TIGSource Forums

Part of the Dev's Terms of service (https://www.mochimedia.com/tos-dev.html) says:

I wanted to add mochiads to a game, but I don't want to give them the right to exploit my ideas.
At any rate, if my idea gets popular, I want to be the one that makes a sequel.

Can someone clarify this for me?

Thanks
-Martín

I think the "in connection with the Service and Mochi Media's...business" clause is meant to limit its use to advertising their business, which (so far as I know) does not include game development. But I don't blame you for being wary of the extremely broad language they use there, especially since a) they could always later choose to enter the game design business, and b) their successors and assigns (i.e. any companies they choose to assign their rights to) might be involved in game development.

Adhesion contracts like this piss me off. As a general rule, I don't get involved with any company that asks me to sign contracts with provisions like this.

I was interested because "everyone's using it". Perhaps someone that uses the service could share some light in this matter.

Nevertheless, thanks for your opinion!

Anyone else has any opinion on this? Are there other more viable ways to add banners to games?

I understand that fully exploit could mean make the most profit from banners, and sublicense could have to do with the distribuition program they have (placing your game at different sites).

But perpetual and, specially, irrevocable seem a bit fascist. Prepare derivative works takes any kind of brand you could develop away from you.

Please, any law-savvy could help me interpret this licence?

Thanks.

This has come up before. (https://www.mochimedia.com/community/forum/topic/mochi-ads-own-your-ip)

But I humbly suggest that you look at the business and not at the contract, because dollars will always trump the letter of the law.

• We already know that Mochiads, as-is, is legit and not a confidence scam.
• Its leadership is likely to change hands because it's a VC-funded company and likely headed towards an IPO in the future.
• They currently use this clause to allow your game to be distributed and promoted over their systems.
• Even if they wanted to do something with your IP, it costs time/money to do so, which subtracts from their current business.

So the risk you run, at most, is that Mochiads gets new executives with the stupid idea of getting out of the "Flash game infrastructure business" and into traditional publishing. Not only is that a waste of their core competency, the result would almost certainly be a class action lawsuit from angry developers. It would be business suicide and you might stand to profit from their stupidity.

That said, under the current leadership I would expect the right decisions to be made. (I've met some of them in person. They do genuinely care about the business they're in.)

Thanks man!