Why not qualify the taking away of virtual objects as theft?

Interesting discussion on Terra Nova started by Arno R. Lodder


From the post:

I see no reason for distinguishing between virtual and physical theft. The original owners of the stolen Habbo furniture obtained the items after they bought credits with real money, and do attach value to those items. As long as the original owner looses something of value (such as virtual items) due to the act of another individual who gains possession over the item, it should in my opinion be qualified as theft, no matter whether the locus delicti is in the physical or the virtual world.

Read more...

IBM virtual strike

Read more...

Philip Rosedale like Adolf Hitler

why is this video not available in some countries?

Read more...

The Second Life Story by Cory Ondrejka

| View | Upload your own

and...
a very old (from 2004!) interview with Cory... not Linden any more on IP issues of Second Life

Read more...

Intellectual Property Rights in Second Life

There is a transcript from the in-world event with an intellectual property law attorney available at Slog. Frank Taney represents many Second Life companies and content creators, for example The Electric Sheep Company, Eros (Stroker Serpentine), Nephilaine, Munchflower, Crucial Creations and many more. Four categories of IP that are likely to be at issue in SL were covered: copyrights, trademarks, patents and trade secrets. The sim was packed to capacity so new events of specific topics are planned!


Another transcript from IP event this time with Benjamin Duranske aka Benjamin Noble is available at Business Communicators of Second Life® blog

Read more...

An Avatar's Day in Court

Great article from UCLA’s Journal of Law and Technology by Farnaz Alemi:

An Avatar's Day in Court: A Proposal for Obtaining Relief and Resolving Disputes in Virtual World Games


two related commentary from:

Thomas Malaby

and

Benjamin Duranske

Read more...

Interview with Desmond Shang

The laws that govern residents re: gambling and other such things are largely in place via our societies, not cooked up by our virtual world service provider. Our social interactions on the grid are already largely formed by us, and these are the basis for our rulesets. We can generally tell what is intended to be someone’s virtual bedroom as opposed to the street. We can generally ascertain meaning from how people chat, interact, move, and conduct business. From these social cues, we form distinct online cultures with their own values. Should governments of nations take action? For money laundering, identity theft or other major crimes, yes. But if someone leaves a virtual flaming bag of poo on your virtual porch, no, the government should not be involved.

An interview with Desmond Shang, the owner of The Independent State of Caledon. It is very interesting article about legal issues of Second Life from practical point of view. You can find it on The Seventh Sun's webside.

Two other interesting articles:

A virtual property dispute

Court rules against Linden

Read more...

Virtual Law Conference

Virtual worlds are rapidly being adopted by a mainstream audience, with millions of users worldwide participating on a daily basis. Media, entertainment, and advertising companies are leveraging virtual worlds to generate new revenue streams and further engage audiences.

The growth of virtual worlds and massively multiplayer online (MMO) games has raised legal issues with no clear precedent. Virtual Law Conference provides a detailed examination of the legal issues raised by virtual worlds and offers key insight into where the industry is headed and what the associated legal implications are.

In April 3-4, 2008 in NYC The Section of Science and Technology Law of The American Bar Association organize an event for legal professionals whose companies or clients are currently or may in the near future be influenced by the adoption and use of virtual worlds. For more information visit this webside.

Read more...