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The right of mod users


Ixum

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I've been presented with a situation in which I am being denied the use of a mod - released some two years ago - with a mod EULA issued a little under two weeks ago. The modder is saying that I personally cannot use his mod anymore because he is revoking my license.

A disclaimer here: I make a lot of Skyrim sex videos. I have never made any money from of those videos. I do not do paid commissions. I do have a patreon mainly for cloud hosting (very few donations there). I have commissioned animations on this site, I have used my personal money to further the goal of modding. I have no reason to seek personal wealth through mods others have made.

All that aside, this is my basic defense towards this ban:

    1) I have never agreed to the agreement since it was not present for acceptance on download or installation
    2) Can a game mod really utilize this legal right? Mods rely on a game with it's on EULA, official tools, systems, other mods etc. One mod is usually a product of a lot of different entities, be it modders, professionals etc, is a single modder in his right to bottleneck content that so many have helped him achieve?
    3) Freedom of expression: No license or agreement can infringe on the right of freedom of expression.

And, this same modder gave his permission to use his assets in textures. A month ago he decided to revoke those rights.

How can the modding community operate under this kind of content fascism, one day you are awarded right to assets on the cost of credit mention, the next day - when someone doesn't like what you are doing - you are denied that very right. Why should any of us really do anything? Someone will just get pissed off and play modding king.

 

EDIT: Adding the actual EULA

 

SAM - Shape Atlas for Men End­ User License Agreement
Last updated: 11-06-2016
 
Please read this End­ User License Agreement carefully before installing and using SAM - Shape Atlas for Men.
 
By installing or using this software, you are agreeing to be bound by the terms and conditions of this Agreement.
 
If you do not agree to the terms of this Agreement, do not install or use SAM - Shape Atlas for Men.
 
License
VectorPlexus grants you a revocable, non­exclusive, non­transferable, limited license to download, install and use SAM - Shape Atlas for Men solely for your personal, non­commercial purposes strictly in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.
 
Restrictions
You agree not to, and you will not permit others to:
a) license, sell, rent, lease, assign, distribute, transmit, host, outsource, disclose or otherwise commercially exploit SAM - Shape Atlas for Men or parts of it, available to any third party.
c) use SAM - Shape Atlas for Men to create any questionable content that depict or promote harassment, racism, rape, bestiality or child abuse.
B) use SAM - Shape Atlas for Men to create any product, by-product media or derivative content to promote you, your work or your company, without watermarking it with VectorPlexus logo and site address (www.vectorplexus.com).
 
Permissions
In case you wish to modify any part of SAM - Shape Atlas for Men, you will require written approval from VectorPlexus. Any request should be submitted via e-mail to permissions@vectorplexus.com. Any modification or any product created with it, like screengrabs or gameplay videos, will be subject and inherit the same EULA has SAM - Shape Atlas for Men.
 
Modifications
VectorPlexus and LadyMoiraine reserves the right to modify, suspend or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the availability of SAM - Shape Atlas for Men, with or without notice and without liability to you.
 
Term and Termination
This Agreement shall remain in effect until terminated by you or VectorPlexus.
 
VectorPlexus may, in its sole discretion, at any time and for any or no reason, suspend or terminate this Agreement with or without prior notice. This Agreement will terminate immediately, without prior notice from VectorPlexus, in the event that you fail to comply with any provision of this Agreement.
 
You may also terminate this Agreement by deleting the SAM - Shape Atlas for Men, all its parts and all copies thereof from any data storage you may possess or be in agreement with, such as clouding or sharing services.
 
Upon termination of this Agreement, you shall cease all use of SAM - Shape Atlas for Men and delete all copies of it.
 
Amendments to this Agreement
VectorPlexus reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to modify or replace this Agreement at any time. If a revision is material we will provide at least 30 days' notice prior to any new terms taking effect. What constitutes a material change will be determined at our sole discretion.
 
An exemption is granted to Hall of Torque (www.ladymoiraine.com) for the rights to distribute, trasmite, and host SAM - Shape Atlas for Men and any derivative work, content, product or by-product of it.
 
Hall of Torque users will not be held in any liability as long as any content created with or for SAM - Shape Atlas for Men, will remain hosted exclusively at www.ladymoiraine.com or www.vectorplexus.com and are in agreement with the restrictions policy in lines a) and B).
 
VectorPlexus and LadyMoiraine are free of any liability that may result from any misuse of SAM - Shape Atlas for Men.
 
Contact Information
If you have any questions about this Agreement, please contact us.
 
© Copyright VectorPlexus 2016, All Rights Reserved
 

 

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is his mod really worth making a video for? there's still plenty of fish in the sea. and no, there's nothing he can do. sue you? sure if wants to be laughing stock.

 

 

 

it's his mod and he's asking you to not use them anymore. it's really up to you if you will listen.

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which mod?

 

and #3 is just flat out not true. easiest one that comes to mind is called the Non Disclosure Agreement. not that it is applicable. but its a thing.

 

generally changes in eula can only affect the current version on, with previous versions as they were to not yank the carpet out from under you. i don't know how that stands up in court, but that is the crap i see in the open source community all the time, projects being forked from versions before licence changes.

 

imho i'd just say fuck him and use it anyway just to piss him off, since i doubt there is anything he can and would /really/ do about it.

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imho i'd just say fuck him and use it anyway just to piss him off, since i doubt there is anything he can and would /really/ do about it.

 

use it because its the only thing that does the thing it does at the moment.

and its the modder pissing off the op already, good luck irritating him back.

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As others have said sure you could still use it in your video's but isn't that kind of a dick move?

 

If the mod Author granted you permission then presumably seen the content you were using it in and didn't like the way it was being used or whatever the case may be shouldn't you just respect his/her wishes and not use it in the videos?

 

I don't really care either way just don't understand the issue.

 

Edit: After reading your last post now I'm with everyone else if he/she revokes a non-existent license and can't even give a simple explanation then  just keep on using it in your videos.

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EULAs are license agreements made usually when downloading/installing a mod or other form of intellectual property. A EULA cannot be made posthumously, that is not how the legal system works. I.e., you are specifically exempt. However, theoretically the modder can make a claim or argument that your videos are giving his mod a bad name or even himself a bad name, and if he gets really serious he might have some sort of a case for libel. I can't really see anything else in his favor here. 

 

BTW, assuming you are in the US, the terminology is not freedom of expression, it is freedom of speech and/or the press. Also, the Bill of Rights never said that an individual can't infringe on your freedom of speech, it states that Congress cannot infringe on your freedom of speech via legislation. That being said, there are plenty of fair use laws in existance that would make a very hard time for this modder if he every took this to court.

 

Assuming of course that this does go to court. If not then you can do whatever the hell you want to with his mod, and he can't do anything about it ;)

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Well reading what is here

http://www.ladymoiraine.com/index.php?/files/file/1-sam-shape-atlas-for-men-recoded/

 

There is nothing which says there cannot be used within videos. Mod assets are not being uploaded so, In my opinion!, I would say he has not grounds to stop you.

 

Well that is not really the issue, the issue is that he says he is revoking my non-exisctent license. Just to be fair, if someone doesnt want me to use their mod I would be happy to comply if there was a good reason for that. I have asked him repeatedly why I personaly cannot use his mod. He has told me only that he is under now obligation to reveal his motives.

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The whole what is and what is not fair use can be such murky waters to begin with, when adding modding on top of it that by itself operate in many shades of grey legal wise. those waters quickly become a mud pit. 

 

Legally you can't revoke someone's rights to something after the fact, if I make a picture or texture and say use it as you like blah blah blah, you are free to do that, later if I say you can no longer use it, then from that point on, you can't. but I cannot demand that you take away anything you made doing the time where you had permission. 

Now this where fair use starts to kick in, anything I make regardless of permission, you are free to show off and say that I made it, make fun of it, praise it, criticise it. etc.

Remember publishing date is all that matter here, it does not matter if you made your work when you had permission if you didn't publish it before that got revoked, that's part of the reason why companies trademark their stuff sometimes long before even announcing it. 

 

Now when it comes using it for something else, like for example a sex video, and you use a texture I made and have now taken away the permission to use, there really is no right answer here. especially since you are not making money off it, it really comes down to do you wanna respect the wish of the artist, as long as the proper credit is given there is not really much I could do to stop you other than throwing a fit, I could in extreme cases take legal action but finding a lawyer willing to take that one on would be a hard task.

 

EULA's are not the law set in stone, like any contract if they are illegal they are void.

 

I suspect all this is a result of panic with a bit of ego mixed in, due to all of the mod theft that has been going on recently, and frankly, I'm more surprised by the fact that some seem surprised that it was gonna happen, yelling at Bethesda to take action and protect its modders. and sure stealing someone work a putting it up as your own is a dick move, to say the least. But it's not like it something new, pretty much every artist on something like deviant-art have had their work "stolen" and republished without even a hint of credit, seventeen times I have had to go after someone putting up my work as their own, on the same site nonetheless, and that is not counting the many more using it as thumbnails on their videos many of which are monetized, again without even a hint of credit, the one I found that did give credit, gave it to a person who stole it from me. 

 

The truth is if you make something and publish it, you have to fight tooth and nail to protect it. some are "lucky" to have a large following who can act as radar, but if you are a nobody, well good luck, as the mod thefts have also shown, so many people don't give a flying fuck or down right thank the thief. 

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Well if the SAM mod author becomes so picky, remove SAM from SOS and let this mod diyng by itself. There is another bodyshape in SOS, so ...

 

Personnaly, I don't use SAM at all.

 

 

 

Edit > Apparently, SAM and SOS have the same mod author ? This may change some things. We'll see in the future (but keep your modfiles in case of).

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Well if the SAM mod author becomes so picky, remove SAM from SOS and let this mod diyng by itself. There is another bodyshape in SOS, so ...

 

Personnaly, I don't use SAM at all.

 

 

 

Edit > Apparently, SAM and SOS have the same mod author ? This may change some things. We'll see in the future (but keep your modfiles in case of).

 

Originally yes. B3lisario is in charge of SoS atm but even that one was started by Vectorplexus. 

 

What hurts me the most is that I have done noting to put these mods in a bad light. I have promoted, written guides etc to these mods.

 

EDIT: Added the EULA in OP

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As the EULA was introduced after you downloaded and installed your copy, I don't think it applies.
I cannot find an old license where such change is mentioned. And changing rules after the contract is made is WEIRD anyway.
Thus make sure you have a old copy from before June 12 and never delete it. Have fun using that version.
But the modification part applies because he has copyright over the files. That he can change at will AFAIK.

At the worst, what will happen? New bodymod, with more work put into it that is open source and other awesomeness.
SAM is just a male version of UUNP/CBBE RaceMenu sliders.

Edit: Thought of something funny, but silly:

Modders need to accept how their content is used.

Kitchen knives are not for killing, but hey: It is possible.

To procreate humans need hetero relations. But look at that, we humans fucked that intention as well, quite literally.

So he makes a mod with animated Penis, very intended for Sex. So please do not wonder what we humans make of it.

Oh Bestiality makes you mod look bad? Lets start at Argonians and Khajiit, and I could relate to Real Life here as well, but lets not...

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is his mod really worth making a video for? there's still plenty of fish in the sea. and no, there's nothing he can do. sue you? sure if wants to be laughing stock.

 

 

 

it's his mod and he's asking you to not use them anymore. it's really up to you if you will listen.

 

This would be so true, if I only played the game for myself, I do not, my main hobby is making Skyrim videos. He has a choke hold on me on that one. He can claim all sorts of "theft" and they usually listen to that, beit what ever pornhost.

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is his mod really worth making a video for? there's still plenty of fish in the sea. and no, there's nothing he can do. sue you? sure if wants to be laughing stock.

 

 

 

it's his mod and he's asking you to not use them anymore. it's really up to you if you will listen.

 

This would be so true, if I only played the game for myself, I do not, my main hobby is making Skyrim videos. He has a choke hold on me on that one. He can claim all sorts of "theft" and they usually listen to that, beit what ever pornhost.

 

 

If its just making Videos to promote a mod I dont see a problem.

 

Unless the mod author himself/herself explicitly states that he/she does not want his/her mods on promotional videos.

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Well reading what is here

http://www.ladymoiraine.com/index.php?/files/file/1-sam-shape-atlas-for-men-recoded/

 

There is nothing which says there cannot be used within videos. Mod assets are not being uploaded so, In my opinion!, I would say he has not grounds to stop you.

 

Actually, there is:

 

 

default_cool.png use SAM - Shape Atlas for Men to create any product, by-product media or derivative content to promote you, your work or your company, without watermarking it with VectorPlexus logo and site address (www.vectorplexus.com).
 
Permissions
In case you wish to modify any part of SAM - Shape Atlas for Men, you will require written approval from VectorPlexus. Any request should be submitted via e-mail to permissions@vectorplexus.com. Any modification or any product created with it, like screengrabs or gameplay videos, will be subject and inherit the same EULA has SAM - Shape Atlas for Men.
Yellow highlight, mine.

 

I would presume that that is what the problem is. 

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No matter his b.s reasoning you did contribute to a portion of his fanbase.By being a supporter with the passion you showed for your character/texuremods for sam and showcasing sam in many videos.If they did deem to try to pull some bullcrap with mmoboys he cant censor fanvids when your not distributing any of his assets. Its like me bashing a guy that made a playthrough of my mod.Its stupid and counterproductive and puts the mod in a bad light  vs being an adult and saying wow this person really enjoys this and be humbled by it.

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Did an edit to my post, he is just sad that his mod is used in ways he didn't intend.

I can't find an EULA on kitchen knives where I should destroy it when I kill someone (Which is pretty sure NOT intended use).

Oh, and it is free advertisement.

But now with the changes even normal users may be driven away as you cannot "create any questionable content".

He probably want to ban users that run a Slave mod wth SAM, because "that depict or promote harassment, racism, rape, ..."

 

If he decided to lockdown his mod, I really hope a team gets together and makes something that is just AWESOME.

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Just made from ass assumption - maybe he didn't liked what you did with it, by like I mean, maybe it was in conflict with his view on sexuality?

 

I'm not sure if a gay person would object against gay videos created with his mod. And I'm not sure that a mod author that adds schlongs to the male bodies would object against videos that puts them in action. 

 

This was my first reason for alarm several weeks ago as I consider both Ixum and Vector as important factors in the gay modding community. 

 

But speaking about the issue itself. It is obvious that the modding community is not governed by the written laws as much as the good will of its members and their moral judgment and considerations. So for me the question here is not if the EULA has any legal power or not. 

The questions that arise for me are: is it acceptable that a mod author can suddenly start policing his mod to such an extreme degree out of the blue and what is the acceptable response from Ixum - should he comply or not.

Those are factors in any open-source community.

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