I would imagine that since WoW technically owns everything about your game character, that they don't need to pay him for using his character name or likeness. Yea, it'd be cool if they hooked him up with something like a lifetime subscription, but I doubt they're eager to give out money where they don't have to.

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Though I don't know this guy, he lives basically around the corner from me, and a pal of mine has been friends with him for years. And naturally, my pal is a complete WoW addict as well. :D

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So you might say, you're 'pals for life'?

hee hee

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Well maybe my friend and Ben are... :P

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haha what a stupid journalist ^_^
/emote Twhit shoots you the finger, /emote Twhit shoots you the finger, /emote Twhit shoots you the finger....hahaha...i found my new favorite macro :)

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Wow... slow news day?

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Even though Blizzard owns the game you part-take in the stock by purchasing the rights of that character created thats why when you use your credit account its fraud for Blizzard to charge ya just because;meaning you have rights and so does Leeroys player till her terminates that contract and then perhaps Blizzard could save that toon for personal preference...

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Digital information such as the character models, sounds, class and race names, abilities, weapons, gear, and anything else associated with the player is intellectual property of Blizzard. They create it, they own it.

Your characters name however was not created by blizzard (unless you click randomize for the character name when you created him), but was created by whoever created the character. So Blizzard does not have intellectual property rites to the name unless Blizzard created the name.

Blizzard could argue, however, that the name Leeroy Jenkins only became as popular as it has through a movie created using their software, entitling them to royalties for the use of Leeroy Jenkins should the name be used to generate revenue of some sort.

Wow, I actually remembered something from my college ethics class.

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If, by 'his likeness' you mean his actual, non-toon real-life personage (face, etc), then yes, Blizz could technically be sued for using it without his permission. His toon, well, he's pretty well screwed on that one.

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I always wondered if anyone got upset about the pseudo-racist aspects of this. "Role-playing" a black guy, being perceived as "stupid as hell", eating chicken... Most people saw it as comedy, but I always wondered if someone out there got offended.

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Sorry to outnerd anyone here, but since I'm actually headed to my copyright law class right now: the Leeroy Jenkins video is what you'd call a derivative work, one based in large part on a pre-existing work. To the extent that the video offers creative, original authorship separate from the pre-existing work, it is copyrightable. But the right to create derivative works is itself a copyright protection, so Blizz is likely to play this trump card if challenged on its use of anything Leeroy related.

As for the name Leeroy Jenkins, short phrases are not copyrightable (and before you disagree, be sure you're not thinking of a trademark, which offers a more limited set of protections).

As for the right to use characters, take a good hard look at the EULA on the next patch day. I've never read the thing but I'll bet dollars to donuts Blizz specifically disclaims giving any property rights at all.

And if you're wondering why a lawyer wouldn't read every contract that passes in front of him, these are the reasons why I don't and you shouldn't either:
1) Unless you live in California, it's not clear that click-wrap contracts are enforceable (though they probably are)
2) Anything you'd strongly dislike in the contract is probably unenforceable anyway
3) What are you gonna do if you do find something you don't like? Not play? No? So why waste your time?

These thoughts courtesy of my civil procedure teacher, who also taught me to say the following whenever talking casually about the law:

I am not your lawyer, and none of the foregoing should be construed as legal advice.

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@Roguerhunter - LOL! Legal advice from one who cannot even form a sentence, yet somehow manages to throw a semicolon in for good measure. You made me laugh today, and for that, I salute you.

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There's a WoW movie?

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I'm pretty sure his last line is "At least I AIN'T chicken"

It makes 1000% more sense than "At least I have chicken"
wouldn't you say

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http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0803096/

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