Game Development - Source Code (Is this Legal)

[Loud12]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington

We're a small app development company. We've been working with a new developer from China for about a month. At first, we hired her through a freelance website for a few different projects before working directly through Paypal.

She offered to sell me a source code that she made for one of her other clients. The client's game was taken off the app store. They were using Disney Characters and Elvis in their theme so I assume it was taken off the store because of that.

She tells me there was no contract for her clients to own the code. They worked through paypal. She developed the code herself and the client provided the graphics. The graphics are theirs but the code can be sold to me because it's her work she says. If I buy, she doesn't want me to say who I bought it from, I can't sell the code to other people and I can't use any of their graphics in my game.

Can I legally buy this code? How can I protect myself?

 

[FlyingRon]

Bigger the China copyright issues. You're going to be sued into oblivion by Disney if you use their characters in a game. Disney has a massive game operation of their own (one of their programmers is my neighbor). They jealously guard their trademarks and copyrights. You can't use this material, no matter how clean the code in the game was from other copyrights.

To address your specific question, dealilng with China is always suspect. It's quite possible that the code was done under a work for hire agreement with another entity and you could very well be sued for infringement no matter what your Chinese colleague says. They're not going to come over hear and defend you if you get sued. Frankly, a game that infringed on Disney's characters is already suspect anyhow. How do you know this person wrote the stuff anyway?

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Washington

We're a small app development company. We've been working with a new developer from China for about a month. At first, we hired her through a freelance website for a few different projects before working directly through Paypal.

She offered to sell me a source code that she made for one of her other clients. The client's game was taken off the app store. They were using Disney Characters and Elvis in their theme so I assume it was taken off the store because of that.

She tells me there was no contract for her clients to own the code. They worked through paypal. She developed the code herself and the client provided the graphics. The graphics are theirs but the code can be sold to me because it's her work she says. If I buy, she doesn't want me to say who I bought it from, I can't sell the code to other people and I can't use any of their graphics in my game.

Can I legally buy this code? How can I protect myself?

I agree with FlyingRon that the offer made to you by the Chinese developer is suspect.

Source code is automatically copyrighted. If the developer is the copyright holder, she would need to personally sign a transfer of rights agreement with you, transferring all exclusive rights in the copyrighted code to you - and you would then want this transfer of rights federally registered with the US Copyright Office.

 

[Loud12]

Bigger the China copyright issues. You're going to be sued into oblivion by Disney if you use their characters in a game. Disney has a massive game operation of their own (one of their programmers is my neighbor). They jealously guard their trademarks and copyrights. You can't use this material, no matter how clean the code in the game was from other copyrights.

To address your specific question, dealilng with China is always suspect. It's quite possible that the code was done under a work for hire agreement with another entity and you could very well be sued for infringement no matter what your Chinese colleague says. They're not going to come over hear and defend you if you get sued. Frankly, a game that infringed on Disney's characters is already suspect anyhow. How do you know this person wrote the stuff anyway?

I can't know for sure she wrote the code but I know she has the ability to do it. She has the skills. What is a "work for hire agreement" technically? She created the game at their request but there is nothing in writing between them. They handled everything through PayPal. It's hard for me to beleive that her other clients took the correct steps to get exclusive rights to the code when they were dumb enough to use Disney's IP.

 

[Loud12]

I agree with FlyingRon that the offer made to you by the Chinese developer is suspect.

Source code is automatically copyrighted. If the developer is the copyright holder, she would need to personally sign a transfer of rights agreement with you, transferring all exclusive rights in the copyrighted code to you - and you would then want this transfer of rights federally registered with the US Copyright Office.

So is she automatically the copyright holder if there was no agreement made between them? I talked to her more about this and she's willing to sign what's needed. At first she didn't want anyone to know because she doesn't want to "disappoint" her old clients. I'd really like to handle this the right way if I proceed (transfer of rights and federally registered).

 

[FlyingRon]

Work for hire means you create the work as part of a job for someone else. I have no idea how this applies in China, which really may be the determining factor here.

The US is very liberal on the work-for-hire in favor or the author. If you are an actual employee, then your works are presumed owned by your employer. If you are in any other relationship (freelancer, contractor, consultant), the law presumes the work belongs to the author unless there is a contractual agreement that provides that the rights go to the contracting entity.

Again, I'd be highly suspect of this arrangement. China, despite being a signatory to most of the copyright treaties, is a giant morass of infringement. Further, no matter what representations your Chinese colleague gives you, it will be your neck on the line in an infringement suit if you use something that is determined to be infringing. Your Chinese friend isn't going to come here and imdemnify you.

 

[STEPHAN]

Dealing with China I would be very concerned about MY code being shared with others later on.

I would never even consider buying any code from there.

I have seen to much!

 

[quincy]

So is she automatically the copyright holder if there was no agreement made between them? I talked to her more about this and she's willing to sign what's needed. At first she didn't want anyone to know because she doesn't want to "disappoint" her old clients. I'd really like to handle this the right way if I proceed (transfer of rights and federally registered).

Yes. Under most circumstances, the creator of the source code is the holder of the copyright in the code. This would be absent any agreement made to the contrary.

In the U.S., if someone creates an original work and they do not create it as a commissioned work or as part of their employment duties, it is not a work made for hire. With commissioned works, there must be a transfer of rights from creator to the one who commissioned the work if the one who commissioned the work is to become the new copyright holder. Without a written transfer agreement, the one who commissioned the work only owns the single work but no copyrights in the work. The copyrights remain with the creator of the work.

With source codes, a skilled programmer can examine a source code and create the same code with a different program. Many source code copyright holders, therefore, will register their copyrights in their codes by depositing with the US Copyright Office the object code with their registration or object code with portions of the source code blacked out, this to keep the source code confidential.

The copyright laws in China are not only different from the copyright laws in the US, these laws are not well-enforced. China remains the biggest source of infringed goods in the world.

You can have all facts reviewed by an IP attorney in your area. I would be very wary of purchasing code from the developer in China without greater investigation.