I’m making this video below as a call to action and an invitation to policymakers, industry experts and industry stakeholders to start an open and constructive conversation about the issue of digital software products and their end-user rights.
I want to be able to explore the legal implications of end-user agreements and understand what needs to fundamentally change to achieve three core goals:
- End users should be treated with dignity and fairness, allowing them to buy and use the products they own without arbitrary restrictions or converting a purchase to ‘borrowing of an online licence’.
- The game and software development industry should work to ensure that whatever the business model large corporations use or becomes the standard, the developers themselves are able to operate in a sustainable way that’s scalable from AAA studios down to indie titles.
- Gaming and digital media heritage is treated with the importance and respect it deserves. Legacy support and industry standards for what happens when that support ends needs to be formalised.
Some of these are lofty goals. I don’t know where to start and don’t have any of the answers but if we collectively work together to tackle the issue, we have the ability to improve the gaming industry and its standards. I’m not against the gaming industry – I’m not against anyone at all. I want the industry to thrive but it can’t do that if it is intent on cannibalising its money source and then wondering why its users turn off or don’t engage with anything beyond a very small slice of the gaming ecosystem.
If you’d like to get involved, contact me via this website or say hello on Twitter. My DM’s are always open. Thank you.
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