Reborn America, this is my time

Chapter 12
"Okay, the small talk is over, let's get straight to the point."

After inviting Ethan and Evelyn to sit down, Barbara Babcock glanced at her watch. The time on it made her smile and said, "It's eight past five, and I have a class at nine o'clock." , so you have five or 10 minutes to understand the problem."

Ethan nodded slightly upon hearing the clean and clear words.

Glancing at Evelyn, Ethan said seriously after seeing the girl signaling him to speak boldly: "Mr. Barbara, we came here today mainly to consult you about the copyright issues of video games. This emerging industry enjoys Is copyright protection? If so, how should we use the law to protect ourselves?"

That's right, Ethan came here today for this.

And it seemed that he felt that his question was a bit unprofessional, or that he was a bit idiotic, so Ethan added, "Mr. Barbara, please forgive my ignorance, because the best I know about the law is that the law has Hysteresis."

"It's ok."

Lawyer Barbara snorted softly, put her elbows on the table, and gestured: "Ethan, I understand what you mean, you don't have to be so cautious, in fact, Evelyn has told me about Mirov and Atari. things about..."

Speaking of this, lawyer Barbara thought for a while, and then said: "It should have been two years ago? When Nolan Bushnell's plagiarism incident was just exposed? Yes, she came to consult at that time."

"What?"

Ethan was a little surprised, and turned to look at Evelyn.

But the girl leaning on the sofa looked normal and said, "I thought you would ask for legal aid."

She spread her hands and said, "If Mi Luohua really sues you, we have to fight back this kind of hooliganism in a more hooligan way, and those rubbish lawyers on the market don't have this ability."

This fact really surprised Ethan a little.

It never occurred to him that Evelyn, who had always disliked Ethan in the past three years, would have already helped him shake people?
"Thank you." Ethan was a little moved.

But thank you...

He said it for the original Ethan Jones.

Because looking at it now, the guy who died was even more unlucky!
"Hey! Evelyn! Who do you call a rogue?"

The communication between Ethan and Evelyn was heard by Barbara.

For the title of rogue, she immediately put on a straight face.

Evelyn was not afraid, stuck out her tongue, leaned over, grabbed her arm, and said coquettishly, "Oh, Mrs. Barbara, I'm just praising you for being amazing!"

"Hmph!" Barbara glared at Evelyn angrily, and then she couldn't hold back anymore, and burst out laughing, "Okay, okay, stop shaking, we don't waste time."

Amidst a burst of jokes, the atmosphere at the scene became very easy-going.

The kind-faced Barbara smiled and answered Ethan's question: "Ethan, your question is actually very simple. Video games are protected by law."

"However, I have to make a special statement about this matter."

"The copyright protection law currently used in our country was enacted in 1909. Since there were no electronic games at that time, when summarizing copyright, it is impossible to have electronic games in the category of copyright registration."

"Of course, when making laws, people have already thought of similar issues, so when writing laws, there are back-and-forth items. For example, in our 1909 Copyright Protection Act, it is written that it is protected by copyright. The objects covered by the law include novels, music, plays, films and other published or unpublished works."

"So, the current general understanding in our industry is to classify things like video games into other works, that is to say, if someone plagiarizes the content of video games, it is also applicable to the 1909 Copyright Protection Act .”

'Is that so? '

Lawyer Barbara spoke very clearly, and Ethan heard it very clearly.

But it was precisely because he understood it that he was even more puzzled.

Frowning, he said, "Mr. Barbara, since the content of video games is also protected by the copyright protection law, how did Atari dare to copy Mi Luohua's games?"

That's right, this is the key to Ethan's desire to find a lawyer!

Because in his memory, the copyright protection laws in the United States are very, very strict!

If not, there would be no hell joke about drawing a mouse on an isolated island and then being rescued!
However, after he came to this era, the copyright lawsuit between Mirowa and Atari made him feel unconfident again.

Because, in the memory of the original owner of the body, the plagiarism of Nolan Bushnell, the founder of Atari, happened in 1972, and Mi Luohua learned about it as early as 1973, but last year, that is, In 1974, they officially prosecuted!
Anyone with a discerning eye can see that there is a problem in this matter!

After all, no company can stand by and watch its opponents copy its own works without doing anything!

Especially when competitors are also making a lot of money by plagiarizing their works!
Lawyer Barbara raised her eyebrows at Ethan's question, took a sip of coffee, and said with a smile: "Ethan, please don't be confused, because I was also very strange after hearing your story, and then I I went to check the information, and then I found out that Atari's plagiarism of Mirowa was all a problem with the American Copyright Office."

"???"

This answer intrigued Evelyn.

"Ms. Barbara, what are you talking about, those staff..."

"No, No, No..."

Before Evelyn finished speaking, Barbara interrupted: "Evelyn, it's not what you think."

"I just said that our current copyright protection law was enacted in 1909. At that time, there was no category of video games, but at the same time, it stipulated a very interesting thing, that is, all works that want to be registered in the Copyright Office When registering copyright, it is necessary to fill out the corresponding application form according to the type of work.”

"We can now define video games as other types, but at the time, when Mi Luohua went to apply, the person in charge of the review felt that video games might belong to music, or images, and more likely to belong to movies. They thought these Things have to be registered separately."

"Mi Luohua felt that their game was a whole, and it was impossible to register separately, and the rights were infringed under separate registration, and rights protection was also very troublesome, so the registration at that time was deadlocked."

"In the end, Mi Luohua only registered the patent for the game console Odyssey because there was no result in the debate, but did not register the copyright for the game content."

"???"

"What?"

Ethan was shocked!

This answer made him very speechless!

because it sounds like...

It's really too special and nonsensical!

And his unbelievable face made Barbara say affirmatively: "It's outrageous, right?"

"No way, this is reality, because only in reality can such things that do not require logic occur."

At the same time, she spread her hands and said, "However, I haven't finished this matter yet. The following content is actually more funny. Do you know that there is another key reason why Mi Luohua did not register the copyright for the game at that time, that is That is, the Copyright Office has a service called expedited service.”

"You may not have heard of this thing, but I know it very well because I have used it."

"According to the Copyright Protection Act of 1909, regardless of whether a work is registered for copyright, it will be protected by law, but if you want to protect your rights, you must register with the Copyright Office."

"This may sound like a paradox, because I haven't registered the copyright, so I can't determine the effective time of copyright protection, and I can't determine the effective time of copyright protection, so I can't protect my rights."

"But with expedited service, it's easier."

"Once an unregistered work is infringed, the victim can apply for an expedited service from the Copyright Bureau. The Copyright Bureau will review and issue a copyright registration within a certain period of time, and there will be a note on the back of the registration. When will the copyright protection of this work take effect."

"For example, if I apply today, but my work was created ten years ago, the Copyright Office will set the time in 1965. It is precisely because of this compensation method that when there is a disagreement between Mi Luohua and the Copyright Office Finally, even if the two sides did not reach an agreement, Mi Luohua didn't care, and their indifference gave Atari a chance."

Speaking of this, Barbara lawyer laughed.

In the curved eyes, there was a playfulness.

"I've said it all here, you should be able to understand what I mean, right?"

"Since Mi Luohua didn't register the copyright, why didn't Nolan Bushnell dare to copy it?"

She raised her voice and said, "Because they are the only ones who succeed in copying! They have made a lot of money! Mi Luohua will apply for an expedited service to sue them! And at this stage, Atari has actually succeeded!"

"Milohua has to prove to the Copyright Bureau first when his game was made, and then the Copyright Bureau can determine the time of rights. During this embarrassing period of evidence collection, they have no way to protect their rights!"

"Also, you have to pay attention to one thing, "Pong" is not the first arcade machine launched by Nolan Bushnell! Before launching "Pong", he also made other games!"

"It's just that it didn't work. The original copyright owner didn't know about it at all, so he just ignored him."

Ok!

It turned out that it was Mi Luohua who relied on the ability of the Copyright Bureau to have a history of years, so that Atari won everything!

Ethan was a little emotional.

Although he thought what Lawyer Barbara said was a bit funny, but...

Well, this is indeed a traditional American art.

After all, in this country, there have been strange things about sending refugees from one place to another.

After living in the 21st century, Ethan has seen countless fun...

Mi Luohua's fun, it really can't be regarded as fun, at most it can be regarded as a big joke.

"Okay, Mrs. Barbara, thank you very much for your answer."

Ethan suppressed a smile and said solemnly.

However, to be honest, at this moment, he is much more relaxed.

Because he figured out the real cause of the problem that the original owner of the body was struggling with. At the same time, he also knew that in 1975, in this barbaric era, video games were also protected by law.

Then in this case...

Register a copyright for "Snake", can't it be sold?
And if he sells it, won't he have money?

Once rich...

beach!Beauty!Bikini Bottom!
Hey!
Thinking of this, Ethan couldn't wait to ask:
"So, Teacher Barbara, I'm going to register the copyright now, can I fill in the video game?"

"I won't be rejected by the Copyright Office like Mi Luohua?"

"of course not!"

Lawyer Barbara smiled and said: "Actually, after Mirowa formally sued Atari last year, the Copyright Bureau has released the registration in this area. You can use the name of video games to register your content as copyright."

This answer made Ethan very satisfied.

However, just when he was about to say thanks and follow the process to register.

Lawyer Barbara said again: "However, I don't recommend you to register now."

"???"

Ethan couldn't understand this sentence.

Evelyn was also a little surprised, "Why? Teacher Barbara?"

The confusion between the two made Barbara laugh, "The reason is very simple..."

"Baby! You are very lucky, the 56-year restriction will soon be overturned by those capitalists!"

　Note: ① The joke written by the Copyright Bureau in the article is true. Expedited service is also called special treatment. It can only be applied for when there is a risk of copyright infringement, customs matters, or the contract or release deadline for issuing certificates must be accelerated. After the application is accepted, it will generally be reviewed and issued a copyright registration certificate within 5 working days.This service has really harmed many people, because it is often impossible to confirm the specific copyright time.And there is more than one joke about copyright protection. If you are interested, you can learn about Richard Prince, a well-known appropriation artist in the United States. He erases the text of other people's works and then takes a new photo with a camera. The Copyright Office, which said his re-creation met the 'some originality' requirement for copyright registration, is outrageous.Marlboro felt that it was even more outrageous, because at that time Marlboro paid for the commercial advertisement, but he directly took a photo with the camera and took a photo, which became original.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)