I'm here at The State of Play and Philip Rosedale, the founder and CEO of the company behind Second Life, has just crossed the gaming IP Rubicon. He's announced that Second Life has revised its terms of service to allow players ("residents") to keep the intellectual property in the in-game items they create. Apparently now, if you make a sculpture or create a good flight script for a hoverboard, you keep the copyright.
The example that's been tossed about is movie rights. If you want to sell movie rights in your character, you can, and Second Life can't and won't stop you.
More details to come as I learn them.
UPDATE 14 November 2003 9:30 AM: Yochai Benkler asked them why they're giving Second Life a defective system well-known to inhibit creativity. Rosedale's reply was that they're looking into building Creative Commons licenses directly into the game.
UPDATE 14 November 2003 9:40 AM: I'm informed that the Terms of Service now live on their site are the new ones. The key passage, based on my quick read:
5.3 Participant Content. Participants can create Content on Linden's servers in various forms. Linden acknowledges and agrees that, subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including without limitation the limited licenses granted by you to Linden herein, you will retain any and all applicable copyright and/or other intellectual property rights with respect to any Content you create using the Service. . . .
In more detail:
2.5 Account. By using the Service you agree that even though you may retain certain copyright or other intellectual property rights with respect to works you create (your "Content," as defined in Section 6.1 below) while using the Service (as specified in Section 5.3 below), you do not own the account you use to access the Service, nor do you own any data Linden stores on Linden servers (including without limitation any data representing or embodying any or all of your Content).
5.3 Participant Content. Participants can create Content on Linden's servers in various forms. Linden acknowledges and agrees that, subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including without limitation the limited licenses granted by you to Linden herein, you will retain any and all applicable copyright and/or other intellectual property rights with respect to any Content you create using the Service. NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING, YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT BY SUBMITTING YOUR CONTENT TO ANY AREA OF THE SERVICE, YOU AUTOMATICALLY GRANT (OR YOU WARRANT THAT THE OWNER OF SUCH CONTENT HAS EXPRESSLY GRANTED) TO LINDEN: (A) THE ROYALTY-FREE, PERPETUAL, IRREVOCABLE, NON-EXCLUSIVE RIGHT AND LICENSE TO USE AND REPRODUCE ANY OF YOUR CONTENT IN ANY OR ALL MEDIA FOR MARKETING AND/OR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SERVICE; (B) THE PERPETUAL AND IRREVOCABLE RIGHT TO DELETE ANY OR ALL OF YOUR CONTENT FROM LINDEN'S SERVERS AND FROM THE SERVICE, WHETHER INTENTIONALLY OR UNINTENTIONALLY, AND FOR ANY REASON OR NO REASON, WITHOUT ANY LIABILITY OF ANY KIND TO YOU OR ANY OTHER PARTY; AND (C) THE ROYALTY-FREE, PERPETUAL, IRREVOCABLE, NON-EXCLUSIVE RIGHT AND LICENSE TO COPY, ANALYZE AND USE ANY OF YOUR CONTENT AS LINDEN MAY DEEM NECESSARY OR DESIRABLE FOR PURPOSES OF DEBUGGING, TESTING AND/OR PROVIDING SUPPORT SERVICES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SERVICE. YOU FURTHER UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT: (I) YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR UNDERSTANDING ALL COPYRIGHT AND OTHER INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OR OTHER LAWS THAT MAY APPLY TO YOUR CONTENT HEREUNDER; (II) YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR, AND LINDEN WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY IN CONNECTION WITH, THE LEGAL CONSEQUENCES OF ANY ACTIONS OR FAILURES TO ACT ON YOUR PART WHILE USING THE SERVICE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY LEGAL CONSEQUENCES RELATING TO YOUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS; AND (III) LINDEN'S ACKNOWLEDGEMENT HEREUNDER OF YOUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN YOUR CONTENT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A LEGAL OPINION OR LEGAL ADVICE, BUT IS INTENDED SOLELY AS AN EXPRESSION OF LINDEN'S INTENTION NOT TO REQUIRE PARTICIPANTS TO FOREGO THEIR NORMAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS WITH RESPECT TO CONTENT THEY CREATE USING THE SERVICE, SUBJECT TO THE TERMS SPECIFIED HEREIN.
6.1 Content. You acknowledge that: (i) by using the Service you may have access to graphics, sound effects, music, video, audio, animation, text and other creative output (collectively, "Content"), and (ii) Content may be provided under license by independent content providers, including contributions from other Participants (all such independent content providers, "Content Providers"). Linden does not pre-screen Content. YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT LINDEN HAS THE RIGHT, BUT NOT THE OBLIGATION, TO REMOVE ANY CONTENT (INCLUDING YOURS) IN WHOLE OR IN PART AT ANY TIME FOR ANY REASON OR NO REASON, WITH OR WITHOUT NOTICE AND WITH NO LIABILITY OF ANY KIND.
6.2 Rights in Content. You acknowledge that Linden and other Content Providers have rights in their respective Content under copyright and other applicable laws and treaty provisions, that they retain all such rights and that you accept full responsibility and liability for your use of any Content in violation of any such rights. You agree that your creation of Content is not in any way based upon any expectation of compensation from Linden. You shall indemnify and hold Linden harmless from and against any claims by third parties that your Content infringes upon, violates or misappropriates any of their intellectual property or proprietary rights.