Law Seminars International Presents

An Updated Two-Day Conference on the Exploding World of

Gamer Technology Law

Next-generation consoles, virtual property in the real world, global expansion, trade secrets and other cutting-edge topics

March 22 & 23, 2007
The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, CA
Register      Download PDF Brochure

Who Should Attend

Intellectual property, entertainment law and transactional attorneys, business development executives, operating officers, in-house counsel and anyone involved with game software development, publishing, licensing and intellectual property issues.

Why Attend

Designing a video game is often the easiest part of a successful production. Navigating the legal and business maze required to get a game to market demands specialized knowledge for game developers and publishers, business executives, and the attorneys who represent them. From addressing issues concerning software development to using personalities or music in games to managing the mysteries of ESRB game ratings, negotiating a contract that survives the journey can save thousands of dollars as well as precious time. In some cases, developing, publishing, financing and protecting intellectual property effectively at the early stages can make or break a company. Surviving the business transactions in the gaming industry requires an understanding of the industry along with knowledge about and experience in licensing and intellectual property matters. This conference features leading industry professionals and practitioners discussing content, access and intellectual property issues; financing; and major new convergences between the video game industry and Hollywood, the wireless industry, the Internet and interactive devices. ~ Program Co-Chairs: Seth Steinberg, Esq. and Russell Weiss, Esq.

What You Will Learn

~ The explosion of mobile gaming ~ On-line consoles: The door to the digital living room ~ The console wars: Who's will have the ultimate WOOT? ~ Gaming regulations and current political landscape ~ Next generation game deals ~ Venture funding in gaming ~ Human resources and trade secrets ~ Global expansion ~ Virtual property--real money in a virtual world ~ Ethics

What Attendees Have Said About Similar Programs

~ Outstanding program of talented and experienced professionals in this space; Appreciate all your work to bring them together for us. ~ Our gamer team loved the conference. You folks certainly have a winning recipe. ~ It was a really great program. ~ Very good group of folks. Well done! ~ The speakers were wonderful and the topics were of current importance. ~ It was a great seminar and I look forward to next year's!

Agenda

Thursday, March 22, 2007
8:00 am Registration & Continental Breakfast
8:30 am Introduction & Overview
  Seth J. Steinberg, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 LucasArts / San Francisco, CA
  Russell G. Weiss, Esq., Program Co-Chair
 Morrison & Foerster LLP / Los Angeles, CA
8:45 am The Explosion of Mobile Gaming
  A continually evolving aspect in the gaming sector: Where is mobile gaming headed now? What are the new business models and platforms? Who's making the money, and how?
  Steven Hoffman, Chief Operating Officer
 Zannel, Inc. / Menlo Park, CA
  Ilan Goldman, Esq., Director, Business Development and Senior Counsel, Mobile & Music
 Electronic Arts / Playa Vista, CA
10:00 am Break
10:15 am On-Line Consoles: The Door to the Digital Living Room
  Up-close examination from a gaming publisher and major console manufacturers: New business models; implications of the emergence of social networks such as Second Life; how companies are handling privacy and filtering issues
  Russell G. Weiss, Esq., Program Co-Chair, Moderator
 Morrison & Foerster LLP / Los Angeles, CA
  Microsoft
  Matt J. McCloskey, Esq., Director, Entertainment & Devices Division
 Microsoft Corporation / Redmond, WA
  Sony
  Daniel Figueroa, Esq., Director Legal & Business Affairs, Corporate Counsel
 Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. / San Diego, CA
12:00 pm Lunch (on your own)
1:15 pm The Console Wars: Who's Winning the Battle v. The War
  Update on the new consoles--Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo Wii: New software, new graphical features; new content; a look at the issues and business strategies
  Don L. Daglow, President & CEO
 Stormfront Studios / San Rafael, CA
2:00 pm Gaming Regulations and the Current Political Landscape
  Recent court decisions and the implications for regulation of game content; national and state legislative updates; continuing legal challenges
  Katherine A. Fallow, Esq.
 Jenner & Block LLP / Washington, DC
  The political landscape and what it suggests for the future: Why you see the laws that are being passed; what's going on in the state and federal levels; tax initiatives
  Gail Markels, Esq., Senior Vice President & General Counsel
 Entertainment Software Association / New York, NY
3:15 pm Break
3:30 pm Next Generation Game Deals
  Next generation celebrity movie deals; a look at directors setting up their own game studios; combining music with movies and games; issues of artistic license; developing games from movies and movies from games
  Seth J. Steinberg, Esq., Program Co-Chair, Moderator
 LucasArts / San Francisco, CA
  William Sloan Coats, Esq.
 White & Case LLP / Palo Alto, CA
  Brandy A. Carrillo, Esq., Director, Business and Legal Affairs
 THQ Inc. / Calabasas Hills, CA
  Keith Boesky
 Boesky & Company / Pacific Palisades, CA
5:30 pm Reception for Attendees & Faculty Sponsored by White & Case LLP
 

Friday, March 23, 2007
8:00 am Registration & Continental Breakfast
8:30 am Venture Funding in Gaming
  What are VCs funding? What are they looking for?
  Jon Richmond, Esq., Managing Director
 Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin / Los Angeles, CA
9:15 am Human Resources and Trade Secrets
  Recruiting; finding the right people; relationship issues; legal pitfalls to watch for when approaching new developers and looking for new recruits; what you need to know to avoid trade secret violations and other breaches of non-competes
  Eric A. Tate, Esq.
 Morrison & Foerster LLP / Palo Alto, CA
  Publisher's in-house perspective on pitfalls once you actually hire
  Christina Cordoza, Esq., Senior Employment and Labor Counsel
 Lucasfilm / San Francisco, CA
10:15 am Break
10:30 am Global Expansion
  Outsourcing labor and development: China, India, and the Philippines; case studies of successful alliances; how it relates to worldwide operation; the challenge of bringing games into foreign markets
  Garett Wiley, Vice President, Finance & Administration
 Red 5 Studios, Inc. / Aliso Viejo, CA
  Other business development issues in Asia
  Teemu Huuhtanen, Executive Vice President for Sales & Business Development
 Sulake Corporation / Santa Monica, CA
11:15 am Intellectual Property Issues in Gaming
  Considering patents, trademarks and copyrights as part of the overall IP strategy for developers, publishers and investors in the video game industry; hardware devices, software, business and game-play methods
  Gregory P. Silberman, Esq.
 Kaye Scholer LLP / New York, NY
  Rod S. Berman, Esq.
 Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro LLP / Los Angeles, CA
  Paul N. Tauger, Esq.
 Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP / San Francisco, CA
12:15 pm Lunch (on your own)
1:30 pm Virtual Property - Real Money in a Virtual World
  What is it and who owns it? If you are a publisher, what should you do? When is an interactive game involving gambling an illegal lottery? What are the business issues in hosting MMOs and real cash economies?
  Seth J. Steinberg, Esq., Moderator
 LucasArts / San Francisco, CA
  Alan L. Friel, Esq.
 Kaye Scholer LLP / Los Angeles, CA
  Rod Rigole, Esq., Vice President of Legal Affairs
 Vivendi Games, Inc. / Los Angeles, CA
  Paul Thind, General Manager for North America
 Sulake Corporation / Santa Monica, CA
  Andrew S. Zaffron, Esq., Senior Vice President & General Counsel
 Sony Online Entertainment LLC / San Diego, CA
3:00 pm Break
3:15 pm Ethics
  Representing the company without alienating your business contact or compromising the business relationship; negotiation tactics and ethical conduct; negotiation with the other side and unrepresented parties; protecting client confidences and secrets
  Kraig Baker, Esq.
 Davis Wright Tremaine LLP / Seattle, WA
4:15 pm Evaluations & Adjourn

Tuition

Regular tuition for this program is $995 with a group rate of $895 each for two or more registrants from the same firm. For government employees, we offer a special rate of $795. For students and people in their job for less than a year, our rate is $497.50. All rates include admission to all seminar sessions, food and beverages at breaks, and all course materials. Make checks payable to Law Seminars International.

Cancellation & Substitution

You may substitute another person at any time. We will refund tuition, less a $50 cancellation fee, if we receive your cancellation by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, March 16, 2007. After that time, we will credit your tuition toward attendance at another program or the purchase of a homestudy. There is a $25 cancellation fee for Course Materials orders and $50 for Homestudy orders.

Continuing Education Credits

Law Seminars International is a State Bar of California approved MCLE provider. This program qualifies for 13.25 California MCLE credits. Upon request, we will apply for CLE credits in other states and other types of credits.

Location

The conference will be held at the The Beverly Hilton at 9876 Wilshire Blvd in Beverly Hills, CA 90210. Call the hotel directly at (310) 274-7777 for room availability and pricing.
More about the Location
Map & Directions

If You Cannot Attend

Our complete Homestudy Course, consisting of a VHS or DVD recording and the written course materials, is available for $1005. The written course materials alone are available for $100. We will ship your homestudy order via UPS ground within two weeks after the seminar or the date we receive payment (whichever is later).
Order Homestudy

Faculty Bios

Seth J. Steinberg, Program Co-Chair, is Director of Business Affairs & General Counsel of LucasArts and is a member of its senior management group. He advises the company on business, corporate and legal issues, and is responsible for all of LucasArts' business and legal affairs.

Russell G. Weiss, Program Co-Chair, heads the firm-wide Video Game Practice at Morrison & Foerster LLP and is Co-Head of its Technology and Entertainment Practice. He specializes in transactional matters and counseling in entertainment, technology, media and intellectual property with a particular focus on the convergence of entertainment and technology.

Kraig Baker, partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, drafts and negotiates video game development contracts, publishing and consulting agreements, music recording contracts, talent agreements, live event contracts, and television, film, and theatre production contracts.

Rod S. Berman, partner at Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro, LLP, is chair of the firm's Intellectual Property Law Group. His practice emphasizes patent, trademark, copyright and unfair competition responsibilities, and includes counseling, litigation, opinions, licensing and prosecution.

Keith Boesky, principal of Boesky & Company, specializes in the migration of intellectual property to and from the video game business. He has been active in the content and technology communities as an attorney, a senior executive and an agent.

Brandy A. Carrillo, Director, Business and Legal Affairs for THQ Inc., handles daily business and legal affairs oversight, including original intellectual property deals, product development and music licensing, including license maintenance for the Disney/Pixar relationship. Past deals include "Supreme Commander" with Gas Powered Games, "Company of Heroes" with Relic Entertainment and the Relic Entertainment acquisition.

William Sloan Coats, an intellectual property partner with White & Case LLP, focuses on cases involving software copyrights and patents, copyrights for movies and music, trademark and trade secret disputes, and bankruptcy issues.

Christina Cordoza, Senior Employment and Labor Counsel at Lucasfilm, supports all divisions of the company, including LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and Lucasfilm Animation. She handles employment matters (harassment, discrimination, wage and hour, and trade secret issues) as well as traditional labor issues.

Don L. Daglow, Founding President and CEO of Stormfront Studios, has been called "one of the best-known and respected producers in the history of the field," by Electronic Games.

Katherine Fallow, partner with Jenner & Block LLP, is a member of the firm's Media & First Amendment and Entertainment & New Media Practices. She has successfully represented the video game industry in numerous constitutional challenges to state laws seeking to restrict the distribution of video games based on their content.

Daniel Figueroa is Director of Legal & Business Affairs, Corporate Counsel for Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. He is the game attorney for Sony's NBA franchise of games, supports Sony's Online Technology and Network Platform Groups, and manages some outside patent litigation.

Alan L. Friel, counsel at Kaye Schoeler LLP, concentrates on serving the film, television, animation, interactive game, software, Internet and eCommerce, advertising and promotions and consumer products industries in the areas of contractual transactions, intellectual property, financing, licensing, distribution, acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic alliances.

Ilan Goldman is Director, Business Development -- Mobile & Music, for Electronic Arts, and was formerly Senior Counsel for JAMDAT Mobile (which was acquired by EA in February 2006). He was responsible for the negotiation and consummation of JAMDAT's and EA Mobile's development, licensing, music, wireless carrier and alternative distribution model agreements.

Steven Hoffman is Chief Operating Officer of Zannel, Inc., where he oversees all creative, marketing and operations. He is also a founding member of the Academy of Television's Interactive Media Group and sits on the Board of Governors for the Producers Guild's New Media Council.

Teemu Huuhtanen is the Executive Vice President for Sales & Business Development and Regional President, North America, of Sulake Corporation. Previously, he worked for mobile entertainment & application company Small Planet and was CEO of Orchimedia.

Gail Markels is Senior Vice President and General Counsel to the Entertainment Software Association where she is responsible for managing all legal issues affecting the organization as well as state public policy issues.

Matt J. McCloskey, Director, Entertainment & Devices Division, manages Microsoft Corporation's strategic relationships with third-party publishers such as EA, Activision and Take-Two for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live and Games for Windows platforms.

Jon Richmond, Managing Director of Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin's Los Angeles office, co-heads the firm's Media, Sports & Entertainment Group. He also co-founded Media Connect Partners, a provider of financial and operating advisory services to media, entertainment, sports and communications companies.
Full bio and contact info for Jon Richmond at Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin

Rod Rigole is Vice President of Legal Affairs at Vivendi Games, Inc. where he advises the company on a wide array of business, corporate, and legal matters, with a special focus on intellectual property issues. Previously, he was legal counsel for Reaction Products, an innovative product development and design company. He also holds a BS in mechanical engineering and is registered to practice before the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Gregory P. Silberman is a patent and technology lawyer and partner in the Technology, Intellectual Property & Outsourcing Group at Kaye Scholer LLP. He represents domestic and foreign clients in development and deployment of information technology and services, privacy matters and strategic intellectual property planning.

Eric A. Tate, partner at Morrison & Foerster LLP, specializes in and routinely litigates issues involving trade secret misappropriation, employee and customer raiding and unfair competition both within and outside of the United States.

Paul N. Tauger, partner at Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP, focuses on licensing and intellectual property litigation with an emphasis in trademark, copyright, patent and trade dress disputes. He represents clients based in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and the People's Republic of China.

Paul Thind, General Manager for North America of Sulake Corporation, is responsible for maintaining daily operations of the U.S. and Canadian Habbo branded websites as well as identifying, negotiating and securing business partnerships.

Garett Wiley, Vice President, Finance & Administration of Red 5 Studios, Inc., leads the company's finance, human resources, legal, and public relations functions globally. His experience includes international law, accounting, and operations in the United States, Europe, India and China.

Andrew S. Zaffron, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Sony Online Entertainment LLC (a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of the Sony Corporation), is responsible for all legal and business affairs of the firm.

Firm Links

Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin