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Originally Posted by Jeysie
So, as far as anyone could tell up until now, Vivendi had approved one team's games and ignored everyone else. So I don't think it was "stupid" to think Vivendi might not care.
It may be legal for Vivendi to shut the project down, but the way they did it was shoddy and awful. They could have shut the project down long before this when less work would be wasted and everyone's hopes wouldn't be dashed.
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I'll add two points here. First, I can't see how it isn't supid to infringe copyright without thinking that Vivendi might care. It's entirely their prerogative whether or not to allow fangames, and they have every right to make those choices on a whim. I find the idea that the
KQ9 team made no real effort to seek permission for their project, despite the success of some other teams in this field, utterly bizarre. Did they just not feel like making the same effort that others had? And if not, why not? If they're not going to put in the effort to make peace with the legal department, how can they be upset if Vivendi closes them down?
Equally, shutting the project down early. Yes, that would have been nice. But doing that kind of thing would also cost Vivendi money. Someone has to write the cease and desist letters. If necessary, someone has to pay to post them. There have to be lawyers on standby in case the game makers fail to comply. All of these things cost a company time and money, so I can understand totally that Vivendi would ignore projects until they look likely to be released. That way, the projects that fall by the wayside don't have to be dealt with at Vivendi's expense.
While I understand your concerns, the ideas that some people have stated that Vivendi is in some way morally wrong to close down a copyright-infringing product is totally bizarre. Since when did it become morally acceptable to break copyright laws without permission?
