From: bc@fccn01.fccn.pt (Luis Miguel Sequeira)
Newsgroups: rec.games.pbm
Subject: BattleTech PBeM Development Group
Date: 13 Nov 1992 03:45:32 -0600
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
NNTP-Posting-Host: cs.utexas.edu

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 B A T T L E T E C H   P B e M   D E V E L O P M E N T   G R O U P

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	I forgot to mention something important on my last post, and
was reminded by it when I read the following article:

	Matt (BURGESMW@cnsvax.uwec.edu) on article
<1992Nov12.140512.2307@cnsvax.uwec.edu> writes:

>I don't know anything about BATTLETECH except that I believe FASA
>supported the creation of it.

	The question which arises is a legal one. By creating a PBeM
based on the BattleTech setting, even a free one, without any idea on
making profit with the game, aren't we violating any copyrights or
other legal protecting matters belonging to FASA?

	If FASA has supported specific BattleTech PBMs in the past,
and even the widespread PC/Amiga games, it may also be the case that
some software house has all the rights on writing games with the
BattleTech setting. I don't know if this is true with FASA, but I know
that, for instance, SSI has the monopoly on all computer games based
on TSR's AD&D settings.

	This could lead to the development to a PBeM on a "clone
world" without any mention to FASA's BattleTech, if no other options
were available.

	So, I'd like some advise on the matter.

	1) Does anyone know if FASA has Internet capability, or some
other form to be contacted (besides snail mail or phone)? I've heard
they had a BBS in the States supporting their products. Is there any
way to contact them and ask them about copyright & other legal issues?

	2) In that case, and as living in Portugal, Europe
(overseas!), can anyone ask a representative of FASA about this
matters? I know personally FASA's representative in Portugal (he's an
old friend of mine), but he really hasn't any such powers (even if the
game were run from Portugal, he couldn't decide on copyright
policies). Perhaps one of FASA's staff works somewhere where he's got
email, could anyone send me please an address?

	If not, and if enough people are still interested in
developing a BattleTech PBeM, I'll write FASA myself and wait for an
answer (it takes at least one month to get snail mail twice across the
Atlantic). I've heard from my friend that they are really a bunch of
nice guys, but you never know...

	Sorry for not thinking about this before (in case any of
FASA's representatives were reading this). Portugal is reckoned to
have one of the highest per capita copyright violations (software
piracy is illegal only since last year!). I believe it's still in my
blood... so I really forgot this. My sincere apologies to anyone
concerned.


	- Luis Sequeira

  _________________________________________________________________________
 /
/
    _/     _/     _/  _/_/_/     Computer scientists do it byte by byte.
   _/     _/_/ _/_/ _/
  _/     _/ _/  _/  _/_/_/       God created Law and Order from Chaos,
 _/     _/     _/       _/       but Chaos was created by computer
_/_/_/ _/     _/  _/_/_/         scientists.

  bc@fccn.pt                              Luis Miguel Sequeira
                                  Laboratorio Nacional de Engenharia Civil
  Phone 351-1-8482131 Ext. 2752   Centro Informatica/Grupo Sistemas Centrais
  "Don't call me, I'll call you"  Av. Brasil, 101 - 1700 Lisboa, Portugal
                                                                          /
_________________________________________________________________________/

Newsgroups: rec.games.pbm