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061123/ap_on_hi_te/digital_copyright ah well, some time is better than no time eh? So if you flex your usage rights during this 3 years time, do you have to remove stuff acquired during it after it is expired? How can you prove, if "caught" later that stuff you have was done during the allowed time, if these new concessions are not extended/enhanced?

 

[ScottJC]

Free romz for all...? h34r:

Naw that's everyones attitude about roms already... legal or not

 

[A.I.]

Um, does that mean I won't go to jail if I play PJ64? I got sensitive ass cheeks! :ermm:

 

[Miretank]

Free romz for all...?

Wait, that means, we won't be banned if we ask where to get le romz for le emulater!

Um, does that mean I won't go to jail if I play PJ64?

You won't go to jail by playing PJ64, but you MIGHT go by downloading copyrighted software.


I remember that, sometime ago, someone posted a thread about Midway selling out their licenses, and not all games were bought by other softhouses. What about the titles which got abandoned? Can we use them legally?

 

[LazerTag]

Some TI-99 games will benefit, as well as Odessey, Coleco, Amiga, etc....

Many old main stream games however are still being made/remade for other platforms. In some cases the platform itself is even making a come back, so their licensing is still valid.

Atari 2600 for instance has the Flashback system. Wii is going back to N64, SNES, Genesis, TG-16 and NES. I wouldn't be surprised if they roll out GB, SMS, or even GBA on it possibly.

Not to be a downer, but I just don't see how this law will really help much.

 

[smegforbrain]

It definately becomes confusing in a hurry, doesn't it?

This is really going to be something where one company will say one thing, another will say something else.

Some companies, such as Sierra, have already put a number of no-longer-supported titles into the realm of abandonware. Nintendo, on the other hand, probably never will voluntary do that ever, not when you've got the ability to get people to pay for the games through the Wii (same for Sony now with the PS3/PSP downloading).