“On the other side of the argument, there’s what Disney does.” Disney’s strategy is to put classic movies “in the vault” for extended periods. “On the one hand, there’s no amount of money that will let me get a legal copy of this game,” said Bambauer. What If You Rip Your Own ROMs?Ī common argument online is that extracting a ROM from a cartridge you own is perfectly legal, but downloading ROMs from the web is a crime. Devices like the $60 Retrode let anyone extract a Super Nintendo or Sega Genesis game over USB, and state their legality over downloads as a key selling point. After all, ripping a CD you own with iTunes or other software is broadly considered legal, at least in the United States. “This is by no means a slam dunk argument,” said Bambauer, “But it’s by no means a silly one.” After all, Nintendo could argue that by emulating the game on your phone, instead of buying their official port of a game, they’re losing money.īut, while there is no precedent specific to gaming, there is in other markets. “In the music industry, everyone accepts that space shifting is legal,” Bambauer notes. And Bambauer is quick to admit it’s not a perfect one.

Now, this isn’t black and white just a potential legal argument.

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