Virtual Land Grab Triggers Real Lawsuit - Why This Matters
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In this case, Bragg’s press release got it right as to why we should pay attention; this is “a possible first-of-its-kind lawsuit.” Bragg tries to make it sound even more important: “This suit challenges the legitimacy of a virtual intangible purchase of an asset,” he notes, and brings certain pressing issues about these kinds of sites to light. The reaction from many observers, though, is that this isn’t the precedent-setting lawsuit we’re looking for.
One blogger notes that “Even if the case is thrown out, some decision could come down that will start to set a precedent on how the legal system will handle assets like virtual land.” But since it’s arguable whether Bragg ever actually “owned” the land that he claims Linden cheated him out of, it’s likely any court ruling will avoid issues such as whether virtual land is property in the same way as real estate. Of course, the case might not even make it to a court.
One observer really wishes that some other lawsuit had become “the first media-saturated, precedent-type case related to land and law in SL.” What about a case concerning someone being stripped of their land over “speech crimes,” or a divorce case in which one member of the former couple was stripped of land they had bought together, or many other possibilities that have actually happened in Second Life? Well, these users probably thought (with justification) that it would have been futile. As I mentioned before, Linden Labs has lawyers, and they’re also not afraid to ban when they need to.
Ars Technica’s Nate Anderson brought up another interesting point about the lawsuit. “Whatever the truth of this particular case, the lawsuit highlights the fact that developers are not the final authority in their own games anymore. Most in-game disputes were originally settled by the developer, who had total control over the game and its world, but an increasing number of these disputes now seem to be headed into real-world courts when users aren’t satisfied with the developer’s action.”
It seems to me that this case doesn’t really deserve to set a precedent, legal or otherwise, in the murky but enticing world of online make-believe. But it just might if it makes it to court. And for those of us who spend “second lives” online in these brave new worlds, that’s reason enough to pay attention.
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