Jeux vidéo sans support : Regards croisés sur les droits des joueuses et joueurs
Sep 22, 2026 — 11:30 a.m. to 12:50 p.m.
The Centre for Law, Technology and Society and the Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section at the University of Ottawa present a conversation featuring Philippe Mouron (Université d’Aix-Marseille) and Thomas Burelli (University of Ottawa) on the legal issues surrounding video game ownership in the era of digital licensing.
Jeux vidéo sans support : regards croisés sur les droits des joueuses et joueurs
(This activity will be in French only.)
En 2028, Sony arrêtera de vendre des jeux vidéo sur support physique. Une simple mise à jour commerciale ? Pas tout à fait : il s’agit plutôt de la dernière étape d'une bascule qui vient pleinement transformer nos jeux vidéo en simples licences révocables. Conséquence de cette bascule qui a déjà produit ses premiers effets : un studio peut aujourd'hui supprimer à distance votre accès à un jeu, sans préavis et sans remboursement. Un jeu dont vous pensiez pourtant avoir fait l’acquisition et « posséder » pour toujours.
Mais au fond qu’est-ce que "posséder" un jeu vidéo veut vraiment dire aujourd’hui ? De fait, le droit confère des prérogatives très larges aux éditeurs et leur octroie un droit de vie ou de mort sur les jeux vidéo qu’ils commercialisent. Néanmoins, face à cette situation les joueurs ne restent pas les bras croisés et la résistance s’organise à plusieurs niveaux.
Les professeurs Mouron et Burelli discuteront de la manière d’appréhender ces enjeux des deux côtés de l’Atlantique.
About the speakers
Philippe Mouron is a professor of private law at Université d'Aix-Marseille. After defending his dissertation on the right to exhibit graphic and visual works, he specialized in intellectual property law and digital law. His worknaturally shifted toward video game law, a subject on which he co-authored a book published by Larcier in 2025. He is also co-director of the Center for Video Game Law, which aims to advance legal research on the videogame industry by drawing on all sources of law. His most recent publications in this field focus on the regulatory framework for in-game advertising as well as the protection of video game elements under trademark law and design law.
in conversation with:
Thomas Burelli is Vice-Dean for Academic Affairs and a Full Professor in Faculty of Law, Civil Law Section at the University of Ottawa. Since 2021, he has been teaching a course on video game law in which he addresses issues related to game design—notably ownership, including when players get involved and create their own mods—as well as the regulation of their commercialization, particularly game ratings, efforts to mitigate their environmental impacts, and addiction issues. He is also interested in legal issues related to video game consumption, such as esports, streaming, and combating toxic behavior.
Lunch provided.
This is a free event, but registration is required.
However, attendees can donate online to the Centre whatever they think is fair.
This event will be in French only.
The event may be recorded, and photos may be taken.