How many modders who don't want their mods in commercial products?

[ehughes]

I'm starting a new project soon, and want to make sure I'm not using any mods in my projects created by someone who doesn't want them used in any commercial products.

Can we make a list, and keep it locked at the top of this forum for reference? That way, users won't make the mistake of crossing any copyright boundaries? Thanks much guys!

[Moviestorm]

License terms for mods isn't something that Moviestorm is prepared to - or should be - involved in. However, we'd suggest the following general approach.

- It's good practice to credit modders, particularly those who contribute significant mods. However, sometimes this isn't practical, for example, if it would make the list of credits too long for the movie. And sometimes, people forget who created a mod, or forget they've used a particular mod, especially if it's only on-screen briefly. So if your mod is used and not credited, be reasonable about it.

- If there are no specific licensing terms, assume that people will feel free to use your mod in commercial projects, especially if they've paid for it.

- If you specifically don't want your mod used in commercial projects, say so before the user downloads it.

- If your mod does turn up in a commercial project, it's usually best to assume it's an honest mistake and the director didn't know, had forgotten, or didn't realize your mod was actually in there. Again, be reasonable about it: most "commercial" machinima projects earn a few hundred bucks at most, and you're not being swindled out of thousands of dollars in royalties, even if your mod is center stage.

- Obviously if someone is repackaging your mod and reselling it under their own name, that's a completely different matter to using mods in commercial movie projects. However, there's certainly a grey area when it comes to mods of mods, and that usually needs to be settled on a case by case basis.

It's important to keep this issue in proportion, though. Very few people make commercial machinima. It's not something most modders will ever have to worry about.