Wizards and demons: does a copyright claim spell trouble for card gamers?

20-09-2021

Ben Wodecki

Wizards and demons: does a copyright claim spell trouble for card gamers?

charnsitr / Shutterstock.com

The end of netdecking? Ben Wodecki takes a deep dive into a problematic copyright grant that has upset passionate players of a card game.

A decision by the US Copyright Office to grant protection to an academic covering his "Magic: the Gathering" (MTG) trading cards has left players furious—and IP lawyers perplexed.

In August, Robert Hovden, a physics professor from the University of Michigan successfully obtained copyright protection for a deck he created, dubbed "Angels and Demons". 

His actions caused confusion and anger in card game communities, with fears rising over whether using an online ‘decklist’—a list of the cards a player will use in a game—could foreshadow legal consequences.


Magic the Gathering, copyright, card game, US Copyright Office, IP lawyers, NFTs, digital assets

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