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→Related to emulation
The downloading and distribution of ROMs in most jurisdictions is considered a violation of copyright laws, with the exception of ROMs licensed in the Public Domain or other licenses that allow distribution. This also applies to other copyrighted material such as BIOS files.
The legality of using encryption keys for emulators or accessing personal video collections is a debated topic. These keys, typically generated by random number algorithms, are not subject to copyright protection unlike creative content. In the realm of DVDs, Blu-rays, and HD DVDs, the question arises: should using open-source software to decode, watch, or back up your legally acquired video collection be restricted due to these non-copyrightable encryption keys? See the [[#Related_to_emulation|related to emulation]] section for the home media and home video realm.
There are even political parties, such as the [[Wikipedia:Pirate Party UK|Pirate Party UK]], whose core policies focus on reforming copyright and patent laws[https://old.reddit.com/r/emulation/comments/1bbn3bw/defending_emulation_rights_and_challenging/], supporting privacy, reducing government and business surveillance, and championing freedom of speech and expression.
==Related to emulation==
[[Ripping_games|Dumping tools]], box art and other artwork stuff, magazines, screenshots, [[Preservation_projects#Revivial_Projects|revivial projects]], [[Mods,_hacks_and_fan-translations|mods and hacks including fan-translations]], [[Game engine recreations and source ports]], [[Homebrew_and_hack_Roms|homebrew]], [[Copy_protectionRipping_games#Codec_situations_and_home_media_discsDisc-based|capturing ]] and ripping home media and home video content (since VCR era) or [[Copy_protection#Codec_situations_and_home_media_discs|media player software compatibility with optical discs encryptions including codec situations]] and [[Copy protection]] techniques since all of them are somewhat related to emulation, either directly or indirectly. The tension between copyright infringement and attempts to remove infringing content through the DMCA has been a longstanding issue, often hindering [[Preservation_projects|preservation efforts]].
===2K===
*A total of 379 fan-made games have been removed from gaming website and hosting service Game Jolt after Nintendo of America issued a mass DMCA takedown.[https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/01/nintendo_issues_mass_dmca_takedown_379_fan-made_games_forcibly_removed]
*Lots of ROM sites taken down by Nintendo. Funny thing is they allegedly downloaded and sold a rom back to customers[https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2017-01-18-did-nintendo-download-a-mario-rom-and-sell-it-back-to-us]. In 2018, Nintendo vs LoveROMs - Verdict handed down, site owners ordered to pay $12m to Nintendo.[https://www.reddit.com/r/retrogaming/comments/9wofa3/nintendo_vs_loveroms_verdict_handed_down_site/] In the same year, EmuParadise has removed all ROMs from its website, effective immediately after the news of Nintendo filing a lawsuit against two similar sites, LoveROMs and LoveRETRO. The site is still available and you can visit it right now but without the benefit of being able to download many retro games, many of which came from Nintendo.[https://old.reddit.com/r/nintendo/comments/95o8sv/emuparadise_removes_all_roms_to_avoid_legal/] In 2019, Nintendo has won a lawsuit against a ROM-hosting website called RomUniverse.[https://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/nq8smr/compiled_list_of_articles_about_romuniverse_and/] In May 15, 2024 Nintendo of America has requested for 717 games and their images to be removed from Vimm - The Vault[https://vimm.net/bbs/?p=viewPost&Post=33301].
*The Nintendo Power archive has been removed from Internet Archive even though there's no option to digitally buy issues of Nintendo Power since quite a long time.[https://www.reddit.com/r/nintendo/comments/4wsr73/the_nintendo_power_archive_has_now_been_removed/]
*Lockpick_RCM repository taken down by Nintendo DMCA[https://wololo.net/2023/05/10/switch-lockpick_rcm-and-fork-repositories-taken-down-by-dmca-request/].
*Garry’s Mod is taking down (DMCA) decades of Nintendo-related add-ons[https://old.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/1ccte1x/garry_newman_confirms_that_the_garrys_mod_dmca/][https://www.theverge.com/2024/4/25/24140246/garrys-mod-nintendo-copyright-takedowns-dmca].
