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| Nightbring3r:
Everything Crazy Cooter is dead on. |
| mgb:
--- Quote from: Crazy Cooter on June 01, 2013, 09:11:54 pm ---Here are the facts for USA: 1) you can't include MAME with anything you sell. 2) there are about 3 public domain ROM's that you can include with a sale... but see fact #1. 3) adding them for "free" is the same as charging for them. 4) pointing a customer to where they can "obtain" ROM's is the same as including/charging for them. 5) there is no "gray area". 6) the chances of being sued/arrested for a cabinet with 99,999 games that you made and keep in your house are virtually zero. 7) sale and/or display of the above cabinet increases your risk. 8 ) people have been prosecuted. 9) people have avoided prosecution. 10) some PC collections forbid resale, which is what you would be doing by including them. 11) multi-game boards are generally illegal. 12) artwork/characters are not public domain. 13) opinion, ethics and/or past experiences do not change the above facts. --- End quote --- This really sums it up perfectly. There really is no argument that can be made against it. building and selling mame cabs, unless they are just cabs and controls and no software, just isn't a great business model. |
| SavannahLion:
--- Quote from: paigeoliver on June 01, 2013, 10:50:09 pm ---1. ..... Mame itself couldn't be developed in a 100 percent legal manner, since it has specific support for bootleg romsets and variants, something that is impossible to develop legally because technically there is no legal way to do so. --- End quote --- I would question that. IIRC Sony vs. Bleem! found emulation has a legal standing (ROMs are different and do not enjoy the same legal status). Since the case occurred after the introduction of the DMCA, it shows the contradictory nature of the DMCA and the rest of U.S. law. Namely the well established (e.g. protected) act of reverse engineering existing hardware and software. The parameters of reverse engineering were already well established by cases like Nintendo vs. Atari. Finally, I know of no case where the act of reverse engineering a bootleg or such has been determined as illegal on any grounds. I also know of no law that cites the same. In short, as long as MAMEDev follows the specific reverse engineering methods already tested in court, MAME is 100% legal in the U.S. This addreses nothing about ROMs however. Please note: I am drawing this conclusion from the U.S. If you're not in the U.S. do your own research and draw your own conclusions. |
| paigeoliver:
I wasn't speaking of reverse engineering the hardware, but of specific support for bootleg romsets, which are different than standard ones. How does one develop support for bootleg romsets without possessing those romsets, which are themselves not legal to possess. --- Quote from: SavannahLion on June 02, 2013, 04:35:53 pm --- --- Quote from: paigeoliver on June 01, 2013, 10:50:09 pm ---1. ..... Mame itself couldn't be developed in a 100 percent legal manner, since it has specific support for bootleg romsets and variants, something that is impossible to develop legally because technically there is no legal way to do so. --- End quote --- I would question that. IIRC Sony vs. Bleem! found emulation has a legal standing (ROMs are different and do not enjoy the same legal status). Since the case occurred after the introduction of the DMCA, it shows the contradictory nature of the DMCA and the rest of U.S. law. Namely the well established (e.g. protected) act of reverse engineering existing hardware and software. The parameters of reverse engineering were already well established by cases like Nintendo vs. Atari. Finally, I know of no case where the act of reverse engineering a bootleg or such has been determined as illegal on any grounds. I also know of no law that cites the same. In short, as long as MAMEDev follows the specific reverse engineering methods already tested in court, MAME is 100% legal in the U.S. This addreses nothing about ROMs however. Please note: I am drawing this conclusion from the U.S. If you're not in the U.S. do your own research and draw your own conclusions. --- End quote --- |
| ark_ader:
While we are on the subject of selling pirated games, from the biggest hypocrite of them all. I wonder how our dear old friend Dave Foley is doing (hoping that comment will bring the genie out the bottle :lol )? |
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