MMORPG News - Possible DMCA Exceptions

Massivelyop report that the US government is considering a DMCA exception for archived online games.

Back in 2015, an exception was made to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to allow for archival of aging video games that were otherwise inaccessible. This sort of exception needs to be periodically reviewed, it got a review, and no changes were made yet. That’s all very normal. But here’s the part that’s very relevant for fans of MMOs: the government is also considering whether or not that exception applies to online games that have been shut down.

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More information.

OMG so we get to play Pet Society, dunno how because servers are gone ages ago, without fear EA will kill us viciously!
Yay, I'm so excited!

This could actually be a very important milestone, depending on how it proceeds. If the law dictates that the source code must be made available and free to distribute once an online game is shuttered, it could very well be a wonderful thing indeed for players who were unceremoniously tossed aside.

It's no coincidence that this article used a City of Heroes picture.

Tabula Rasa comes to my mind.