Game News Mystery solved? "Anonymous industry source" reveals unpaid royalties as reason for BG:EE takedown

[evdk]

Most companies have the same automated software that generates such replies. FanBot, I think it's called.

It's actually called "retards." Bioware has been utilizing it for years.

 

[Indranys]

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/19702/gamebanshee-update-on-current-situation

You are my hero...you put it well together. This is a very good example of what is happening in my home country right now (Egypt), how rumors and speculations, and a horrible nasty deceiving media can do. Create conflicts, civilians deaths, chaos, unrest, illegally overthrowing an innocent leader and so on.

The Muslim Brotherhood supports BG:EE

I need no politics bullshit in my favorite gaming site please.
The chaos is their own fault IMHO.

On topic, there's no way that Beamdog can rape another classics after this turn of event.
Make your own original shit, Trey.

 

[Dreaad]

Better then expected

 

[Septaryeth]

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/19702/gamebanshee-update-on-current-situation

You are my hero...you put it well together. This is a very good example of what is happening in my home country right now (Egypt), how rumors and speculations, and a horrible nasty deceiving media can do. Create conflicts, civilians deaths, chaos, unrest, illegally overthrowing an innocent leader and so on.

The Muslim Brotherhood supports BG:EE

But seriously though, ignoring all the political drama,
News with "anonymous industry source" is usually taken with extreme salts.

 

[Jaesun]

So perhaps this did not initially sell as well as Beamdog expected, and then did not have enough to pay the royalties to Atari?

 

[Azazel]

I thought by definition Royalties were a percentage of sales, not sure how they could have fucked up hard enough to be unable to pay them.

 

[Jaesun]

In the company I worked for (NOT Video Games) we paid royalties based off of units sold. What I wonder is, were they intentionally not paying royalties, or there was an amount of royalties they had to pay after the product was released, but they did not have enough to pay that. I just don't know the specifics of video game royalties, or the contract Beamdog had with Atari.

 

[RK47]

Well my anonymous sources indicates this news is bullshit.
How about that?

 

[sea]

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/19702/gamebanshee-update-on-current-situation

Well shit, now I have to reply.

FYI, I don't know who the source is or how accurate the information is. I would wager it is accurate but incomplete in that it doesn't provide a full picture of what's going on.

My belief is that the terms of the contract between Overhaul and Atari stated that Overhaul would not have to pay royalties until sales exceeded a certain number, perhaps across certain platforms; perhaps there is a discrepancy or difference of interpretation in the contract's terms that is holding things up. I doubt it's as simple as "Overhaul are keeping money they owe to someone else."

 

[RK47]

For what it's worth: I don't have access to this source, I don't know who he or she is, and I don't even know the exact statement given to us. However the supposition that the information is not reliable, accurate or even deceptive as part of some sort of conspiracy against Overhaul Games and/or Atari is patently ludicrous.

Like all such tips the information was provided to us by a source under condition of anonymity; it is fully listed as unconfirmed and nowhere in the news post is it in any way said to be truthful, reliable or to give the full picture into the situation. There's no spin put on the info and as far as I know it's presented as it was received by us. GameBanshee or its writers are not liable for any misinterpretations, whether deliberate or not.

in other words.....what are you posting exactly? Rumors?

 

[Zeriel]

That's 50% of modern journalism right there. While it sucks when "sources" just lie to the media, it's not a new practice to use unnamed sources, and if you're going to trash Game Banshee for it, might as well trash every other news outfit in the world.

 

[keppj0nes]

In what arrangement does a developer pay the publisher royalties?

 

[Infinitron]

In what arrangement does a developer pay the publisher royalties?

When the developer is being allowed to independently sell a game through their own digital distribution site and they don't own the license?

 

[evdk]

In what arrangement does a developer pay the publisher royalties?

They don't pay them to the publisher, they pay them to the license holder, it's just the same entity in this case. Beyond that I have no idea about the financial arrangements in this relationship.

 

[Zeriel]

And they're licensing an entire fucking game. I'd be shocked if there weren't massive, punitive royalties involved. Selling mods is a pretty effortless business to be in, really.

 

[Volrath]

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/19702/gamebanshee-update-on-current-situation

Well shit, now I have to reply.

FYI, I don't know who the source is or how accurate the information is. I would wager it is accurate but incomplete in that it doesn't provide a full picture of what's going on.

My belief is that the terms of the contract between Overhaul and Atari stated that Overhaul would not have to pay royalties until sales exceeded a certain number, perhaps across certain platforms; perhaps there is a discrepancy or difference of interpretation in the contract's terms that is holding things up. I doubt it's as simple as "Overhaul are keeping money they owe to someone else."

I like how nobody responds to you over there

 

[felipepepe]

And they're licensing an entire fucking game. I'd be shocked if there weren't massive, punitive royalties involved. Selling mods is a pretty effortless business to be in, really.

True, I wouldn't be surprised if they have to pay something like 60% as royalties... they may fool retards into thinking it's a massive overhauls with shitloads of new stuff, but I doubt that Atari is that dumb.

 

[abnaxus]

In what arrangement does a developer pay the publisher royalties?

They don't pay them to the publisher, they pay them to the license holder, it's just the same entity in this case. Beyond that I have no idea about the financial arrangements in this relationship.

Maybe an idea for to screw over Obsidian even more next time they do a Fallout expansion.

 

[Infinitron]

In what arrangement does a developer pay the publisher royalties?

They don't pay them to the publisher, they pay them to the license holder, it's just the same entity in this case. Beyond that I have no idea about the financial arrangements in this relationship.

Maybe an idea for to screw over Obsidian even more next time they do a Fallout expansion.

That would be screwing them over less. The truth is that Beamdog got a really sweet deal here, although they squandered it by trying to establish their own digital distribution portal that nobody cares about instead of trying to negotiate a percentage on Steam sales.

 

[Kem0sabe]

Rumors, hearsay, internet gossip... not worthy of codex news. Also Gamebanshee publishing this shit without verified sources...

 

[commie]

Rumors, hearsay, internet gossip... not worthy of codex news. Also Gamebanshee publishing this shit without verified sources...

'Sup Trent?

 

[Jaesun]

My belief is that the terms of the contract between Overhaul and Atari stated that Overhaul would not have to pay royalties until sales exceeded a certain number, perhaps across certain platforms; perhaps there is a discrepancy or difference of interpretation in the contract's terms that is holding things up. I doubt it's as simple as "Overhaul are keeping money they owe to someone else."

That is what I am wondering as well.

 

[Kem0sabe]

Rumors, hearsay, internet gossip... not worthy of codex news. Also Gamebanshee publishing this shit without verified sources...

'Sup Trent?

*high five*

I just dislike this type of "journalism", if you consider internet gaming sites new sources that is. I've dealt with unscrupulous newspaper editors before when i wrote for a political blog, some verified their sources before publishing, a lot of them just run with what "sounds" better on the headline without much regard to the fallout.

 

[Infinitron]

*high five*

I just dislike this type of "journalism", if you consider internet gaming sites new sources that is. I've dealt with unscrupulous newspaper editors before when i wrote for a political blog, some verified their sources before publishing, a lot of them just run with what "sounds" better on the headline without much regard to the fallout.

The source isn't anonymous to GameBanshee. They just can't reveal his or her name.

 

[evdk]

The source isn't anonymous to GameBanshee. They just can't reveal his or her name.

:hurrdurr: What does he have to hide by being anonymous?
:patriot: