Rules Around Using Episode Art Assets and Community Edits

Cause all of this is Episode’s property and we were sharing it openly?

As per this - I cannot comment, as I don’t have enough information, and this is off-topic here tbh.

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Show me the line :woman_shrugging:t4:

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Line that says you can’t distribute copyrighted content? U serious?

Yup enlighten me I’m just too stupid to read and understand TOS.

If that’s the case then why bother getting someone to point it out to you?! :woman_shrugging:

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Taking Episode assets (their backgrounds, their overlays, the art style of the three styles, etc.) has always been prohibited when it comes to taking it beyond your personal use in the context of the app. The last line of this section is important, because it lays down the absolutes of their legal conditions.

  1. User Content (including Your Content) and Episode Interactive Created Materials:

In addition, you acknowledge and agree that all derivative works of the Service Materials, including, but not limited to, any animations of any kind generated within or by the Service, shall be owned by Episode Interactive. Such materials are referred to in this Agreement as the “Episode Interactive Created Materials.” For clarity, it is understood and agreed that any animations, sequences of animation, characters, or artwork based on Your Content shall be Episode Interactive Created Materials. To ensure such ownership, you hereby assign to Episode Interactive all rights, title and interest in and to the Episode Interactive Created Materials that you hold, if any. Accordingly, for clarity, you acknowledge that (a) Episode Interactive and any third party it authorizes may exploit for any purpose the Episode Interactive Created Materials via the Service; and (b) you shall not have any rights to use the Episode Interactive Created Materials for any purpose.

Episode - Terms of Service

I agree they should have dealt with it all a long time ago, but this has been part of Episode’s contract with us as consumers from the beginning.

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And I particularly want to know on which line of TOS it’s written that we can’t use hidden stuff. :weary:

Lord, give me strength.

Liz has personally responded to you in this thread before, quoting herself. Creating images using Episode assets never gives an editor the right to distribute. This is not new for Episode, nor is it new in the eyes of copyright laws.

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2. Changes to the Terms of Service and the Service

Episode Interactive reserves the right, at its discretion, to change, modify, add or remove portions of these Terms of Service and its Privacy Policy at any time by posting the amended terms on the Site. You will be deemed to have accepted such changes by continuing to use the Service. Except as otherwise expressly stated, all amended terms shall automatically be effective immediately when posted.

3. Limited License Grant and Restrictions

Episode Interactive grants to you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable revocable license to use and display the following: (a) the portions of the Service that are freely accessible from the Episode Interactive Site or that are, with Episode Interactive’s authorization, made freely accessible from third party websites or sources, and (b) such other portions of the Service accessible on a “for-payment” basis, provided that you have paid the applicable fees and satisfied all applicable conditions. The license in the preceding sentence is (i) solely for your personal, non-commercial use; (ii) solely for a single computer to access the Site and solely on a device to access applications; and (iii) subject to your compliance at all times with these Terms of Service.

You agree not to (and not to attempt to): (i) copy, adapt, modify, prepare derivative works based upon, distribute, license, sell, transfer, publicly display, publicly perform, transmit, stream, broadcast or otherwise exploit the Service or any portion of the Service, except as expressly permitted in these Terms of Service; or (ii) use the Service for any use or purpose other than as expressly permitted by these Terms of Service.

You agree that the Service Materials are protected by, and their use, copying and dissemination may be restricted by, applicable intellectual property and other laws in both the United States and other jurisdictions. All rights not expressly granted by these Terms of Service are reserved by Episode Interactive and its licensors, and no license is granted hereunder by estoppel, implication or otherwise. You agree not to encumber, license, modify, publish, copy, sell, transfer, transmit or in any way exploit, any portion of the Service or Service Materials other than Your Content (as defined below), nor will you attempt to do so, except as expressly permitted in writing by Episode Interactive and, as applicable, the owner of such Service Materials (from whom you are solely responsible for obtaining permission).

“Service Materials” means all information and materials that are part of the Service, including without limitation the following: any and all copyrightable material, including software; the “look and feel” of the Service or portions thereof; the compilation, assembly and arrangement of the materials of the Service or portions thereof; photographs; graphics; artwork, characters, animations, layout; text; images; audio; video; designs; advertising copy; data; logos; domain names; trademarks, service marks, trade names and other source identifiers; and User Content.

nuff?

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Why claim there’s no line in the Terms of Services if you didn’t read or understand it?

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As I said, I’m foreigner. Even though you shared those lines of TOS, I still don’t understand them. :woman_shrugging:t4: You have every right to call me stupid.

English is not my first or second language. I do understand English almost perfectly, but not law words. :woman_shrugging:t4:

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I’m in the exact same position. That’s why I use translators :woman_shrugging:
As everyone loves to say, the fact you don’t understand rules/law doesn’t mean you won’t be held accountable.

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I read them many times and too many. I know we can’t sell. That’s quite normal. But sharing inside community?

One more thing - I don’t use Episode assets! I do feel disturbed that others who did, need to change everything now.

Distribution doesn’t just mean distributing for profit though. You must understand this key component.

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Hey can someone explain it to me in a very easy way? because I don’t think that I really get it? are we not allowed to create backgrounds anymore that are episode related? and if we uploud a background to the portal we created ourself does this mean we can’t share that background because episode gains the official rights ?

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Well others should’ve read terms of agreement as well.

TBH, Episode was too kind to let us do this stuff for years. So this wave of shit, and especially from persons who WERE sharing hidden and not so stuff stuff (and we know who I am talking about), is just making me mad.

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You can create edited backgrounds and overlays,.
You can ask a friend to do it for you.
You can upload them.
You can’t use Episode unreleased stuff, including backgrounds, props etc.
You can’t share your edited backgrounds openly, on drive or on Forums or anywhere else.

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You can create backgrounds for your own personal use. :slight_smile: Basically, just don’t share anything where you’ve edited the art (backgrounds + overlays) that is made available by them in the art catalogue. Those are Episode’s assets, so they own copyright to them.

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You can’t use assets from Episode published Backgrounds!

You can.