Database
Case law
The rulings that shape video game law, summarised and linked to the analyses that cite them.
- 202614 Apr 2026Pelham IIEuropean UnionCJEU, Grand Chamber, case C-590/23Pastiche is an autonomous concept of EU law, distinct from parody, which does not require any humorous intent.1 article
- 20254 Dec 2025Mio and KonektraEuropean UnionCJEU, joined cases C-580/23 and C-795/23Works of applied art are subject to the same originality test as other works, with no higher threshold.1 article
- 202518 Mar 2025Thaler v. PerlmutterUnited StatesU.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Cir., No. 23-5233US copyright requires a human author: an image created entirely by an AI cannot be registered.1 article
- 202526 Feb 2025Nintendo v. DStorageFranceFrench Court of Cassation, 1st civil chamber, No. 23-15.966A host that leaves reported illegal copies online is liable, and can be ordered to block them for six months.1 article
- 202423 Oct 2024Valve v. UFC-Que ChoisirFranceFrench Court of Cassation, 1st civil chamber, No. 23-13.738A digital video game cannot be resold second-hand: exhaustion of the distribution right does not apply.3 articles
- 202417 Oct 2024Sony v. DatelEuropean UnionCJEU, 1st Chamber, case C-159/23Changing the content of variables in working memory, without reproducing or altering the code, does not infringe copyright in the computer program.1 article
- 20244 Jun 2024Tintin chez HopperFranceRennes Court of Appeal, No. 21/04257Paintings placing Tintin in Edward Hopper's world are not covered by the parody exception and engage their author's liability.1 article
- 202313 Jul 2023XellaEuropean UnionCJEU, 2nd Chamber, case C-106/22National investment screening that restricts freedom of establishment must respond to a genuine and sufficiently serious threat to a fundamental interest of society.1 article
- 20238 Feb 2023MetaBirkinsUnited StatesS.D.N.Y. (jury), No. 22-cv-384Trademark rights in a physical product can extend to NFTs depicting that product in a virtual environment.1 article
- 20216 Oct 2021Top SystemEuropean UnionCJEU, case C-13/20The lawful acquirer of software may decompile it to correct its errors.1 article
- 201919 Dec 2019Tom KabinetEuropean UnionCJEU, Grand Chamber, case C-263/18Supplying an e-book by download falls under the right of communication to the public, which is not exhausted.1 article
- 201912 Sept 2019CofemelEuropean UnionCJEU, case C-683/17A creation is original when it reflects its author's free and creative choices.1 article
- 201714 Jun 2017Stichting Brein v. ZiggoEuropean UnionCJEU, case C-610/15Operating a sharing platform such as The Pirate Bay can in itself amount to a communication to the public.1 article
- 201523 Sept 2015DC Comics v. TowleUnited States9th Cir., 802 F.3d 1012The Batmobile is a character protectable by copyright, and unauthorised replicas of it are infringing.1 article
- 20143 Sept 2014DeckmynEuropean UnionCJEU, Grand Chamber, case C-201/13Parody is an autonomous concept of EU law: it evokes an existing work while being noticeably different from it, and constitutes an expression of humour or mockery.1 article
- 201413 Feb 2014SvenssonEuropean UnionCJEU, case C-466/12There is a communication to the public only if the work reaches a “new” public that the author had not taken into account.1 article
- 201423 Jan 2014Nintendo v. PC BoxEuropean UnionCJEU, case C-355/12A video game is “complex matter” protected by copyright, and console protections may be defended, to a proportionate extent.5 articles
- 201324 Apr 2013L'Île de la tentationFranceFrench Court of Cassation, 1st civil chamber, No. 11-19.091Reality TV contestants are not performers, because they do not perform a work.1 article
- 20123 Jul 2012UsedSoftEuropean UnionCJEU, Grand Chamber, case C-128/11The distribution right in a downloaded copy of software is exhausted when the right holder grants unlimited use in return for a price.1 article
- 20122 May 2012SAS InstituteEuropean UnionCJEU, Grand Chamber, case C-406/10A program's functionality, its programming language and its file formats are not protected: only its expression is.2 articles
- 201126 Sept 2011Nintendo v. DivineoFranceParis Court of Appeal, division 5, chamber 12, the “linkers” caseLinkers, which bypass the Nintendo DS protections, cannot hide behind the interoperability exception.1 article
- 200925 Jun 2009CryoFranceFrench Court of Cassation, 1st civil chamber, No. 07-20.387A video game is a complex work: each of its components is governed by the rules that suit its nature.9 articles
- 200628 Feb 2006Mulholland DriveFranceFrench Court of Cassation, 1st civil chamber, No. 05-15.824Private copying is an exception, not a right: it does not allow a user to demand the removal of a technical measure that prevents copying a DVD.1 article
- 200010 Feb 2000Sony v. ConnectixUnited StatesU.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Cir., 203 F.3d 596Studying a console's BIOS to develop an emulator can be fair use.1 article
- 199416 Mar 1994Capcom v. Data EastUnited StatesU.S. District Court, N.D. Cal., 1994 WL 1751482A genre's stock characters, such as the hulking fighter, cannot be monopolised.1 article
- 199220 Oct 1992Sega v. AccoladeUnited StatesU.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Cir., 977 F.2d 1510Disassembling a console's code to understand how to run one's own games on it can be fair use.1 article
- 19867 Mar 1986Atari v. ValadonFranceFrench Court of Cassation, plenary assembly, No. 84-93.509An electronic game can be a work of the mind protected by copyright, as long as it is original.3 articles