OFFBEAT

Stop Killing Games campaign suffers setback as European Commission favors industry code of conduct over legal obligation

The Stop Killing Games movement was dealt a blow this week after the European Commission decided not to propose a legal obligation to keep video games playable after they are no longer commercially available.

Users of licensed software that depends on online components may also find this development of interest – more on that later.

The grievance concerns online video games that become unplayable when publishers shut down the servers they run on. Almost 1.3 million grumpy gamers signed a petition calling for publishers to ensure games enjoy an afterlife, leading to a public hearing in the European Parliament.

It's a contentious issue. On one hand, customers who have purchased a game might feel aggrieved when it is rendered unplayable by a commercial decision. On the other, publishers argue that shutting down services must be an option when a game is no longer commercially viable.

A middle path would be a patch that lets the game run standalone, or releasing software so enthusiasts can host their own.

Ross Scott, founder of the Stop Killing Games movement, told The Register: "The behavior of the Commission seems to go beyond simply disagreeing this is a problem that needs solving. On the contrary, they haven't clarified how the law views this situation and are trying to pass the ambiguity off to individual nation states. This is a recipe for policy fragmentation, which is under the Commission's charter to prevent."

Scott added that the group was not calling for "endless support" for online games. "All we can say is the Commission appears to have an agenda independent of the initiative's request and their charter."

Business is not a game

Software shutouts are a depressingly familiar scenario for users. Licensed software can stop working or suffer reduced functionality when online services are lost. A recent example is the impending demise of Microsoft Office 2019 for macOS, which will reach the end of the road in July due to a certificate expiration. If the application cannot reach the licensing servers, users can't edit or save documents – rendering it mostly useless.

Scott told us the group was focused on video games for the time being because "they have an almost unique place under the law."

"EU court rulings consider them more than 'just' software due to all the copyrighted content contained within them and thus subject to more laws than just those that pertain to software."

The European Commission cited existing intellectual property protections for creators and publishers as one reason not to propose new rules. It also noted that EU consumer law already provides some safeguards. "Video game providers must inform consumers about the duration and the conditions for terminating the contract before the consumers sign up for the video game," it said.

Instead, the Commission said it would work with the industry to draw up a code of conduct.

Stop Killing Games posted on X: "This decision is not unexpected. But we were prepared. Hence, we're pushing forward with @Europarl_EN amending #StopKillingGames to the Digital Fairness Act."

In other words, the next step is to try to get the group's suggestions into the Digital Fairness Act, a legislative proposal by the European Commission, which, according to Scott, "coincidentally is an excellent fit for it." ®