Cloud Gaming Demystified: An Introduction to the Legal Implications of Cloud-Based Video Games

95 Pages Posted: 27 Oct 2021

See all articles by Mitchell Longan

Mitchell Longan

Birmingham City University - Faculty of Business, Law and Social Sciences; Queen Mary University of London - Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS)

Gaetano Dimita

Queen Mary University of London, School of Law - Centre for Commercial Law Studies

Johan David Michels

Queen Mary University of London, School of Law - Centre for Commercial Law Studies

Christopher Millard

Queen Mary University of London, School of Law - Centre for Commercial Law Studies

Date Written: October 25, 2021

Abstract

In this paper, we set out to ‘demystify’ cloud-based videogaming and its legal implications. We do this in two stages. First, we offer a descriptive analysis of the videogame sector, including relevant markets and supply chains. We explain the basics of cloud computing technology, traditional videogame technology, and how the two converge in cloud-based videogame ecosystems. We also analyze market structures for both the cloud and video game industries, as well as relevant supply chains, in order to understand how these markets will overlap. Based on these analyses, we make predictions about how the cloud gaming market will be structured, including a breakdown of three separate models for cloud gaming services: the ‘layered’ model of Gaming-as-a-Service (‘GaaS’), the ‘integrated’ model of GaaS, and the ‘consumer infrastructure-as-a-service’ model. Finally, we use these three models to analyze how certain intellectual property rights, contractual rights, and regulatory issues will develop in this novel environment for videogame distribution and access.

Keywords: Cloud Computing, Intellectual Property Law, IP Law, Copyright, Contract Law, Technology Law, Video Game, Cloud Gaming, Video Game Regulation, Copyright Licensing, Interactive Entertainment Law

JEL Classification: K00, K10, K11, K12, K21, K24, K29, K39, O340, L860

Suggested Citation

Longan, Mitchell and Dimita, Gaetano and Michels, Johan David and Millard, Christopher, Cloud Gaming Demystified: An Introduction to the Legal Implications of Cloud-Based Video Games (October 25, 2021). Queen Mary Law Research Paper No. 369/2021, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3949611

Mitchell Longan (Contact Author)

Birmingham City University - Faculty of Business, Law and Social Sciences ( email )

15 Bartholomew Row
Birmingham, B5 5JU
United Kingdom

Queen Mary University of London - Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS) ( email )

Charterhouse Square
London, EC1M 6AX
United Kingdom
07860628463 (Phone)

Gaetano Dimita

Queen Mary University of London, School of Law - Centre for Commercial Law Studies ( email )

67-69 Lincoln's Inn Fields
London, WC2A 3JB
United Kingdom

HOME PAGE: http://https://www.qmul.ac.uk/law/people/academic-staff/items/dimita.html

Johan David Michels

Queen Mary University of London, School of Law - Centre for Commercial Law Studies ( email )

Christopher Millard

Queen Mary University of London, School of Law - Centre for Commercial Law Studies ( email )

67-69 Lincoln's Inn Fields
London, EC2A 3JB
United Kingdom

HOME PAGE: http://www.law.qmul.ac.uk/staff/millard.html

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