Law Commons^™

E-Sports As A Prism For The Role Of Evolving Technology In Intellectual Property, Jennifer E. Rothman

University of Pennsylvania Law Review Online

This essay challenges the preference for legislating in the face of new technology. Responding to Dan Burk’s recent article, Owning E-Sports: Proprietary Rights in Professional Computer Gaming, this essay considers how technology influences intellectual property law, both in the context of professional video gaming, e-sports, and beyond. The essay provides two major insights. First, that changing technology and new industries often can reveal misguided approaches taken by the common law in intellectual property cases. The concept of “persona” in right of publicity law and the “initial interest confusion” doctrine in trademark law are two prime examples of this phenomenon. Second, …