After the revision of China's Copyright Law in 2020,some Chinese courts have begun granting copyright protection to game rules under the category of"other intellectual achievements that meet the characteristics of works",rather than treating them as audiovisual works.This approach reflects a misunderstandings of the definition of works stipulated in the Copyright Law,and violates the"idea/expression dichotomy".Additionally,the definition of works in the law has some flaws.While game rules may qualify as"intellectual achievements which can be expressed in a certain form",they do not constitute"expressions"that can enjoy copyright protection.Therefore,it is not advisable for courts to find copyright infringement merely based on the fact that the defendant's game replicates the rules of the plaintiff's game.
game rulesdefinition of worksidea/expression dichotomyintellectual achievements
万方数据
