Jon Festinger

Jon Festinger, Q.C. (LL.B., B.C.L. 1980 (McGill University)) is a Vancouver, British Columbia based counsel and educator. A faculty member at the Centre for Digital Media (http://thecdm.ca) Jon has taught media, entertainment and communications law topics at the Allard School of Law, UBC, for over two decades, as well as occasionally teaching at the University of Victoria Faculty of Law and the UBC Graduate School of Journalism. He is the author of the first edition of “Video Game Law” published by LexisNexis in 2005, and co-author of the 2nd Edition published in 2012 (http://www.lexisnexis.com/store/ca/catalog/booktemplate/productdetail.jsp?prodId=prd-cad-01004). As a graduate of McGill University’s Faculty of Law, Jon began his legal career in private practice, in turn becoming General Counsel of WIC Western International Communications, Senior Vice President of the CTV Television Network and Executive Vice President, Business & General Counsel of the Vancouver Canucks. Jon practices law through Festinger Law & Strategy, is Past-Chair of Ronald McDonald House British Columbia and a Director of viasport B.C. . Jon is a dedicated fan of auto-racing simulations. Website: http://videogamelaw.allard.ubc.ca Twitter: @jonfestinger PSN: cdmjon

News of the Week; September 9, 2020

By Jon Festinger on September 13, 2020

GAMES Apple is now seeking damages from Epic Games over breach of contract Apple goes on offensive in Epic Games lawsuit: Apple’s official login system will work with Fortnite “indefinitely” but users are encouraged to update Epic accounts Apple pauses plans to end ‘Sign In with Apple’ support for Epic Games accounts Apple says Epic’s Fortnite payment […]

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Class 1 – 9/9/20; “Introduction”

By Jon Festinger on September 9, 2020

Slides and video from our first class below. Reminder of to-do’s are in there of course as is one more slide with a bit more info on MS Teams. Jon

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Welcome to the 2020 Video Game Law Cohort

By Jon Festinger on September 8, 2020

Thanks for coming in this most unusual year. It all may seem fitting given that video game law often appears to be a most unusual subject. But perhaps what’s most unusual about video games is how usual they have in fact become in our lives and across our devices. All the more so during COVID…check […]

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News of the Week; September 2, 2020

By Jon Festinger on September 5, 2020

GAMES Want to Write a Story About Tardigrades in Space? Make It So!–Abdin v. CBS (Eric Goldman) Abdin v. CBS (USCA 2nd Cir., August 17, 2020) Bugs in Space? Star Trek Plotline Does Not Infringe Tardigrade Video Game Gaming emote litigation: plaintiffs test different causes of action as battle ensues over Fortnite emotes Atlanta Rapper […]

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News of the Week; August 26, 2020

By Jon Festinger on August 29, 2020

GAMES On Appeal, ‘Star Trek Discovery’ Still Doesn’t Infringe On Video Game’s Copyright Judge issues restraining order protecting Unreal Engine development on iOS Temporary restraining order will protect Unreal Engine on Apple platforms Epic wins restraining order against Apple but Fortnite remains blocked: Judge says Epic has yet to demonstrate antitrust, but agrees that “serious […]

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News of the Week; August 19, 2020

By Jon Festinger on August 23, 2020

GAMES FTC Issues Staff Perspective on Video Game Loot Boxes FTC Staff Issue Perspective Paper on Video Game Loot Boxes Workshop FTC Video Game Loot Box Workshop (Staff Perspective) ‘Fortnite’ Battles Big Tech: Why Epic Games Is Suing Apple, Google Over Their App Store ‘Monopolies’ Epic Games v. Apple Inc. (Complaint for Injunctive Relief, August […]

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News of the Week; August 12, 2020

By Jon Festinger on August 16, 2020

GAMES Aeon Must Die dev Limestone Games faces accusations of “endless crunch” and IP theft: Publisher Focus Home Interactive is “carefully looking into” allegations Goldeneye 64 remake shut down by James Bond licence holders: Developers will now redesign upcoming ’90s-style shooter as Project Ianus Ubisoft Loses Appeal and Patent Related to “Rocksmith” is Invalidated UK […]

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News of the Week; August 5, 2020

By Jon Festinger on August 9, 2020

GAMES Bot M8 LLC Asserts Sony’s PlayStation 4 “Uncharted” Game Infringes Its Patent, but Court Finds Bot M8’s Patent Invalid Little Consolation for Hyperkin as Atari Litigation Games Continue Congress defeats bill to block US military from recruiting via Twitch: US Navy and Army have stated they will continue to stream on popular games site […]

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News of the Week; July 29, 2020

By Jon Festinger on August 2, 2020

GAMES Loot boxes should be a consumer protection matter not a gambling one, says EU report: EU lacks authority to regulate gambling across member states but could tackle “problematic design features” from a different perspective Nintendo Suffers Another Substantial Leak As Mountains Of Source Code Hit The Web Huge apparent leak unearths Nintendo’s prototype history […]

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News of the Week; July 22, 2020

By Jon Festinger on July 28, 2020

GAMES Assassin’s Creed Odyssey has two leads because Ubisoft execs believed women don’t sell: Both Syndicate and Origins also originally featured women leads more prominently Ubisoft fires PR director over harassment allegations: Stone Chin denies allegation of sexual assault, claims it was not linked to Ubisoft’s decision to terminate his employment French union preparing collective […]

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