Question in regards to using music in game projects

[JonyBiz]

Hi there. I am new here. However, I have a question. Could someone go to jail/get sued by the person who arranged a midi on vgmusic.com if someone did not get permission for using it? For example, if I downloaded a Donkey Kong midi and used it in a game without permission of the person who made the midi?

[Arrow]

Anybody who tried to sue you for using their midis without asking wouldn't have a leg to stand on in court since they don't own the music in the first place. However, it would still be nice if to e-mail the sequencer and ask for permission, something which takes very little time to do.

[Blitz Lunar]

the game companies are the only people who'd be able to say anything about it and have legal weight, and even then that's only likely if it's a commercial project.

[Solaphar]

I want to expand a little on what Blitz Lunar already said.

The game companies are usually the only ones who hold the copyright to the music within a game. I think sometimes (rarely) the composer/group/band retains the copyright and thus the company has a license to use that person's music while paying said person/group royalties or according to some other payment method (like a one-time lump sum payment). Whatever the case happens to be, the contract spells it out.

An example of the latter (where the composer retains the copyright) would be in a game like Rock Band or Guitar Hero.

Anyway, my point is, as Blitz Lunar already said, the game companies generally hold the copyright. A sequencer/transcriber (ie. the person who makes the midi) does not hold the copyright. This is true even if it's the original composer is the one who sequences the midi, since the game company still holds the copyright to said composer's music. Even if Nobuo Uematsu were to submit a midi of a song from like, Final Fantasy to this site, he wouldn't own the copyright on that midi, Square Enix would. It sounds weird, but it's true. That's how the law works.

Midi's are derivative works.

The owner of a Copyrighted work has the exclusive rights to do and to authorize, any of the following:

reproduce the copyrighted work;
prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work;
distribute copies of the copyrighted work to the public;
perform the copyrighted work in public;
display the copyrighted work in public; and
perform a copyrighted sound work in public by means of a digital audio transmission.

Now even though I'm quoting the copyright law of the USA, I'm pretty sure it works this way internationally as well.

Therefore, you would need to contact the game company and see if they would grant you a license to use their music. This is pretty much only if you plan to make money with your game. If not, you can get away with using their music in your (free) game, but you should be aware that it is still illegal. Like I said though, you really don't have to worry. Lawyers have better things to do then go after a person making some free game. I have never heard of a single instance of such a thing happening (a person making a free game getting sued because of the music they used).

If you'll look back at that quote I posted above, notice on that list "distribute copies of the copyrighted work to the public" which is what this very website does, and also "prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work" which is exactly what a midi transcriber/sequencer does. That's right, anyone who makes a midi of a song they don't hold the copyright to is in violation of copyright law (at least in the USA). We get away with it though because, like I said, the lawyers have better things to do than go after someone with shallow pockets.

You can search for all sorts of more stuff about the legal aspects of midi creation/use on Google, but I've covered the basics, I think.

[Powerlord]

Anyway, my point is, as Blitz Lunar already said, the game companies generally hold the copyright. A sequencer/transcriber (ie. the person who makes the midi) does not hold the copyright. This is true even if it's the original composer is the one who sequences the midi, since the game company still holds the copyright to said composer's music. Even if Nobuo Uematsu were to submit a midi of a song from like, Final Fantasy to this site, he wouldn't own the copyright on that midi, Square Enix would. It sounds weird, but it's true. That's how the law works.

It depends on how their contract reads. By default, it's the game company, but a contract can change that.

[Blitz Lunar]

We get away with it though because, like I said, the lawyers have better things to do than go after someone with shallow pockets.

Yeah, and if I remember rightly, vgmusic might fall under fair use because it's a sort of fan-art. It isn't any different from people uploading pictures of Samus to deviantart.

[Merit Celaire]

But a rule of thumb here since I'm in the game project craze (especially fangame projects) - make sure that along with letting the person/sequencer in question know that you may possibly use the work -- give the sequencer credit for his version of the work.

Not to mention, if you know the original composer of the score itself, give credit to him/her as well.

[X]

Give the sequencer credit for his version of the work. Not to mention, if you know the original composer of the score itself, give credit to him/her as well.

A quick addition to that - I've noticed that some people just give credit to the VGMusic.com for the sequencing. This is incorrect. VGMusic.com as a site itself doesn't sequence anything (you probably already know this), although since it does provide hosting space, it doesn't hurt to drop a line as about the site where you grabbed the midis from. =)

[Blitz Lunar]

probably makes sense to ask whether or not they want to be credited. when kids have approached me before about their RPG maker projects and they just wanna use like one or two midis, i'm happy for them to use the sequences but i actually would rather my name wasn't mentioned.

[AI The Original]

That's right, anyone who makes a midi of a song they don't hold the copyright to is in violation of copyright law (at least in the USA).

Yeah, and if I remember rightly, vgmusic might fall under fair use because it's a sort of fan-art. It isn't any different from people uploading pictures of Samus to deviantart.

In order for something to qualify as fair use, there are 4 factors to consider:

1: the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
VGMusic MIDIs are non-profit. You do not register and pay a subscription fee to download the MIDIs.

2: the nature of the copyrighted work
This I don't know, but I can say that because VGMusic MIDIs are derivative works, they satisfy this consideration.

3: the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
VGMusic MIDIs contain zero copyrighted data. They may be based off an actual game music (hence the term "remake"), but they contain no portion of copyrighted data. Conversions do not meet this consideration (At least VGM stopped accepting new conversions).

4: the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work
Here again, because VGMusic MIDIs do not contain any original data, using such MIDI does not adversely affect the market or value of the copyrighted work significantly. An MIDI does not provide an exact replacement for the original soundtrack (Unless you equip your computer with the correct synthesizer and an exact copy of the MIDI file).

To be honest, I'm no lawyer. The only person who can determine if its fair use correctly is the judge. But, fair use is what allows people to be entitled to use copyrighted works. Everything is copyrighted unless the creator chooses to release it into the public domain.

We get away with it though because, like I said, the lawyers have better things to do than go after someone with shallow pockets.

For now, yes, in the future, probably not. Media companies are pushing hard for new laws that gives them more authority of their products. Laws that get rejected are brought up again. Sad, but this is the power of lobbying.
It was possible to get away in the European countries, but American media companies (including the infamous RIAA and MPAA) have pushed hard enough at the EU to follow their copyright standards.

[Merit Celaire]

Give the sequencer credit for his version of the work. Not to mention, if you know the original composer of the score itself, give credit to him/her as well.

A quick addition to that - I've noticed that some people just give credit to the VGMusic.com for the sequencing. This is incorrect. VGMusic.com as a site itself doesn't sequence anything (you probably already know this), although since it does provide hosting space, it doesn't hurt to drop a line as about the site where you grabbed the midis from. =)

I do that. I place it under the "Resource Websites" category.

probably makes sense to ask whether or not they want to be credited. when kids have approached me before about their RPG maker projects and they just wanna use like one or two midis, i'm happy for them to use the sequences but i actually would rather my name wasn't mentioned.

What? But YOUR MIDIs are awesome, Blitz Lunar! I have been using a few of them on the fangame project I'm working on at this time.

[Blitz Lunar]

a) good as they may be, they're not my compositions, if anyone should be credited first and foremost it's the composers and the license holders.
b) i don't want my name/alias plastered all over some shitty rpg maker projects.

[Merit Celaire]

a) good as they may be, they're not my compositions, if anyone should be credited first and foremost it's the composers and the license holders.
b) i don't want my name/alias plastered all over some shitty rpg maker projects.

Oh yeah, I know. How I approach it in the music deparment is this:

(1) Original composer
(2) License holders (if composer name cannot be found)
(3) Finally, who did the MIDI sequence itself.

Simple as that. ^_^ Everyone is happy.