One of 2020's absolute surprise break-out hits was actually released in 2018: Innersloth's "Among Us"; a video game take on "The Thing" that sees players try to suss out (and eliminate) "imposters" among their spaceship crew.
But why did Among Us get so popular all of a sudden? The answer appears to lie in streamers and streaming platforms (like Twitch). But given the game licenses offered for Among Us by places like Steam and itch.io, that may in and of itself be a bit of a problem.
Is this whole set up copyright infringement?
There are lawyers among us...in Virtual Legality.
CHECK OUT THE VIDEO AT: https://youtu.be/sNRk_BV5rFg
Discussed in this episode:
Among Us Website http://www.innersloth.com/gameAmongUs.php
"Among Us' Improbable Rise To The Top Of Twitch" Kotaku - September 8, 2020 - Nathan Grayson https://kotaku.com/among-us-improbable-rise-to-the-top-of-twitch-1844986025
Among Us Twitch Stats Sully Gnome Website https://sullygnome.com/game/among_Us/365/summary
"Streaming, Copyright Infringement, and Fair Use (Virtual Legality #177)" YouTube Video - February 19, 2020 - Hoeg Law https://youtu.be/vTjsKrC3tOE
"Exclusive rights in copyrighted works" 17 USC 106 https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/106
Among Us itch.io Page https://innersloth.itch.io/among-us
Among Us Steam Page https://store.steampowered.com/app/945360/Among_Us/
itch.io Terms of Service Updated June 8, 2018 https://itch.io/docs/legal/terms#4-publisher-content
Steam Subscriber Agreement Updated August 28, 2020 https://store.steampowered.com/subscriber_agreement/
Final Fantasy VII Steam Page https://store.steampowered.com/app/39140/FINAL_FANTASY_VII/
Final Fantasy VII Eula https://store.steampowered.com/eula/39140_eula
Riot Games Terms of Service Updated January 15, 2020 https://www.riotgames.com/en/terms-of-service
Riot Games "Legal Jibber Jabber" Updated August 2018 https://www.riotgames.com/en/legal
Twitch Terms of Service Updated September 30, 2020 https://www.twitch.tv/p/legal/terms-of-service/
"Virtual Legality" is a continuing series discussing the law, video games, software, and everything digital, hosted by Richard Hoeg, of the Hoeg Law Business Law Firm (Hoeg Law).
CHECK OUT THE REST OF VIRTUAL LEGALITY HERE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1zDCgJzZUy9YAU61GoW-00K0TJOGnPCo
DISCUSSION IS PROVIDED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS LEGAL ADVICE. INDIVIDUALS INTERESTED IN THE LEGAL TOPICS DISCUSSED IN THIS VIDEO SHOULD CONSULT WITH THEIR OWN COUNSEL.
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