July 15, 2016
By:
Authored by Christopher Powers, Summer Law Clerk
As you may have heard, Pokemon Go is sweeping the nation, including Central New York.
Pokemon Go is a downloadable mobile app where players try to find different characters from the popular Japanese cartoon and video game on a virtual map based on a user’s actual surroundings. The app uses GPS and other geolocation features on a user’s smartphone to places the virtual characters at local landmarks. Then, the player then must go to the place and use traditional gaming techniques to “capture” the character. Pokemon Go was released on July 7, and has become a worldwide sensation. Within a week, the game already had been downloaded more than 10 million times, according to CNN.
Pokemon Go is being credited with spurring traditionally homebound gamers to explore their communities while getting exercise and also building impromptu friendships among participants.
But it’s not all fun and games, so to speak. The Pokemon Go phenomenon, and the other similar types of so-called augmented-reality games, implicates multiple legal issues, from the simple to the potentially dangerous. The rapid growth and relative lack of knowledge surrounding the game have prompted numerous warnings from law enforcement and other municipal entities about the dangers of the game. Other examples of how the game raises real legal questions include:
All things considered, though, Pokemon Go and other augmented-reality games are just forms of entertainment. Since augmented reality is new, most of these issues are speculative and nowhere near settled. For now, enjoy the game, be careful, and be courteous. But don’t be surprised if the continuing evolution of the augmented-reality industry leads to new, unprecedented legal issues.
Tags: Augmented-reality Game, Geological Features, GPS, Japanese Cartoon, Virtual Map