General

eSports and Copyright between choreographies and UGC

By Tommaso Fia / 21 March 2019 / Consumers, Copyright, Gaming and Betting, General, Intellectual Property, IP, Sport

There are a number of copyright issues related to the choreography of an eSports game. In these days the first (and most important) regards the protection of choreographic elements (i.e. a dance) which could appear in videogames. In Europe and in the USA, a choreographic work is protected by copyright. This is why an extended series of dances moves that is original to its creator can be protected by copyright. The above explains the law suits recently filed in the USA at the end of 2018 by several individuals in connection with famous Fortnite videogame.

If you are not familiar with Fortnite, players can buy (or earn) emotes, short avatar animations who can replicate generic acrobatic moves and dances. The Fortnite Loser Dance (so called L Dance) become famous thanks to the French soccer player Griezmann, who used this theme after scoring in the last World Cup 2018 final against Croatia.

eSports between Italian prize promotion and gambling rules

By Giulio Coraggio / 27 February 2019 / General

eSports tournaments can be subject to stringent restrictions under Italian prize promotion and gambling rules if adequate solutions are not adopted.

The eSports market is rapidly growing and the data below show a massive boost from 2012 up to now in 2019 $ 130 million to $ 1,187 million, with a further fast increase in the coming years.

Blockchain based smart contracts equal to written document in Italy

By Giulio Coraggio / 26 February 2019 / General

The growth of usage of blockchain based smart contracts in Italy might be boosted by a new law which deemed them equal to written documents in some cases.

Use of excerpts of videogames and eSports competitions without the right holder’s consent: is it fair use (or the Princess is in another castle)?

By Elena Varese / 21 February 2019 / Copyright, General, Intellectual Property, IP, Media & TLC

Publications sharing tips on how to complete videogames and maximise bonuses might increase with the expansion of the eSport competitions. The same applies to platforms streaming videogames alone or together with eSport actions of the various players. Yet are these activities possible without the right holders’ consent?

Under Italian law, videogames are protected as a whole as copyright works like movies, whilst their frames could be protected as simple photographies (with protection lasting 20 years from their publication). Following a different opinion, videogame frames could be excluded from protection, as they may considered similar to documents, as provided by Art. 87, last sentence of the Italian Copyright Law (ICL).

Milan Fashion Week and Fashion Law Trends: Use and protection of fashion archives

By Elena Varese / 19 February 2019 / Advertising, Copyright, Fashion, General, Intellectual Property, IP, Trademarks

The Milan Fashion Week has just started and from today we are glad to host some highlights on the major fashion law trends of this season.

Heritage is one of the major assets a fashion company holds and the ultimate tendency of this Fashion Week is to revamp old creations from the maison’s archives.

Firstly, it should be assessed whether the fashion company can use its own archives. This seems to be a plain question, however, in practice, it could happen that, despite being the owner of the physical copies of sketches and preparatory works of certain garments or motifs, the company does not hold the IP rights over such creations of the past.

eSports: a new frontier for the advertising law and image rights?

By Laura Gastaldi / 14 February 2019 / Advertising, General, IP, Sport

eSports competitions have recently become a trend topic among sports and gaming lovers.

An ever-growing number of major sports leagues and pro young players are getting involved in this global competitive industry, together with an increasing turnover. By 2020, eSports is predicted to become a billion-dollar industry.

This explosive growth of digital sports championships captured the attention of many leading companies – operating in various lines of business – which are gradually approaching this new phenomenon by investing into eSports in the hope of targeting its relevant audience.

New programming and investment obligations for VOD and linear audio-visual media service providers!

By Laura Borelli / 6 February 2019 / General, Intellectual Property, IP, Media & TLC, Telecoms, Video

On 25 January 2019, the Italian Communications Authority (Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni, hereinafter “AGCOM“) published the Resolution 595/18/CONS setting out the new Regulation on programming and investment obligations in favour of European works and works by independent producers (as amended by AGCOM Resolution 24/19/CONS) (hereinafter, “New Regulation“).

The New Regulation – which replaces the previous resolutions concerning the programming and investment quotas, including Resolution 66/09/CONS – was adopted on the basis of the Legislative Decree no. 204/2017, which amended the Consolidated Act on audio-visual media services and empowered AGCOM to set detailed rules applicable to linear and non-linear audio-visual media services providers, as well as to pay-per-view media services providers.

Italian DLA Piper Intellectual Property & Technology Predictions for 2019

By Giulio Coraggio / 1 February 2019 / General

DLA Piper’s Italian Intellectual Property & Technology department has published their Legal Predictions for 2019. These take a look back at what happened during 2018 and illustrate the key changes that are expected in 2019.

As you have seen through the blog posts published during the previous weeks on this blog, the publication covers 14 different topics, from more traditional areas of law such as trademarks, copyright, trade secrets and patents to innovative topics such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, FinTech and eSports, from life sciences to media, fashion, e-cigarettes and gambling, to privacy and cyber security, which were among the main challenges of 2018 and will continue to be so in 2019.

Join our DLA Piper Gambling event right before ICE Gaming 2019

By Giulio Coraggio / 28 January 2019 / General

DLA Piper Gambling event will take place on the 4th of February 2019 with experts from different jurisdictions and the Spanish gambling authority.

After the 2017 and 2018 editions, here is the 2019 edition of DLA Piper gambling event on the 4th of February 2019, right before the beginning of the ICE Gaming event.

Gambling regulatory regimes are in a constant state of change. New markets are opening up, new licenses are available and new obligations are being imposed on operators and suppliers. At the same time, newly introduced regulations represent considerable compliance obligations for the gambling market and the identification of the right balance between ensuring compliance and preserving business needs is getting exponentially complicated.

Top 3 predictions for Media in 2019!

By Laura Borelli / 24 January 2019 / General

2018 has been a crucial year for the audio-visual media sector since it saw the revision of EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) which has finally put traditional broadcasters and their video-on-demand competitors on the same playing field in terms of the regulatory environment. Still, the ongoing transformation of the media landscape shows no sign of backing off, thanks also to the mushrooming partnerships raising among Over The Top video providers and traditional mobile network operators and the adoption of technologies such as augmented reality and artificial. So, what’s next with media?

Top 3 predictions on cybersecurity for 2019

By Giulio Coraggio / 23 January 2019 / General

Cybersecurity represents a major risk for companies that will need to change their approach on security in 2019, also in relation to M&A transactions, and corrective actions might include a cyber risk insurance coverage according to our predictions.

According to a report published by Accenture, the average cost of cybercrime per organization in 2017 increased to $ 11.7 million, with countries like the US reaching $ 21.22 million. Such a cost was also considerable in Italy where it reached $ 6.73 million.

Top 3 predictions for life sciences in 2019

By Marco de Morpurgo / 22 January 2019 / Artificial Intelligence, General, Life Science

The Life Sciences industry operates in one of the fastest and most innovation-driven environments. 2018 has witnessed significant developments in technology and therapeutic practices. A number of new cell and gene therapies – including the first two CAR-T therapies for cancer – received EU approval, and both disruptive and ‘new mainstream’ technologies (such as AI) made significant steps forward into the sector.

The pharmaceutical and medical device sectors are also among the most heavily regulated. Life Sciences companies face significant challenges in managing regulatory compliance in an environment where regulation constantly evolves. Moreover, the sector moves so fast that it is hard for regulation to keep up with the pace of technological development.

Top 3 blockchain predictions for 2019

By Tommaso Ricci / 21 January 2019 / Fintech, General

Last year was a major tipping point for blockchain, with a powerful kickstart followed by some turbulence and a cautious settlement in the freezing winter.