What would happen if anyone puts delisted games on steam for free?

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niralamart000 Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:50am

Like say onimusha 3, i-ninja or stuff like there is nothing copyrighted or you can't earn any money from it, don't really know how selling games on steam works so kinda curious what you can or can not put on here. Maybe for preserving they should open up a new section for delisted pc games.

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Originally posted by Azure Fang:

Originally posted by Tolkien Book Fan:
Judging by what I have seen on these forums, "abandonware" is a term used by video game pirates to try and justify their crimes. I have seen them claim that games "meet the legal definition of abandoned" even though there is no legal definition outside their own heads.

There is actually legal precedent for copyright abandonment. It, like most copyright precedent today, falls back to MicroStar v. FormGen Inc. However, that requires the copyright holder to explicitly abandon their rights, in whole or in part, and provides nothing for the "passive abandonment" that "abandonware advocates" rely on. That comes later.

"Abandonware" isn't solely about piracy any more than emulation is. Copyright law, at least in the US, sucks. Prior to 1976, copyright duration was 56 years max. In 1976, this was amended to "life of author + 50" for authored works and 75 years flat for anonymous or for hire work. Then, in 1998, this was extended to "life + 70" for authored works and 120 years after creation or 95 years after publication for hire/anonymous, whichever is shorter, in the so-called "Sonny Bono Act" named after perpetual copyright advocate and former US representative Sonny Bono. Consequently, these extended terms have lead to expansion of the realm known as "orphaned works".

In US copyright terms, an "orphan work" is any work still under copyright whose owner cannot be contacted or even identified. This is where the original intent of the "abandonware movement" is rooted, as early advocates saw it as a way for games to continue to be distributed when their copyrights became impossible to defend, such as when a corporate holder folds without transferring the copyright. Under 17 U.S.C. 108, libraries are able to make and distribute copies of orphaned works; this is how The Internet Archive has survived up until the recent controversy and what more "ethical" abandonware sources rely upon. That's not saying there aren't bad actors that wave away full-blown piracy under the abandonware term, but pointing out that there is some merit and precedent when used correctly.

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cSg|mc-Hotsauce Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:51am

Originally posted by niralamart000:
What would happen if anyone puts delisted games on steam for free?

Like say onimusha 3, i-ninja or stuff like there is nothing copyrighted or you can't earn any money from it, don't really know how selling games on steam works so kinda curious what you can or can not put on here. Maybe for preserving they should open up a new section for delisted pc games.

Even free, it is protected by the copyright.

This would be called piracy and Valve would want nothing to do with allowing this to happen here. Valve could be shut down if they engaged in such stupidity.

Last edited by cSg|mc-Hotsauce; Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:52am

breadman Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:52am

valve would get sued that's what would happen

niralamart000 Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:53am

Originally posted by cSg|mc-Hotsauce:
Originally posted by niralamart000:
What would happen if anyone puts delisted games on steam for free?

Like say onimusha 3, i-ninja or stuff like there is nothing copyrighted or you can't earn any money from it, don't really know how selling games on steam works so kinda curious what you can or can not put on here. Maybe for preserving they should open up a new section for delisted pc games.

Even free, it is protected by the copyright.

This would be called piracy and Valve would want nothing to do with allowing this to happen here. Valve could be shut down if they engaged in such stupidity.

:qr:

alright makes sense.

niralamart000 Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:56am

Originally posted by cSg|mc-Hotsauce:
Originally posted by niralamart000:
What would happen if anyone puts delisted games on steam for free?

Like say onimusha 3, i-ninja or stuff like there is nothing copyrighted or you can't earn any money from it, don't really know how selling games on steam works so kinda curious what you can or can not put on here. Maybe for preserving they should open up a new section for delisted pc games.

Even free, it is protected by the copyright.

This would be called piracy and Valve would want nothing to do with allowing this to happen here. Valve could be shut down if they engaged in such stupidity.

:qr:

wait a minute, isn't there a law that once something has remained in active for too long or they haven't renewed the license would go public domain?

breadman Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:57am

Originally posted by niralamart000:
wait a minute, isn't there a law that once something has remained in active for too long or they haven't renewed the license would go public domain?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries%27_copyright_lengths

have fun waiting

cSg|mc-Hotsauce Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:59am

Originally posted by niralamart000:
Originally posted by cSg|mc-Hotsauce:

Even free, it is protected by the copyright.

This would be called piracy and Valve would want nothing to do with allowing this to happen here. Valve could be shut down if they engaged in such stupidity.

wait a minute, isn't there a law that once something has remained in active for too long or they haven't renewed the license would go public domain?

In the US, the standard is Life + 70 years, or for works for hire, 95 years from publication date or 120 from creation date, whichever is shorter.

Nx Machina Jun 5, 2023 @ 9:01am

Is abandonware legal for download?

The simple answer is no, abandonware is not legal. Even if the creator abandons a copyrighted work, it does not become public property automatically. The copyright on the work exists until the copyright expires, the duration of which varies from country to country. Typically, the copyright on a video game will last at least 70 years, and up to 125 years.

Start_Running Jun 5, 2023 @ 9:38am

Originally posted by Nx Machina:
Is abandonware legal for download?

The simple answer is no, abandonware is not legal. Even if the creator abandons a copyrighted work, it does not become public property automatically. The copyright on the work exists until the copyright expires, the duration of which varies from country to country. Typically, the copyright on a video game will last at least 70 years, and up to 125 years.

There us no sucgh thing as abandonware...there is PD, and copyrighted.

Boblin the Goblin Jun 5, 2023 @ 9:42am

Originally posted by Start_Running:
Originally posted by Nx Machina:
Is abandonware legal for download?

The simple answer is no, abandonware is not legal. Even if the creator abandons a copyrighted work, it does not become public property automatically. The copyright on the work exists until the copyright expires, the duration of which varies from country to country. Typically, the copyright on a video game will last at least 70 years, and up to 125 years.

There us no sucgh thing as abandonware...there is PD, and copyrighted.

Abandonware is just the informal term. Essentially stuff that has been abandoned by the owner but still technically under copyright protection.

Nx Machina Jun 5, 2023 @ 9:52am

Originally posted by Start_Running:
There us no sucgh thing as abandonware...there is PD, and copyrighted.

Abandonware is the term used for games which are no longer purchaseable, and assumed to be adandoned, hence why there are Abandonware sites which ignore the games they host are still copyrighted.

Last edited by Nx Machina; Jun 5, 2023 @ 9:54am

#10

niralamart000 Jun 5, 2023 @ 10:25am

Originally posted by Nx Machina:
Originally posted by Start_Running:
There us no sucgh thing as abandonware...there is PD, and copyrighted.

Abandonware is the term used for games which are no longer purchaseable, and assumed to be adandoned, hence why there are Abandonware sites which ignore the games they host are still copyrighted.

Makes sense

#11

JVC Jun 5, 2023 @ 11:51am

Originally posted by niralamart000:
Originally posted by cSg|mc-Hotsauce:

Even free, it is protected by the copyright.

This would be called piracy and Valve would want nothing to do with allowing this to happen here. Valve could be shut down if they engaged in such stupidity.

:qr:

wait a minute, isn't there a law that once something has remained in active for too long or they haven't renewed the license would go public domain?

No. The general rule in copyright law is that copyright lasts for the duration of the artist's life + an additional 70 years. Or if the creators cannot be identified it lasts for 70 years.

It is much more intrusive than people normally imagine.

And even if the developers of a game went bust long ago, those rights would have been transferred to a creditor during the liquidation of the company after its default.

Last edited by JVC; Jun 5, 2023 @ 11:54am

#12

C²C^Guyver |NZB| Jun 5, 2023 @ 11:58am

It many cases, you cant. Take Cryostasis. That dev studio doesn't even exist anymore. There is no one to bring it back.

#13

MadZec Jun 5, 2023 @ 1:18pm

I still have several games that I bought and now are removed from steam. Like Fall Guys for example I can play it but they can not be bought anymore on steam....

#14

cSg|mc-Hotsauce Jun 5, 2023 @ 1:32pm

Originally posted by MadZec:
I still have several games that I bought and now are removed from steam. Like Fall Guys for example I can play it but they can not be bought anymore on steam....

That's because Epic bought the developer. And the game still counts.

#15

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Date Posted: Jun 5, 2023 @ 8:50am

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