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A Virtual Property Solution: How Privacy Law Can Protect The Citizens Of Virtual Worlds, John W. Nelson
A Virtual Property Solution: How Privacy Law Can Protect The Citizens Of Virtual Worlds, John W. Nelson
John W. Nelson
Privacy laws can protect virtual worlds and their users where property law cannot. Yet, legal scholars tend to ignore this power in favor of extending the virtual world metaphor in an effort to see the common law of property cover virtual worlds. This article explores how harms against the citizens of virtual worlds are harms against the victim’s mental state rather than his wallet. A review of the types of privacy law applicable to virtual worlds is provided, and those laws are applied to common virtual world scenarios resulting in harm. Finally, privacy law is offered as the most viable …
The Virtual Property Problem: What Property Rights In Virtual Resources Might Look Like, How They Might Work, And Why They Are A Bad Idea, John W. Nelson
The Virtual Property Problem: What Property Rights In Virtual Resources Might Look Like, How They Might Work, And Why They Are A Bad Idea, John W. Nelson
John W. Nelson
‘Virtual property’ is a solution looking for a problem. Arguments justifying ‘virtual property’ lie among three common themes — Lockean labor theory, theft protection and deterrence, and market efficiency. This paper goes beyond those who advocate for or against the creation of ‘virtual property.’ First, Locke’s labor theory is dismissed as a justification. Then, two models of what property rights may look like when applied to virtual resources are created. These models are then applied to six different virtual world scenarios in order to see the effects of ‘virtual property.’ Finally, the failure of property rights to benefit the users, …