Author: Ed Trice
Date: 09:38:51 01/07/04
Go up one level in this thread
Hello Dr. Hyatt, > >I don't believe a license is necessary to write a program to _play_ this game, >any more than I need a license to write a program to play monopoly. That is because Monopoly is now beyond the 16 year umbrella of patent protection, while Gothic Chess is protected until 2019. The monopoly patent had no provisions for an electronic representation, while the Gothic Chess patent explicitly covers a programatic implementation as well. < I can't manufacture a game and sell it, as several have found when Parker Brothers >took them to court, but clearly I can play the game once I see it, without >having the real board or anything else handy. All true. >Ditto for this variant called "Gothic Chess". I don't see how you would >deal with someone that simply writes a program to play your "game". He is >not infringing on the patent whatsoever by doing so... It is because a software faciliatation is using the METHOD of playing the game in order to play the game on your computer. Trust me, I had many hours of conversations regarding this with different law firms before even applying for the patent. If I was asking for $1000 for a license, I could understand the concerns, but it is $1.
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