Memes and Parasites: A discourse analysis of the Copyright in the Digital Single Market Directive

Merit and monetisation: A study of video game user-generated content policies

“…Many of these personalities are not highly skilled players and nor are they esteemed critics; instead, most of the value they contribute is light-hearted entertainment, usually, but not exclusively, humorous in nature. At the other end of the 'playing a game' spectrum, the increasing profile of eSports (competitive video gaming) has seen the rise of the professional ' eAthlete' , who trains and specialises in gameplay with the same level of intensity as a traditional sports athlete (and in some cases has surpassed traditional sports in popularity -see Thomas, 2020). Evidentially, where videos of game content are concerned, users are becoming increasingly professionalised in the form of a new digital entertainment industry, rather than a niche community.…”

“…Finally, the recent Copyright in the Digital Single Market (CDSM) Directive offered the opportunity for more substantive discussions and legislative reform of the legal treatment of UGC, broadly conceived (see Erickson, 2014;Furgal, Kretschmer & Thomas, 2020), and indeed resulted in the newly incorporated concept of "subjectmatter uploaded by users" (Article 17( 7)) (read: UGC). Lamentably however, the Directive does not offer any clarification or progression as to the legal treatment of UGC, but instead re-affirms the more traditional doctrinal standpoint that UGC is a concept which lies somewhere between the work of an author (who can authorise the use of such works per Article 17(1)) or the beneficiary of either of the exceptions outlined above (a limitation which is articulated in Article 17( 7)).…”