Outdated/abandoned mods

[DexLuther3]

To pass on the ownership of what you created it needs a signed contract, among some other legal steps. Agreeing to a EULA cannot undo your copyright.

 

The EULA I quoted and linked is Bethesda EULA for the Construction Kit found on the Steam Workshop. Since you have to get the CK through Steam, it's the EULA you agree to. The EULA IS a contract and is legally binding in most cases unless unreasonable demands are made, which isn't the case here.

 

By agreeing to the CK's EULA during installation and modifying/adding to their game and distributing said mod you agree that THEY own said modification.

If You distribute or otherwise make available New Materials, You automatically grant to Bethesda Softworks the irrevocable, perpetual, royalty free, sublicensable right and license under all applicable copyrights and intellectual property rights laws

 

It becomes their copyright and IP. The rest only says that they can do what they want with it, but it never states that they are limited to only those actions. They can even grant sub-licenses to companies they are affiliated with now or at any time in the future. They can order than any mod on the nexus be removed and destroyed at any moment, and Nexus would have to legally comply. The author of the mod would have absolutely nothing to say about it because they don't legally own anything.

 

You also waive and agree never to assert against Bethesda Softworks or its affiliates, distributors or licensors any moral rights or similar rights, however designated, that You may have in or to any of the New Materials.

 

Again, Bethesda owns the rights.

 

In the proprietary software industry, an end-user license agreement or software license agreement is the contract between the licensor and purchaser, establishing the purchaser's right to use the software.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/End-user_license_agreement

 

The court further stated that whatever is in the license is binding, no matter how ridiculous. A ban on resale? A ban on lending? A ban on carrying the physical disks outside of the Western hemisphere? Forcing people to physically destroy their old disks? All perfectly legal, according to the court.

http://www.osnews.com/story/23794/US_Court_Upholds_EULAs_Criminalises_Pretty_Much_All_of_Us

 

 

To say someone can't use or update a mod claiming the author has rights when he signed away those rights is rather silly. People can use and mod everything else in TES, but you can't mod the mods especially those which are basically abandonware.

 

If it's about respect, then I'm sure that the author that's been inactive for over a year and doesn't respond to PMs doesn't mind someone else updating/modifying their mod.

You can be sure about it all you want. If there's even 1 single author not agreeing with you on this, a site making up such rules will be in legal trouble quickly.

 

Firstly, if they cared at all, their mods wouldn't be abandoned. If they cared, they'd at least respond to PMs about letting someone else take care of it.

 

Finally, As stated above, you can't sue over something you don't legally own the rights to.

[Rational314]

To pass on the ownership of what you created it needs a signed contract, among some other legal steps. Agreeing to a EULA cannot undo your copyright.

 

The EULA I quoted and linked is Bethesda EULA for the Construction Kit found on the Steam Workshop. Since you have to get the CK through Steam, it's the EULA you agree to. The EULA IS a contract and is legally binding in most cases unless unreasonable demands are made, which isn't the case here.

 

By agreeing to the CK's EULA during installation and modifying/adding to their game and distributing said mod you agree that THEY own said modification.

If You distribute or otherwise make available New Materials, You automatically grant to Bethesda Softworks the irrevocable, perpetual, royalty free, sublicensable right and license under all applicable copyrights and intellectual property rights laws

 

It becomes their copyright and IP. The rest only says that they can do what they want with it, but it never states that they are limited to only those actions. They can even grant sub-licenses to companies they are affiliated with now or at any time in the future. They can order than any mod on the nexus be removed and destroyed at any moment, and Nexus would have to legally comply. The author of the mod would have absolutely nothing to say about it because they don't legally own anything.

 

You also waive and agree never to assert against Bethesda Softworks or its affiliates, distributors or licensors any moral rights or similar rights, however designated, that You may have in or to any of the New Materials.

 

Again, Bethesda owns the rights.

 

In the proprietary software industry, an end-user license agreement or software license agreement is the contract between the licensor and purchaser, establishing the purchaser's right to use the software.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/End-user_license_agreement

 

The court further stated that whatever is in the license is binding, no matter how ridiculous. A ban on resale? A ban on lending? A ban on carrying the physical disks outside of the Western hemisphere? Forcing people to physically destroy their old disks? All perfectly legal, according to the court.

http://www.osnews.com/story/23794/US_Court_Upholds_EULAs_Criminalises_Pretty_Much_All_of_Us

 

 

To say someone can't use or update a mod claiming the author has rights when he signed away those rights is rather silly. People can use and mod everything else in TES, but you can't mod the mods especially those which are basically abandonware.

 

If it's about respect, then I'm sure that the author that's been inactive for over a year and doesn't respond to PMs doesn't mind someone else updating/modifying their mod.

You can be sure about it all you want. If there's even 1 single author not agreeing with you on this, a site making up such rules will be in legal trouble quickly.

 

Firstly, if they cared at all, their mods wouldn't be abandoned. If they cared, they'd at least respond to PMs about letting someone else take care of it.

 

Finally, As stated above, you can't sue over something you don't legally own the rights to.

 

 

Bethesda owns the rights, that's well and good. You aren't Bethesda.

 

Not to mention you agreed to Dark0ne's rules when you joined this site.

 

You've been told no.

 

This is no longer up for debate.

[blove]

To pass on the ownership of what you created it needs a signed contract, among some other legal steps. Agreeing to a EULA cannot undo your copyright.

 

The EULA I quoted and linked is Bethesda EULA for the Construction Kit found on the Steam Workshop. Since you have to get the CK through Steam, it's the EULA you agree to. The EULA IS a contract and is legally binding in most cases unless unreasonable demands are made, which isn't the case here.

 

By agreeing to the CK's EULA during installation and modifying/adding to their game and distributing said mod you agree that THEY own said modification.

If You distribute or otherwise make available New Materials, You automatically grant to Bethesda Softworks the irrevocable, perpetual, royalty free, sublicensable right and license under all applicable copyrights and intellectual property rights laws

 

It becomes their copyright and IP. The rest only says that they can do what they want with it, but it never states that they are limited to only those actions. They can even grant sub-licenses to companies they are affiliated with now or at any time in the future. They can order than any mod on the nexus be removed and destroyed at any moment, and Nexus would have to legally comply. The author of the mod would have absolutely nothing to say about it because they don't legally own anything.

 

You also waive and agree never to assert against Bethesda Softworks or its affiliates, distributors or licensors any moral rights or similar rights, however designated, that You may have in or to any of the New Materials.

 

Again, Bethesda owns the rights.

 

In the proprietary software industry, an end-user license agreement or software license agreement is the contract between the licensor and purchaser, establishing the purchaser's right to use the software.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/End-user_license_agreement

 

The court further stated that whatever is in the license is binding, no matter how ridiculous. A ban on resale? A ban on lending? A ban on carrying the physical disks outside of the Western hemisphere? Forcing people to physically destroy their old disks? All perfectly legal, according to the court.

http://www.osnews.com/story/23794/US_Court_Upholds_EULAs_Criminalises_Pretty_Much_All_of_Us

 

 

To say someone can't use or update a mod claiming the author has rights when he signed away those rights is rather silly. People can use and mod everything else in TES, but you can't mod the mods especially those which are basically abandonware.

 

If it's about respect, then I'm sure that the author that's been inactive for over a year and doesn't respond to PMs doesn't mind someone else updating/modifying their mod.

You can be sure about it all you want. If there's even 1 single author not agreeing with you on this, a site making up such rules will be in legal trouble quickly.

 

Firstly, if they cared at all, their mods wouldn't be abandoned. If they cared, they'd at least respond to PMs about letting someone else take care of it.

 

Finally, As stated above, you can't sue over something you don't legally own the rights to.

 

Where does Bethesda sublicense their granted, not transfered right, to you?

[RGMage2]

The EULA I quoted and linked is Bethesda EULA for the Construction Kit found on the Steam Workshop. Since you have to get the CK through Steam, it's the EULA you agree to. The EULA IS a contract and is legally binding in most cases unless unreasonable demands are made, which isn't the case here.

 

By agreeing to the CK's EULA during installation and modifying/adding to their game and distributing said mod you agree that THEY own said modification.

If You distribute or otherwise make available New Materials, You automatically grant to Bethesda Softworks the irrevocable, perpetual, royalty free, sublicensable right and license under all applicable copyrights and intellectual property rights laws

 

also quoted from the eula

This downloadable editor, titled The Creation Kit™ (the "Editor"), enables the end user ("You") to create new or customized levels or otherwise adjust Your experience in using the copy of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim® software product purchased by You (the "Product"). All uses of the Editor and any materials created using the Editor (the "New Materials") are for Your own personal, non-commercial use solely in connection with the applicable Product, subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement.

 

Seems pretty clear to me. The "New Materials" are materials created using the editer. It is these materials to which Bethesda claims rights. Bethesda does not claim any right to content created outside their Editor.

 

Going back to the opening post in this thread, the concern seems to be a desire to take over armors and weapons mods of authors who may not be here at the moment to defend their rights.

 

In many cases the meshes in these armor and weapon mods were made entirely outside of the editor and do belong to the mod author. Bethesda could claim rights over the esp that puts this content into the game, but could not claim any rights to the content itself.

 

To say someone can't use or update a mod claiming the author has rights when he signed away those rights is rather silly. People can use and mod everything else in TES, but you can't mod the mods especially those which are basically abandonware.

 

Nowhere in the eula does Bethesda grant the right to mod mods. Infact, this line from the eula "You shall not create any New Materials that infringe upon the rights of others," could be interpreted as forbidding modding of mods without permission of the original modder who holds rights over their original work.

 

 

Firstly, if they cared at all, their mods wouldn't be abandoned. If they cared, they'd at least respond to PMs about letting someone else take care of it.

A modder being presently inactive does not mean they have abandoned their mods. Modders come and go and come back again. Skyrim is still relatively new and will be modded for years to come. And if a modder clearly states in their readme their desire to restrict modding of their mod or redistribution, then why should they need to respond to a PM? How many times do they need to say it?

[starfire42]

How about sending modders a reminder email after a certain period of inactivity, saying something to the effect of "Looks like you're not updating xyz mod any more. Why not let other modders take it over for you? Here's how ..."? It's easy to lose track of stuff you've submitted, especially if you've been too busy to work on them for a while. It's quite a bit harder to lose track of an entire email address, in which case a reminder would be the best outcome for everybody.