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A five-star Amsterdam hotel contemplates legal action due to the "unwanted involvement" of its likeness in Modern Warfare II


Commissar SFLUFAN

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The five-star Conservatorium Hotel doesn't appreciate being the scene of countless virtual gunfights.

 

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An Amsterdam hotel is displeased with its ersatz inclusion in the latest Call of Duty, and Dutch media reports it's considering legal action against developer and publisher Activision Blizzard. Though the Conservatorium Hotel appears under the name "Breenbergh" in-game, it's undeniably the same building.

 

"We have taken note of the fact that the Conservatorium Hotel is undesirably the scene of the new Call of Duty," the hotel's manager Roy Tomassen told de Volksrant(opens in new tab). "More generally, we don't support games that seem to encourage the use of violence. The game in no way reflects our core values and we regret our apparent and unwanted involvement."

 

de Volksrant reports that the hotel is still considering what steps to take next. It's clear from the phrasing, however, that the hotel has not ruled out legal action.

 

 

For those keeping score, this would be the third MWII map that's had a similar type of situation.  The previous two were the Grand Prix/Crown Raceway map which had to change its name to avoid association with Formula 1 and the Valderas Musuem map from the open beta.

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  • Commissar SFLUFAN changed the title to A five-star Amsterdam hotel contemplates legal action due to the "unwanted involvement" of its likeness in Modern Warfare II

As a photographer, if I needed to use a building or location for a photo or video shoot, I'd likely need to get both a property release form and a permit to shoot at that location.

 

But I don't think the same rules apply to an artistic re-creation. If I sat and painted the building, I don't think I would need permission or a release. And I definitely wouldn't need to give them a cut of my profits if I were to sell said painting. 

 

It might also fall under parody (or whatever a non-comedic version of parody might be). They might not like it, but I'm not sure if they have an argument here.

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9 minutes ago, Brian said:

In similar news, ikea is gonna sue a game dev too

 

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The Swedish firm's lawyers claim The Store is Closed looks too similar to its shops…

 

 

This is actually pretty important. If they succeed, it can seriously impact creative expression. If we can't re-create the real world, using familiar, recognizeable locations or buildings, are we really re-creating the real world?

 

GTA would literally be dead in the water if this succeeded.

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Wasn't there something out there that allows developers (and movies and TV productions) to depict have notable items, locations and things of that sort as long as they aren't a focus of the story? I recalled that is how The Getaway was able to have real world stores in the game. Once this carries over to the focus of the narrative I can see it being a gray area even with rebranding. 

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1 hour ago, Littleronin said:

Wasn't there something out there that allows developers (and movies and TV productions) to depict have notable items, locations and things of that sort as long as they aren't a focus of the story? I recalled that is how The Getaway was able to have real world stores in the game. Once this carries over to the focus of the narrative I can see it being a gray area even with rebranding. 

American law may be different than Dutch law, though.

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