commercial use of SFM: prices, rules, etc.

[Aleq]

Hi

I am very interested in learning SFM thoroughly and using it to create a movie series. I would ofcourse love to make a living of it?

It says in FAQ that non-commercial use of SFM is free, but what if I want a license? Where are the rules and the prices?

And what about use of custom content? If I only use custom content (backgrounds, characters, etc) that I create myself, do I still have to pay Valve something? And how much?

Let's say that I want to make 10 episodes, 20 mins each. For that I want to use my own content that I create from scratch in 3D, maybe even importing something that already has been made and editing it to my own liking

Should I be worried about any legislative/jurisdictional issues?



I know that these are very broad questions - there seems to be lots of grey area on the subject, but now I asked them and later I can rephrase them to a bit more specific questions.

Thanks in advance

[Pte Jack]

This is the FAQ from the Sourcefilmmaker website...

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Q. Can I make money with this tool?

Yes, but not if you’re using Valve’s assets in your movie. The tool is free for non-commercial use. You can use Valve’s game assets (things like characters, props, particles, textures, and sounds) to create movies and images to share with the game community, as long as what you create is free. We’re not giving you a license to commercialize our assets. However, if you do not include any of Valve’s assets in the movies and images that you make, then there are no restrictions on what you do with your content and you can make money with it.

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So my take on this is

You can use it to advertise, make money or whatever... AS LONG AS YOU ARE USING YOUR OWN CONTENT. You can not use the TF Characters or anything from the TF world. You can not use ANYONE else's content unless you hold a license to it.

You would have to contact Steam/Valve directly for information on using copywritten material or how to obtain the license to use it.

Mind you, I believe monetizing on you-tube may be possible, but I try to keep everything I do, commerical free and I don't monetize my channel.

[Bop]

All assets and original IPs of Valve are copyrighted. Thus, you may not use them. The software itself is also copyrighted by Valve but the digital content created with it will belong to the producer(s). Works the same way with other production software, such as Autodesk Maya or Cinema 4D.

[raptornx01]

You are allowed to monetize videos using any of valves assets. (and ubisoft and EA as well. though EA has said that the assets can be used and monetized, they reserve the right to judge on a per content basis (basically, if they find what you are using it for is something they disapprove of (i would assume that means porn, hate speech, etc), they can remove it))

what none of them will allow is commercial use. IE making a commercial selling some product with their characters, etc)

[Aleq]

Thanks for all of your answers :)

IP <-- what does it stand for in this context?

[6000 ANGRY BEES]

Originally posted by Aleque:

Thanks for all of your answers :)

IP <-- what does it stand for in this context?

Intellectual Property. For example, Half-Life and Team Fortress are two of Valve's IPs.

[Aleq]

ah, thanks

[Paintbrush Poltergeist]

I think you can use it to make YouTube videos and stuff and get money from the ads, but I don't think you can use it to advertise. So like, you couldn't have Spy say something like "*Insert product here* is good" and then air it on TV.

[Aleq]

Does anyone know how Fuse Character Creator come into this? Is the program designed to make unique models that you can use in your own commercial work? And how flexible is Fuse regarding creation of characters?

[Pte Jack]

This is the information from the FUSE Hub Discussion Group FAQ on FUSE...

Is the content I create royalty-free?
The content you create using Mixamo content in Fuse is completely royalty-free for commercial and non-commercial use. We do ask that the content is embedded in whatever project you are working on. You should not directly resell or redistribute the assets. This is to protect both ourselves, and in the future when we eventually open user imports (and user sharing/Steam Workshop/whatever form that may take), other contributing artists. The exception is Team Fortress 2 content which can only be used for non-commercial Fan Art. For more information regarding Valve Intellectual Property, please see their Subscriber Agreement

If you use the TF Characters available in FUSE (Sniper, Scout and Spy currently), they are subject to the same rules as laid out by Valve. (Short Answer No You Can't if TF2 Character is used)

However If you use the other templates to create a character of your own, then it is Royalty Free!!

[raptornx01]

but you can't share assets with others? that sucks.

[Pte Jack]

"Should Not" and "Ask" are not an infringement on a license if you do. Poor wording in a statement like this, but Royality Free is more or less free reign. One would have to take it up with a lawyer with the actual EUA for a true interpretation if you're planning to make money I think.

[Aleq]

This one is confusing imo: "We do ask that the content is embedded in whatever project you are working on."

"One would have to take it up with a lawyer with the actual EUA for a true interpretation if you're planning to make money I think." --> Can you please rephrase it? I found several abbreviations for EUA.

Here is an example of what my ambitions are. I want to create a series where I own all of the concept design of characters and I want to be able to make a living of it. Not necessarily sell the physical discs with the series on, but perhaps with some form of crowdfunding and being able selling merchandise and still keep all of the characters without getting into any court/law-mess.

Not being sure how far I can go, is really demotivating for me.

[Pte Jack]

EUA - End User Agreement

[Pte Jack]

And, You might want to add your desire as a discussion in the FUSE discussion group. The Developers are extreemly good at responding to these type of questions.

[Aleq]

Alright, thanks. I will do that :)

In the end - do you think Fuse is the best and the most user-friendly solution for creating custom characters for SFM?