Research On The Copyright Issues Of The Overall Picture Of Online Games

In recent years,In recent years,thanks to the renewal and iteration of Internet information technology,the development of my country’s online game industry can be described as rapid,and its industrial scale and economic benefits have continued to grow.However,at the same time,there are frequent copyright infringement disputes surrounding online games,including infringements against the overall picture of online games.However,due to the absence of current legislation and academic theories,the overall picture of online games in practice cannot be obtained in my country.The effective protection of copyright law and the different protection paths of courts for specific infringement cases,and even the phenomenon of different judgments in the same case,have challenged the current copyright law theory and legal system in my country.So,is the overall picture of the online game presented through the player’s operation copyrightable? What is the ownership status of the overall picture? Can the live broadcast of the overall screen of the online game be considered as fair use?These are all issues that copyright law should respond to in a timely manner.This article selects two cases of copyright infringement of the overall picture of popular online games with high attention and strong representativeness in judicial practice in recent years-the "Netease v.Huaduo case" and the "Zhuangyou v.Shuoxing case" in my country in November 2020.On the 11 th,the latest amendment passed the "Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China"(hereinafter referred to as the new "Copyright Law")in the context of legislation,from the perspective of the characteristics of the overall picture of the online game itself and its formation process,an analysis of related issues :In addition to the introduction part and the conclusion part,the body content is divided into five parts:The first part of the content is: Taking two cases of infringement of the copyright of the overall picture of online games-"Netease v.Huaduo case" and "Zhuangyou v.Shuoxing case" as the starting point,the case and the court’s decision were carried out.Carefully sort out the focus of relevant copyright disputes in the case: Does the overall screen of the online game involved constitute a work and what kind of work does it constitute? What is the ownership status of the copyright of the overall picture of the online game involved? Can the live broadcast of the overall picture of the game involved constitute fair use? At the same time,the status quo of disputes in the academic and practical circles on these issues will be sorted out.The second part is: analysis of the copyrightability of the overall picture of the online game involved.First of all,the overall screen of the online game is a series of dynamic continuous screens presented on the screen of the terminal device through the operation of the game player,which is different from the game user interface,the general computer software interface,and the live screen of the online game.Secondly,the new "Copyright Law" officially adjusted the elements of a work from the law to: it belongs to the intellectual achievements in the fields of literature,art and science;it is original;it can be expressed in a certain form.Based on this,the overall screen of the online game is an expression of originality and belongs to a work under the copyright law.Thirdly,the overall screen of online games has the characteristics of "elemental","scriptual",and "creative",which are in line with the specific types of works stipulated in the current "Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China"(hereinafter referred to as the current "Copyright Law").If the compatibility of works created with methods similar to filmmaking(hereinafter referred to as quasi-electric works)is not high,the type of audio-visual works stipulated in the new "Copyright Law" is an expression with higher technological neutrality and inclusiveness,It is necessary to include the overall picture of online games into the protection category of audiovisual works.The third part is the analysis of the ownership of the copyright of the overall picture of the online game.First of all,there are two viewpoints in academia that players enjoy the copyright of the overall screen and game developers enjoy the copyright of the overall screen.Secondly,there are still various dilemmas in the judgment of the overall picture right subject,such as the lack of originality standards of works.Finally,when judging the right subject,the size of the creative space preset by the game should be distinguished.When the preset creative space of the game is small,the game maker should become the copyright subject of the overall picture of the game;and when the preset creative space of the game is larger At the time,the player can have the rights to the overall picture as a deductive author.The fourth part of the content is: discussing the nature of the live broadcast using the overall screen of the online game.First of all,Article 24 of the new "Copyright Law" stipulates a new situation for fair use-"other situations stipulated by laws and administrative regulations".This modification is to adopt an open fair use judgment rule to measure the behavior of live broadcast of the overall picture of the online game involved.Nature provides legislative possibilities.Secondly,there is no compatibility between the live-broadcasting behavior of the overall screen of the online game involved in the case and the reasonable use conditions stipulated in the current "Copyright Law",such as "appropriate citation".Thirdly,based on the analysis of the judgment documents on the "China Judgment Document Network" that involve the application of the theory of "conversionary use",it can be learned that my country’s judicial organs are gradually becoming more flexible and open in the application of open fair use clauses.Finally,the live broadcast behavior of the overall picture involved in the case is transformative in terms of function and content.The fifth part of the content is: through the discussion of three related disputes,the corresponding suggestions for improving the copyright protection of the overall picture of online games are put forward.First of all,in the legislative protection of the overall picture,the connotation of the types of audiovisual works and the originality standards of the works should be further clarified,and the overall picture of the online game should be formally included in the protection category of the audiovisual works.Secondly,with regard to the judicial protection of the overall picture,it should be noted that the copyright protection of the overall picture is not based on the type of the work it constitutes.In practice,the judgment of the reasonable use of the overall picture live broadcast behavior needs to distinguish between competitive games and plot games.The type of case is subject to discretion.