Re: Legal status of DDR step files

[David Turner <novalis@novalis.org>]

On Mon, 2002-12-16 at 18:05, Joe Wreschnig wrote:
> I'm intending to package PyDDR (http://www.clickass.org/~tgz/pyddr), a
> Dance Dance Revolution simulator for UNIX systems. The basic idea behind
> DDR is that you have a pattern of button presses (which you press with
> your feet, hence "dancing") which you do in rhythm with music.
> 
> PyDDR at the moment comes with one free song and step pattern file,
> which I'll be packaging with it. However, I'd also like to include a
> collection of step files (without songs) that are "copies" of the
> official DDR step patterns. I'm not sure if these are free or not.
> 
> The files are created as follows: Someone watches the required button
> presses scroll by in the official version of DDR (from a Playstation
> game CD). They copy down those buttons, and then write a file containing
> that information but in a format PyDDR understands.
> 
> Now, my guess is that these aren't free, because the step file is still
> a copy of the original one. However, it's also possible that you can't
> copyright just a series of button presses, and so since the actual files
> containing their button data weren't copyrighted, these "reverse
> engineered" button presses are.
> 
> Can anyone better versed in copyright law than I comment on this?

I think that the dances described by the rising arrows are copyrightable
as choreographic works (one of the specifically mentioned items in 17
usc 106).

So, I agree with you.
  
-- 
-Dave Turner                     Stalk Me: 617 441 0668

"The coked-up Hollyweird fatcats hate Turing Machines." 
                     -Murray, _0wnz0red_, Cory Doctorow