The Mystery of NOLF's IP Rights

[Infinitron]

http://www.bluesnews.com/s/140550

No One Knows Who Owns NOLF

A post on One Of Swords has a new episode of One of Swords TV where "Activision community management team of one" Dan Amrich attempts to sort through the sticky issue of who owns the rights to No One Lives Forever, Monolith's spy spoof series, last known to be the property of Vivendi Games after they acquired with the Fox Interactive catalog. Since Vivendi eventually merged with Activision, he seems like the one to ask, and Dan explains that some of the IP they ended up with as a result of that merger has since been sold off, using the example of Leisure Suit Larry, and that many of the games they retained are now being sold on GOG.com, using the example of the King's Quest series. As for NOLF, he says this is something he's asked about himself, going on to explain:

The person that I normally talk to about this stuff does not believe that we currently the rights. They've never seen it, they've never been given the permission to put that stuff on Good Old Games. He said, basically, 'If we had it, I would love to be able to reissue those old games.' So, that leaves the question if Activision no longer has the rights to No One Lives Forever, who does? Monolith was the developer that handled those games, and they are now part of WB. So I thought, maybe at the time when Activision was saying 'we'll keep these, we'll leave these, we'll sell these, whatever,' maybe Monolith stepped up and took their IP back. So I contacted a friend at Monolith... and he doesn't know. Uh, so, unfortunately, all I can definitively say is that at this time I do not believe that Activision has the rights to No One Lives Forever.​

 

[DalekFlay]

Sad that a creator can have no idea who owns the rights to sell their creation.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Who cares? Monolith is dead, and thus NOLF is dead.

 

[Infinitron]

Well, if we want to get it on GOG...

 

[Jim Cojones]

Good news, nobody is able to make NOLF3.

 

[DalekFlay]

Quick someone kickstart a campaign to hire a private detective to discover who holds the rights to NOLF so someone else can kickstart a campaign to buy the rights to NOLF so someone else can kickstart a campaign to develop NOLF 3.

 

[Darth Roxor]

I, for one, hope it's stuck in perpetual limbo.

Well, if we want to get it on GOG...

Why would we want that? Honest question.

 

[octavius]

An easy way to find out who really owns the right would be to violate the rights. I'm sure if GOG did offer the NOLF games it wouldn't take long to sort out the ownership.

 

[DalekFlay]

Why would we want that? Honest question.

Not to answer for him, but I would assume it has to do with support/extras and an easier install process. Also some people are against abandonware, for whatever reason. (I am not, for the record).

 

[Eyeball]

Good news, nobody is able to make NOLF3.

Agreed. NOLF1 is a true classic that has aged well. NOLF2 was not....BAD as such. It was just a HUGE step backwards from the charm, inventiveness and fluidity of the first game and effectively killed the series.

I am quite happy to let Cate Archer rest in peace

 

[Ninja Destroyer]

Good news, nobody is able to make NOLF3.

Indeed, let's have a toast.

 

[Infinitron]

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013/04/09/no-one-lives-forever-rights-nowhere-to-be-found/

No One Lives Forever was basically the greatest. This is an incontrovertible truth of the universe. The unabashedly groovy stealth shooter (and its sequel; though not blah blah blam blam spin-off Contract J.A.C.K) was equal parts silly and smart, with a peeling back of the proverbial weaponized banana peel yielding everything from lowbrow stereotypes to startlingly nuanced dissections of sexism and the criminal mind. Also, it had the best phonetic title acronym ever. NOLF. Just say that out loud. Isn’t it wonderful? It’s like the yelp a dog would make if its nose were being pinched by an enraged yet largely harmless lobster. But anyway, point being, wouldn’t it be great if we could somehow get another from somebody? Please? Well, happily, there appear to be at least a couple interested parties. Problem is, Cate Archer’s performed a disappearing act so formidable that even the likes of the maniacal *lightning crackles* Activision Corp can’t track her down.

The story goes that original publisher Fox Interactive got gobbled up by Vivendi Universal back in 2003, and then the great Activision Blizzard of 2007 rolled in and left everybody frozen under the same roof. So, logically, the rights to No One Lives Forever should be buried somewhere deep in Activision’s Singularity-and-Guitar-Hero-strewn vaults, right? Unfortunately/thankfully, bzzzzzt wrong. Activision community mastermind Dan “One of Swords” Amrich explained:

“The person who I normally talk to about that stuff does not believe that we currently have the rights. They’v never seen it. They’ve never been given the permission to put that stuff on Good Old Games. They basically said, ‘If we had it, I would love to have been able to reissue those games.’”

“At this time I do not believe Activision has the rights to No One Lives Forever, so if there were to be a reissue or remake or something like that, it wouldn’t come from Activision. I don’t know what the future holds for No One Lives forever, but I don’t think that that future involves Activision.”

Fair enough. But what about original developer Monolith? After taking a turn for the grimdark in FEAR and Condemned, they recently resumed their wacky ways with Gotham City Imposters. So, you know, maybe a new NOLF’s also in order? Sadly, no dice on that front either. “I contacted a friend at Monolith, and he doesn’t know [who has the rights],” said Amrich.

In short, no one’s sure what happened to No One Lives Forever. Not even God. By which I of course mean my good friend Goddard Williamson, who usually keeps abreast of these sorts of things.

So for now, it’s a mystery. However, I plan to do some digging, and if any globules of info-rich saliva fall from parted lips in some parking garage of secrets, I’ll let you know. Here’s hoping.

 

[GarfunkeL]

Didn't Jaesun have access to the US patent/copyright registry or something?

 

[Infinitron]

Didn't Jaesun have access to the US patent/copyright registry or something?

Note that owning the trademark for the name "No One Lives Forever" isn't the same thing as owning the rights to the games themselves.

 

[Jaesun]

I just search the Trademark site. That only shows the owner of a Trademark, but finding out who owns the IP and other things is more investigation elsewhere.

 

[tuluse]

So the IP rights for Torment lapsed last year for a game made in 1999, the last NOLF branded game was released in 2003, so 2016 they'll be free?

 

[Infinitron]

I just search the Trademark site. That only shows the owner of a Trademark, but finding out who owns the IP and other things is more investigation elsewhere.

Well? Who's the owner?

 

[Jaesun]

I just search the Trademark site. That only shows the owner of a Trademark, but finding out who owns the IP and other things is more investigation elsewhere.

Well? Who's the owner?

All the trademarks for it are in DEAD status. Owners are:


(REGISTRANT) Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation CORPORATION DELAWARE 10201 West Pico Boulevard Los Angeles CALIFORNIA 90035

(LAST LISTED OWNER) VIVENDI GAMES, INC. CORPORATION DELAWARE 6060 CENTER DRIVE, 5TH FLOOR LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA 90045

All that basically means is ANYONE could buy the Trademark now and make a game with that name, but they cannot make a game that has any reference at all to the original games IP. Of which I have no clue who owns that.

 

[Ulminati]

No Trademark Lives Forever™

 

[deuxhero]

So the IP rights for Torment lapsed last year for a game made in 1999, the last NOLF branded game was released in 2003, so 2016 they'll be free?

Planescape was a licensed setting and that license expired, NoLF isn't comparable

On a random note, here's something from Pixiv I found during a challenge to find the most obscure western game with art on there.

Spoiler

(it's work safe, just bigish, no it's the only thing on there for the tag. I THINK she's saying "not fun" in Engrish, but knowing nothing more than how to pronounce the kana, I'm likely wrong)

 

[Infinitron]

The Planescape license never expired. The "Torment IP" never expired.

The trademark on the name "Torment" expired. Everything else belongs to Hasbro.

 

[J1M]

Just register nolf3.com and put up a piece of concept art claiming that you are making a sequel. You will find out who owns it right-quick for the low-low price of $15.

 

[Gakkone]

https://www.facebook.com/NightDiveStudios/posts/445503338872134

We have a pretty good idea of where the rights are...

(These are the guys that got System Shock 2 on GoG.)

 

[octavius]

Of course, any monocled gentlegamer will already have physical copies of System Shock 2 and NOLF.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.facebook.com/NightDiveStudios/posts/445503338872134

We have a pretty good idea of where the rights are...

(These are the guys that got System Shock 2 on GoG.)

That Stephen Kick guy has landed himself a sweet job, hasn't he? I wonder what % of the SS2 GOG revenue he's taking.