Mythology holds that videogames were birthed by garage hackers in a world of uninhibited creative freedom. This makes the reality that games actually inhabit a regulatory world all that much more difficult to understand or accept. Whether or not we choose to acknowledge it, games and interactive entertainment are currently heavily regulated. In-house counsel and video game lawyers constantly have to untangle layer after layer of un-harmonized laws and regulations to have their creations and services reach global audiences. Mostly, these mechanisms of legal oversight are tone-deaf to videogames, as they are rarely designed or implemented with interactive entertainment in mind, or where they are, they are likely to be the reactionary result of a moral panic. This edition of MTJG will focus on the nature and scope of the game industry’s legal constraints, with a particular focus on controversial pending legislation and regulation.

 

Draft Agenda

​

Cloud Gaming

​

• Leigh Ann Lucero, Assistant General Counsel, Gaming, Microsoft

• David  Michels, CCLS Cloud Project

• Tamara Sakolchyk, Head of Legal & Business Practice, Wargaming

• Dr Andreas Lober, Partner, Beiten Burkhardt

​

Intellectual Property Law

​

• Gordon Humphrey, Chairperson First Board of Appeal, Board of Appeal, EUIPO

• Arty Rajendra, Partner, Osborne Clarke

• Professor Gwilym Roberts, Chairman, Killburn & Strode, Honorary Secretary of CIPA

• Scott Kelly, Partner, Banner & Witcoff

• Professor Jon Festinger, UBC & CCLS, QMUL

​

The Digital Single Market Directive

​

• Kostantin Ewald, Partner, Osborne Clarke

• Sabina Tzakova, EU Commission Copyright Unit

• Kostya Lobov, Senior Associate, Harbottle and Lewis

​

Virtual Property

​

• Professor Ted Castronova, Professor of Media, Indiana University

• Dr Michaela McDonald, Lecturer at Queen Mary University of London

 

Age Verification and Parental Controls

​

• Professor Julia Hornle, Professor of Internet Law, CCLS, QMUL

• Dr Willy Duhen, Senior Manager, Legal - International, Activision Blizzard

• Rebecca Chong, Senior Legal Counsel, SuperAwesome

• Clemens Mayer-Wegelin, LL.M., European General Counsel, Nintendo

​

The Power of Games and Immersive Technologies 

​

• Professor Andrew Phelps, University of Canterbury

• Professor Mia Consalvo, Canada Research Chair in Game Studies & Design, Concordia University

• Dr Kim Voll, Co-Founder, Stray Bombay Company

• Elise Lemarie, Director of Operations, Rovio Entertainment Corporation

​

The DCMS Select Committee Report

​

• Lord Clement Jones, CBE

• Professor Lorna Woods, University of Essex

• Kelvin Plomer, Director of Player Experience, Jagex

​

The EU Regulatory Framework

​

• Dr Yin Harn Lee, Lecturer, University of Bristol

• Paul Gardner, Partner, Wiggin

• Tom Harding, Partner, Osborne Clarke

​

Competition Law

​

• Maria Ioannidou, Senior Lecturer in Competition Law, CCLS

• Andrea Rizzi, Partner, Insight Studio Legale

• Sean Kane, Partner, Frankfurt Kurnit

• Sara Bacchio, Case Handler, European Commission

​

In-House Perspectives

​

• Dimiter Gantchev, Creative Industries Director, WIPO

• Leonard Bendel, European General Counsel, ZeniMax Europe

• Rafal Kloczko, Chief Counsel, CD PROJEKT RED

• Darya Firsavia, Head of Intellectual Property, Senior Counsel, Wargaming (tbc)

​

Accommodation is available at Club Quarters Lincoln’s Inn Fields

For exclusive prices and booking information please contact mtjg@qmul.ac.uk