Second Life's New Term of Service Grants General License to Machinima and Screenshot Creators; EFF Lawyer Approves (No Fooling!)

Above: the Machinima/Screenshot license in Second Life's new Terms of Service

When Linden Lab launched its new user experience yesterday, the company also added a less-noticed revision to Second Life's Terms of Service that's equally important -- perhaps much more so. Clause 7.4 gives the company and Second Life users a general license to create machinima and take screenshots of publicly accessible content in-world. Now if content creators want to prohibit machinima or screenshots made of their work, they'll have to put it in restricted, private areas of Second Life -- or designate their licensing terms in a land covenant. Much more on this policy on this Linden wiki page.

Why is this important? Because up to now, Second Life's IP rights policy has left machinima and screenshot makers in a legally tenuous state. Since SL users retain the underlying intellectual property rights to their SL creations, machinimators and photographers are technically obligated to get the permission from every single content creator whose work is visible in their screenshots and videos. (That's why the cover of my HarperCollins book on Second Life has no screenshot of Second Life itself on it -- the publishers' lawyers worried that rights clearance would be a nightmare.) Because of this, EFF Senior Staff Attorney Fred von Lohmann once observed that Second Life copyright issues are "in some ways worse" than the real world, with notable "gray interesting mysteries" around the law.

With this new Terms of Service, however, some of these mysteries have been addressed. I checked with the noted EFF attorney to get his read on the revised TOS.

"While this probably will not resolve every question for every machinima creator," Fred von Lohmann told me, "it goes a long way toward clarifying many of the typical issues that machinima makers struggle with. Having clear rules and place to go for answers (such as the virtual land deed) is a welcome development. Now that Second Life joins Microsoft and Blizzard in having a machinima license, it's time for the rest of the gaming world to step up and do the same." For filmmakers and photographers, this essentially turns Second Life into a vast studio of locations, sets, props, effects, and far more. If we see an explosion of professionally made movies and other visual artwork generated in Second Life, it'll largely be a credit to this powerful new passage.

Fred photo from EFF. Hat tip: Jessica Holyoke..

Comments

[Ann Otoole]

I put authorizations for snapshots and machinima in my locations. Not that anybody cares. And given the public photo garden has but one purpose it is sort of obvious lmao.

[cube inada]

This requires a closer look.

FREE content for all. Lousy policy and though Mr. Lawyer seems to like it($-webfame for him). Those who pay his bills- the content owner/creators wont once they realize the extent to which their IP has been hijacked by a..um service provider to encourage others peoples IP to be devalued for the short term profits of the ISP?. This appears a clear PUBLISHING rights give away. DCMA safe harbor?

"Greenies IN SILLYCO" The PORNO Movie. anyone?. the DVD? who will charge 19.95 USD for a 30 minute Greenies Porno video download in the weeks to come.

And as for the current ILL CLANs work...The Tiny Nation, or LOCO POCO FAVES of SL...free pickins...?!

If you can see "it"-, you can screen record it for profit without the "its" creators permission?.. What the hell does the land owner have to do with an items creators rights?

If a customer of mine hangs MY Commercial WORK in a gallery, the gallery NOW CONTROLS the works IP rights? what "world" is this? SL..right

No ethics. EFF should be ashamed to let this guy speak for them . Value removed to seduce children who want everthing for free and now without any realization of histories results of such pratices.

And another "virtual worlds" web2.0 platform announces its death today...oh make that two;)

I would suggest all content creators remove all CC ties, and create a clear NON COMMERCIAL usage license for all content you provide for 3rd parties to use in SL. Tie it to each object you allow to be visualized on the grid, no matter what rights this TOS seems to give any who visit the LL service.

Its Time to place a "copyright" or TM symbol on every object offered for license. Just like in the REAL WORLD of product/services.

[cube inada]

Followup- from new policies-

what does "3d content that WE created" actually mean?

linden trees? linden terrain? a content creators original scooter design?
prims connected and altered by code? textures used to represent spoked wheels?

i have read a good number of posts including the one above suggesting SL isa free for all movie studio now-- well maybe not-- well mr lawyer?;) anyhow... there will be many other companies with long histories in the 3d visual biz- that will i assume take up issue with this new policy and tos conditional change. RISK being theirs i assume..;) Profits and IPO for quick user increase being LL;s;)

BTW- i was under the impression that YOU CANT make movies from MS or blizzard IP beyond for self personal usage.... smart and sustainable for an industry and a culture.

"c) Other Intellectual Property Licenses.
It’s important to remember that the Licenses are only copyright licenses for the 3D content we created that is displayed in-world. They do not include any permission to use the trademarks of Linden Lab or Residents, and they do not give any copyright permission to use music or sound recordings that may be performed in-world. They also do not give any copyright permission to use any website or video content that may be streamed from outside the Second Life virtual world environment.

If the content that you capture is subject to any trademark, service mark, trade dress, publicity rights, or other intellectual property or proprietary rights, you must obtain the necessary licenses and permissions to use the content, and you use it at your own risk.

For general information on intellectual property, please see our Intellectual Property Policy. If you seek legal advice about a specific situation, we suggest contacting a lawyer. Linden Lab cannot provide you with legal advice.

"

[Lalo Telling]

@cube:
(r) “We” means Linden Lab and the Residents of Second Life who are granting you the Licenses. [from the Policy's definitions]

Also, you seem to be confusing a 2D screenshot of the momentarily visible surface of a digital 3D object with copying that object in toto. Meanwhile, you have lost none of the control of IP rights over work you create -- tenuous as that might be -- that you had in the previous ToS. What this policy does, simply, is codify "conventional wisdom" with regard to the scenery in photographs and videos recorded by Residents.

Beyond that, however, it is stunningly easy to see that the opt-out "denial clause" of the new policy is unenforceable. A land-owner who has specifically denied permission (by way of the Land Covenant) has no -- repeat, NO -- capacity to determine if another avatar on or near his/her land has taken a snapshot of any part of it, in order to file an Abuse Report against that avatar... *unless* that property owner combs through every one of the thousands of repositories on the Web where such an image might be published... *if* it is published at all.

I discuss this, and the trademark issue you subsequently raised, at somewhat more length in my blog: http://lalotelling.blogspot.com/2010/04/all-fooles-day-early.html

[cube inada]

its not about rights LOST. it appears to be about RIGHTS gained....
by any logged in user. to with NO RESTRICTIONS, use all IP on the grid of all "resident"
creators.

LAND ownership has nothing to do with the IP of the "Scooter" design reZZed on it. this is one of the problems.

machinam is a product, so are any images...who OWNS the rights to usage and resell control is the issue.

I gave no such rights to anyone to commercialize on my works or to have any usage of them beyond the SL grid when i first unloaded them for inclusion in the marketed SL virtual goods market, or that of the SLX.

Linden should offer only MINIMAL USAGE as blizzard and MS do. they VALUE the content they distribute and profit due to.

this new TOS and Policy doc dosent exactly suggest that.;)

I suggest it will be cleared up one day.

[Ann Otoole]

BTW, as could be easily argued in court and won, "Machinima" is a series of "Snapshots".

I hear texture artists and merchants are upset over LL removing their licenses and giving people permission to take and sell screenshots of textures without a license. LL appears to have issues in it's legal expertise domain.

[ColeMarie Soleil]

Coming soon:
ColeMarie videos with 2 minutes of credits at the end every time...

Oh joy...

*rolls eyes*

[Lalo Telling]

@cube: You're still missing the point. Taking a screenshot of a "scooter design" (or anything else) is not the same thing as *building* a copy of the scooter using that screenshot as a reference. You retain the right to file a DMCA against someone who does the latter. All Residents *always* had the the right to do the former.

@Ann: Even though you split hairs to no purpose regarding each frame of a machinima technically being a screenshot, you may have a point about people taking snaps of textures. I've already found one texture seller who has added watermarks to the displays of her products, which is probably the best fix.

On the other hand... Viewer 2.0 is widely reported as making 'content creation' more difficult, and the target of LL's promotion seems to be toward people who don't care about creating their own things anyway -- which is what textures are for. Long run: I can't see much, if any, impact on their sales.

[cube inada]

no lalo
YOURE missing the point.
2d images and motion images have commercial VALUE and are constructed of others IP within SL .The contents license should not be reassigned by an ISP for all ITS customers to REVALUE or RESELL WITHOUT the Copryright owners permission and or renumeration.
This is suggested and endorsed within the new TOS. Note they Comment on video and music IP that is "streamed into" the grid. I see no reason to require such broad rights to the USAGE OF the 2d and 3d assets brought into the grid by their owners.

Its there to claim commercial opportunities for LL and as a "free content" marketing offer designed to increase traffic for a short term Linden centric only benefit.

This TOS is not the same as BLizzards or MS machinima/screencaps guidelines.

This new machinima/screenshot TOS is destructive to the value of creative content. Its "hidden" in the childish "ideology" that web content is free for all once released.

Therefore its only there for companies like Sl and Google to aggragate, repackage, relicense, and revalue for their limited concerns.

[Lalo Telling]

Further consideration: "Creative Common Sense" http://bit.ly/b2EtGZ

[cube inada]

a really totally "full of crap" TM post lalo.
you really have no clue, do you?

the only fear i have is for your type, as you learn that nothing is ever "really" free.

you have become the perfect robot. enjoy your second life as a "free" servant.

[Winter Seale]

I'm sorry you can't see all of the opportunities opened up by this sort of thing cube, but in my opinion the world you want is one that denies far more creativity then it creates. I mean, how, exactly, is this different then the real world? I can take a picture of a street scene and sell it and there's nothing you can do about it, even if your products are in it. You can prohibit photographs on your own property, just like in SL, and, just like in SL, if someone takes a picture anyway, you'll only find out about it if they are successful enough that you notice them out of the millions of pictures online.

But then, you've only really lost money from licensing rights if they're actually successful, so I don't see the problem...

[cube inada]

http://secondthoughts.typepad.com/second_thoughts/2010/04/electronic-freedom-foundations-double-standards.html

First, UNDERSTAND the difference between the real world and a commercial enterprise like LLs SL, or a IP expressed in flim like Avatar-- ( a lesson LL marketing should learn as well)

Second. your real world analogy is UNTRUE and not educated to the laws of the US and state of CA regarding IP law.

And While you endorse a world were one person starving to death is a "good thing" because you can see million who arent by changing the channel.... I dont.

Undertand FAIR USE LAW. The new TOS is not FAIR about USAGE. Its a carte blanche endoursement for someone to feed themselves off the unpaid for rice you grew.

If you choose to be a slave, you choose it. I refuse.

Yes, Africans were offered SO MUCH opportunity when "asked" to come to the new world 3 centuries ago. So much that in fact, One of them (mixed ansestory)is now President. See how good the deal was for them when "signing" that TOS.;)

Hey Winter andf LALO, one day if you eat your vegetables, you too could be President of Second Life. Or maybe Linden Labs. But that might be too real for "players" like you.

Hamlet and EFF have a reason, money and power to argue for such unethical acts. What youre agenda Winter and Lalo...

"Avatars just want to have cheap fun?"

If so, youll get it, served up from Game Gods and masters who one day youll find- arent playing games.

c3

[cube inada]

BTW-

it does appear that EFF attorney von Lohman is not the one lending "approval" to the new policies...Hamelt is, while von lohmans statements..assumed by "quotation marks" are those suggesting that the new TOS is to be commended for attemping a position...something that many know that Blizzard and MS and others took years to offer while fan media/some commerciaized took place based upon their IP.

am i correct in this reading?

[Mo Eriksen]

This is indeed great news. For once a courageous and definite decision will end useless copyright dispute that would only make a good thing worse for all in the end. Thanks Linden! This time you were doing well!

[Moonflowerdragon Oh]

I hope I didn't miss this point in someone else's comment.

Hamlet/Wagner I think you might have inadvertently given a wrong impression to your readers, particularly in relation to machinima permission, by inaccurately combining two pairs of aspects of the policy. Permission/protection & snapshots/machinima.

In particular, as the permissions granted in Terms of Service Clause 7.4 are "subject to restrictions and requirements" in the Snapshot and Machinima Policy careful readers will note at Licence conditions 2(a)2. of that policy that machinima creators need to obtain permission if the land covenant does NOT expressly ALLOW machinima.

Thus, contrary to your statement, (and I hope my comment does not constitute a forbidden "translation" any more than yours does) it seems content creators interested in protecting their work will not "have to" put their creations in restricted, private areas of Second Life or designate their licensing terms in a land covenant (though that might be advisable) - although such protective creators might be wise to ensure that covenants of the land containing their work does not expressly allow machinima.