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24 Tex. Intell. Prop. L.J. 215 (2016)
Does It Have to Be a Copyright Infringement: Live Game Streaming and Copyright

handle is hein.journals/tipj24 and id is 223 raw text is: Does it have to be a Copyright Infringement?: Live Game Streaming and Copyright Shigenori Matsui* I. Introduction.............................................216 II. Live Game Streaming and Online Video Games....................217 A. Online Video Games .................. ................217 B. Live Game Streaming..................................218 III. Live Game Streaming and Copyright............................220 A. Copyright........................ .................220 B. Game Players.......................................222 C. Internet Service Provider or Platform................223 D. Viewers......................... ..................226 HI. Tolerated Infringement.....................................227 A. Almost No One Complains.............................227 B. Comparison with the United States ......................230 IV. Legalizing Tolerated Infringement.............................235 A. Is This an Appropriate Solution?........ ..................235 B. Introduction of the General Fair Use Defense...........238 C. Alternative Solutions..................................239 D. Toward an Alternative Copyright Regime ...................241 V. Conclusion...............................................244 Online video gaming has become very popular in Japan as well as in the United States. One of the reasons for the increasing popularity of online video gaming is the availability of live game streaming. Live game streaming allows game players to upload live gameplay or live stream it online. It created the joy of sharing gameplay with other players and of watching other players playing a game. It is agreed that such activities are illegal copyright infringement in Japan. However, many game players upload live gameplay or live stream it online. Several platforms also actively solicit uploading and live streaming by game players. Apparently, these acts are tolerated because it is likely that they promote the popularity of video gaming and increase the number of players. These activities are tolerated infringement, technically and theoretically illegal copyright infringement, which are tolerated by copyright holders. But do these activities really have to be copyright infiringement? Do they also have to be illegal? This paper argues that the 215