Going Indie: legal considerations when leaving a game studio to form a new one

By / July 8, 2020

With the independence day holiday this month, there has been a lot of discussion of revolt and rebellion. One of the biggest acts of rebellion for an employee at an established game studio is quitting to start a new studio. Before Quitting A soon-to-be indie developer should carefully review employment agreements with their current company. …

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Virtual assets 102: gift card regulations, virtual currency & virtual property

By / June 24, 2020

We’ve recently discussed the elements of virtual currency and virtual property in online games. But what types of regulations might apply to virtual goods and currency? There are some interesting ones that many game developers or publishers may not consider, but they should. In the last post, I discussed money laundering. Today’s post will cover …

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Virtual assets 102: money laundering regulations, virtual currency & virtual property

By / June 18, 2020

We’ve recently discussed the elements of virtual currency and virtual property in online games. But what types of regulations might apply to virtual goods and currency? There are some interesting ones that many game developers or publishers may not consider, but they should. Today’s post will cover one: money laundering regulations.  It was reported in …

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Why are Twitch streamers receiving DMCA takedown requests?

By / August 10, 2026

This past weekend, Twitch streamers have received a large number of DMCA takedown requests for alleged music copyright violations in clips that were created in the past three years. Twitch, currently one of the largest video game streaming sites, is recommending that streamers delete any clips that have received takedown requests.  But why is this …

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Non-Competes & Non-Soliciations: What’s the Difference?

By / May 27, 2020

When building a successful games business, developers often seek protection from unwanted competition by asking employees to sign a non-compete or non-solicitation agreement as a condition of the individual’s employment. What’s the difference, and what’s the likelihood of a court enforcing those agreements? Non-Competes are tough to enforce–which is why they need to be carefully …

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Brandon J. Huffman Featured on FTW with Imad Khan

By / June 19, 2020

FTW with Imad Khan, a podcast featuring journalist Imad Khad with in-depth weekly discussions on the esports industry, recently featured Brandon J. Huffman. Episode 18, available on Spotify, includes Brandon J. Huffman discussing Ubisoft suing Google and Apple over Rainbow Six clones in the app store. George Geddes of Dot Esports and Mikhail Kimentov of …

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Virtual assets 101: what is virtual currency?

By / May 20, 2020

We talked previously about virtual property – property that’s solely virtual in nature that isn’t tangible and has no real-world equivalent. One type of virtual property is virtual currency. So what is virtual currency? In this instance, we’re specifically discussing games, apps, platforms and other virtual economies.  In many games, players can use real-world money …

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Virtual assets 101: what is virtual property?

By / May 20, 2020

Virtual property can mean a lot of things in different situations. How is the purchase of virtual property regulated? What risks do developers and publishers face by including these kinds of transactions? This series will cover virtual property, virtual currency and the regulations behind these assets as this space continues to grow at a rapid …

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What is a DBA (Doing Business As)?

By / April 28, 2020

A DBA (Doing Business As) is a registration for a company conducting business under a different name than the name under which it was formed. DBAs are also sometimes referred to as an “assumed name,” a “fictitious business name,” or a “trade name.”  A majority of states in the US require corporations and LLCs to …

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