Wilson Sonsini’s Electronic Gaming Group has worked with clients throughout the digital gaming sector, from design firms and publishers to component manufacturers and online gaming providers. This podcast series takes a closer look at the start-up world of gaming companies. What do game founders care about? What should they care about? What are the common pitfalls and traps to avoid? Each episode features a different Wilson Sonsini lawyer chiming in with their area of expertise to help guide game companies to success. This communication is provided as a service to our clients and friends and is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship or constitute an advertisement, a solicitation, or professional advice as to any particular situation.
Episodes
Wednesday Jan 10, 2024
Wednesday Jan 10, 2024
Host Mary O'Brien is joined by Wilson Sonsini regulatory partner Georgia Ravitz and senior counsel Scott Cohn as they discuss the U.S. consumer product safety laws and considerations for e-gaming companies.
Conversation Highlights:
- an introduction to Georgia Ravitz and Scott Cohn, and their summary of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA),
- an overview of gaming companies' responsibilities in relation to CPSA,
- a background on "substantial product hazard" and other defect analysis,
- understanding the concept of voluntary reporting and sources of reportable information,
- insight into timeliness of filings and reporting to the CPSC, and
- key considerations for gaming companies navigating through potential consumer product safety issues.
Meet the host and this episode's guests:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country, or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Learn more about Wilson Sonsini's Electronic Gaming Group, https://egg.wsgr.com/.
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
Host Mary O'Brien is joined by Wilson Sonsini technology transactions partner Gary Greenstein as she interviews SonyAI attorney and Wilson Sonsini alumna Tiffany Georgievski to discuss artificial intelligence (AI) and the gaming industry.
Conversation Highlights:
- Tiffany Georgievski’s career path and focusing on AI,
- a primer on Generative AI,
- AI and the gaming industry-a history and modern application,
- the evolution of AI and player experience,
- potential legal risks of AI in gaming, and
- key considerations in the current wave of Generative AI in gaming.
Meet the host and this episode's guests:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country, or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Learn more about Wilson Sonsini's Electronic Gaming Group, https://egg.wsgr.com.
Thursday Oct 26, 2023
Thursday Oct 26, 2023
Host Mary O'Brien is joined by Wilson Sonsini corporate partner Craig Sherman as she interviews Bungie General Counsel Don McGowan to discuss forging strong attorney-client relationships.
Conversation Highlights:
- Don McGowan's career path,
- what it means to be a General Counsel,
- forming attorney-client relationships and ethical obligations,
- factors to consider when choosing an attorney to represent them,
- best practices to maximize value from law firm relationships,
- building trust between attorneys and clients,
- takeaways from Bungie's recent acquisition by Sony, and
- advice to gaming companies when engaging or working with attorneys.
Meet the host and this episode's guests:
- Mary O'Brien
- Craig Sherman
- Don McGowan, Bungie
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country, or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Learn more about Wilson Sonsini's Electronic Gaming Group, https://egg.wsgr.com/.
Tuesday Oct 10, 2023
Tuesday Oct 10, 2023
In this special episode, Wilson Sonsini corporate partner Jonathan Chan interviews Justin Woodward, co-founder and creative director of Interabang Entertainment, co-founder of the Media Indie Exchange, the founder of Black Voices in Gaming, and the lead adviser on the Black Game Dev Fund.
Conversation Highlights:
- the state of gaming and publishing and the current market,
- financing trends for developers,
- working with publishers,
- managing intellectual property assets,
- insight into the new gaming platforms,
- AI within gaming and its impact on independent developers, and
- an overview of Black Voices in Gaming and the state of underrepresented developers in the gaming industry.
Meet the host and this episode's guest:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country, or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Learn more about Wilson Sonsini's Electronic Gaming Group, https://egg.wsgr.com/.
Wednesday Sep 13, 2023
Wednesday Sep 13, 2023
Host Mary O'Brien is joined by Wilson Sonsini technology transactions partner Barath Chari as she interviews Parth Naidu, founder and CEO at SIDO, an e-sports research group, to discuss the legal issues in e-sports gaming.
Conversation Highlights:
- an introduction to Barath Chari and Parth Naidu and their experience in the gaming industry,
- the evolution of e-sports industry,
- the growth of e-sports and legal considerations,
- insight into dynamics of players and e-sports organizations,
- key points when negotiating player contracts,
- intellectual property challenges and opportunities in e-sports,
- a background on gambling and e-sports and gambling's effects on the e-sports industry, and
- looking ahead, what will e-sports look like in the next decade?
Meet the host and this episode's guests:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country, or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Learn more about Wilson Sonsini's Electronic Gaming Group, https://egg.wsgr.com/.
Thursday Dec 08, 2022
Thursday Dec 08, 2022
Host Mary O'Brien interviews Wilson Sonsini technology transaction attorneys John McGaraghan and Andrew Poling to discuss open source software and considerations for gaming companies.
Conversation Highlights:
- an introduction to open source software,
- different types of open source and use in the gaming industry,
- risks of open source, and
- best practices to maintain compliance with open source.
Meet the Host:
- Mary O'Brien
Learn More:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Friday Aug 19, 2022
Friday Aug 19, 2022
Host Mary O'Brien interviews Wilson Sonsini antitrust and competition attorneys Thomas Pflock and Brendan Coffman to discuss antitrust laws and potential impact for gaming companies.
Conversation Highlights:
- an introduction to antitrust and competition laws,
- antitrust relevancy to start-up/early-stage companies,
- regulatory considerations for gaming companies,
- recent deals and their regulatory impact, and
- antitrust and competition and gaming in the metaverse.
Meet the Host:
- Mary O'Brien
Learn More:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Friday Jul 01, 2022
Friday Jul 01, 2022
Host Mary O'Brien interviews Wilson Sonsini partner Paul Gadiock exploring the convergence of the gaming and healthcare industries.
Conversation Highlights:
- Electronic gaming moving into digital healthcare
- Overview of the FDA and government regulations surrounding healthcare
- Implications of misclassification: wellness vs. medical device
- Regulatory strategy for gaming founders: seeking and obtaining FDA approval, and other considerations
Meet the Host:
Learn More:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Tuesday Feb 08, 2022
Tuesday Feb 08, 2022
Host Mary O'Brien interviews Wilson Sonsini partner Adam Shevell, and their conversation takes us through the wild, wild west of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Conversation Highlights:
Adam's passion for video games has been prevalent throughout his life carrying over into his career today. This episode's highlights include:
- What are NFTs?
- Commercializing NFTs—purchasing and selling these assets as well as claiming ownership
- Recent NFT adoption in games
- An introduction into the metaverse
- Legal considerations for adding NFT into games
Meet the Host:
Learn More:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate jurisdiction.
Monday Sep 13, 2021
Monday Sep 13, 2021
Host Mary O'Brien talks to Wilson Sonsini partners Aaron Hendelman and Gary Greenstein as they dig into copyrights and trademarks in gaming.
Conversation Highlights:
- Copyright and trademark protections for gaming founders— what are they, and when to establish ownership?
- Adding third-party assets to games and relevant agreements and licensing considerations.
- What does trade dress protect?
- What is "Fair Use?"
Meet the Host:
Learn More:
The information in this podcast episode is for general information purposes only and may not reflect current law in your jurisdiction. Nothing in this podcast should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation, and this information is not intended to create, and receipt or listening does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship. No listener of this episode should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this episode without seeking legal or other professional advice from an appropriate licensed professional in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate jurisdiction.