Legal and tax update for virtual worlds
Legal and tax update for virtual worlds
8 October 2008, 9.00am
Alex Chapman
Alex is a leading lawyer in the interactive and digital media industry with particular expertise in intellectual property matters.
He has first hand knowledge of the digital and interactive media and games industries as part of development teams on a number of successful projects before taking up the law and he now acts for a wide variety of clients.
Who is the workshop for?
Additional speakers on this workshop:
Jeff Meek - Chartered Accountant - Managing Partner - French DuncanTahir Basheer - Solicitor - Partner - Sheridans
Dr. Andreas Lober - Attorney at Law - Schulte Riesenkampff
Workshop schedule:
Registration 08.30
Session begins 09.00
Session closes 12.30
Programme
National and international guidelines to ensure compliance
• With so many different jurisdictions in the EU – what’s the regulatory outlook and to what extent is there harmonization?
o How will different EU nation states legislate? What are the key differences to be aware of?
o In the interim – what are the risks for businesses?
o Perspectives on compliance and infringement from the banking community, legal and tax specialists
• Intellectual property protection:
o IP around virtual goods
o DRM / trademark and copyright issues - how far to let the customer go
o I borrow ideas, you copy something, he rips people off – the thorny issue of who owns UGC in virtual worlds
• Taxation:
o At what point will taxes apply? What are the criteria? What are the national and regional differences?
o Will microtransactions be taxed?
o What is the situation with VAT on virtual currencies?
o Taxation of property rights
• Privacy, data collection and protection
• Recent case law on virtual items – implications for public and corporate virtual worlds
o As new features are being layered into virtual worlds and MMOs – what questions are being raised around legalities and reporting requirements:
eg offering VoIP – does this make you a telco?
• Etiquette - issues of identity, privacy, contract validity - are there different thresholds of perception and tolerance in virtual worlds? How is this impacting the evolution of legal frameworks?
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