The Spanish Association of Videogames has alerted consumers on the occasion of the Christmas campaign.
The fight against piracy it is possibly one of the oldest battles in the video game industry. It seems that when it comes to hacking games that have just hit the market, the problem is usually easily identified, however, when it comes to retro games, everything becomes more confusing for some consumers.
There are many devices with emulators on the marketIn recent years, Nintendo has been one of the companies that has been the most belligerent on this issue, destroying ROM websites and even forcing the destruction of files stored outside of them. With a growing interest in retro video games and the fashion for reissues of classic game consoles, such as Nintendo Classic Mini: NES or the recent Game and Watch from The Legend of Zelda, many manufacturers have put on the market cheap retro and arcade consoles with emulators ready to download ROMs or even with pre-installed games.
Given the possibility that these products seem like an ideal gift for this Christmas, the Spanish Association of Videogames (AEVI) has issued a statement warning about the use of illegal copies of video games in emulators. “The video game industry calls on the importance of respecting copyright and favoring the development of the legal offer of content in Spain avoiding the rights violations of intellectual property like, for example, the use of emulation devices to play with illicit copies of video games “.
It has been the CEO of AEVI, José María Moreno, who has warned about the consequences of the use of these devices: “The circumvention of the technological protection measures established on any device, including video game consoles, or in a video game to proceed to emulation it is a civil and even criminal offense”.
AEVI recalls the importance of respecting copyrightAEVI has also talked about video games that have ceased to be marketed, known as’abandonware‘, remembering that, “they are rarely constituted as such“, since the disappearance of the companies that originally owned the software does not release rights to the works, which usually end up in the hands of third parties. Regarding the penalties, AEVI has recalled that” the infringer of the owner’s exploitation rights of a video game, as well as those who evade technological protection measures, may face the penalty of imprisonment from six months to four years and a fine from twelve to twenty-four months. “
Confusion about consuming retro products and bad practices by companies and gamers has raised concerns about preserving the legacy of video games.
More about: Emulators and Piracy.