Pokémon Go - The Legal Realities of AR
Image courtesy of nenetus at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
It seems like everyone is playing it. Wherever you go these days, you can find groups of (mostly young) people hunkered over their phones trying to collect pocket monsters. Welcome to the advent of Augmented Reality.
For those few people who don't yet know what that means, "augmented reality" ("AR") is a composite of the real world and a virtual reality created by the technology behind the game - in this case, the Pokémon Go app developed by Nintendo and Niantic. Not only does AR create a new worldview for its users, it is raising a number of legal issues for both players and property owners.
Privacy Concerns
While players should be concerned about the security of their personal information in connection with their access to the game, people who own businesses and properties on or near tagged locations are having to put up with hordes of strangers loitering, trespassing, and leaving their trash behind while hunting down Squirtle and Piplup.
Some entrepreneurs have seen this influx of monster chasers as an opportunity to make money. Sadly, the majority of those on the receiving end are unhappy about having their space invaded by oblivious gamers.
Safety Issues
We have already heard a litany of safety concerns from gamers and police:
- Physical injuries sustained from accidentally interacting with the "real" world while seeking out Sandshrews.
- Distracted driving due to playing while behind the wheel.
- Thieves targeting gamers by setting up lures in locations where they can rob and/or assault their victims.
- The potential use of Pokélures by sexual predators in order to lure children.
- Angry confrontations between gamers and property owners which can escalate to physical violence.
Liability Concerns
There are questions as to who is liable if a gamer is injured on private property. Does the property owner have the right to sue the game maker for any insurance claims or other damages the property owner may incur? That's a thorny issue that the lawyers will have to sort out as and when the need arises.
The game makers have covered such eventualities in their terms of service - which most players never read anyway, even though they are giving up their legal rights in the process of not reading them! It will be interesting, however, to watch how things "play out" in the legal arena as more and more Poké-players come on board and the likelihood of legal claims increases. In the event that someone were to die and the death could be shown to be a direct or indirect result of being engaged in Pokémon Go (for instance, a car accident caused by someone playing while driving), it would undoubtedly set off a legal maelstrom that would impact the entire AR gaming industry.
As the use and application of AR expands, it will present a series of new challenges to governments and law makers who will be left playing catch-up in the wake of rapid technological changes.