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Digital Gaming

Digital Games in Malta have experienced a large boom. Our Gaming lawyers assist enterprises focused on digital games with various industry requirements.
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Summary

In recent years, digital gaming distinctively became one of the fastest-growing and highly lucrative sectors globally, principally competing with the film and music industry. Digital Gaming is also the most grossing intellectual property sector. Prominently, the debut of mobile gaming coupled with social gaming has elevated the concept of digital gaming to a new dimension due to easy access and mobility. In conjunction, social networking sites have served as a popular platform which makes digital gaming ever more attractive to the general public, irrespective of the different age groups or social positions. The varied genres of a video / digital game, including lifelike games, horror-themes games, role-playing games and so on, augment the possibility that people’s attention be diverted towards the sector through the stimulation of interactivity and creativity. 


Digital gaming, analogous to other forms of entertainment, exists as a cross-disciplinary field encompassing programmers and developers; game designers; sound designers; producers as well as other technical experts or specialists employed within the sector. The rapid advancement and expansion of the digital gaming industry is attracting further segments/professions which originally were not included, such as musicians and artists. 

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Digital Games in Malta 

Whilst generally, at European level, the regulatory process is embryonic in relation to the legal strategies which companies and businesses may foster to protect themselves but also flourish in the digital gaming industry, Malta. The growth experienced in the Malta digital gaming industry is a result of an increase in investment in digital games but also a maturity in the legal and industrial environment that Malta offers to this industry. 

Indeed, Malta, as the European iGaming hub, has experienced a substantial development in the industry of digital games, to an extent that in the year 2009, the industry in Malta surpassed both the film and music industry. It is established that due to the fact that the gaming industry in general permits a diverse spectrum of platforms, for instance box-sales, PC, console games, smart phones and tablet devices, further growth may take place expeditiously. 

From a legal and practical point of view, Malta enjoys the potentiality to provide a positively successful experience to companies and businesses specialising in digital games which are already established in Malta, as well as to prospective digital gaming investors given the state-of-the-art telecommunications infrastructure, geographically strategic position together with favourable tax rates along with tax credits for expenditures which might be incurred through the acquisition of tangible and intangible assets and for research and development purposes. Furthermore, assistance is likewise granted for the financing of new Malta digital gaming start-ups and enterprises engaged in the digital games sector, for the acquisition of new technologies and services which expose a promising future for job creation combined with a possibility to enjoy the privilege of co-financing employees’ wages and the leasing of equipment and amenities. 

Digital Games in Malta: Our Digital Gaming Law Team 

Established in a country which stands out as a hub for the iGaming industry, our firm has sought to participate in the digital gaming sector, which indubitably has grown in one of the most beneficial and flourishing sectors. Our clientele encompasses a far-reaching spectrum of clients including software companies setting up gaming platforms; game designers, game developers; programmers and operators offering digital gaming services to players. 

Our Digital Gaming Law team entails lawyers, accountants, IT consultants and tax advisers with expertise in corporate law, gaming law, entertainment law, IT law, international, intellectual property law and employment law. The multi-disciplinary nature of the team ensures that all aspects of the business are taken care of.  Being one of the first firms to practice in the digital games sector, Chetcuti Cauchi’s Digital Gaming Law team members enjoy a legacy of specialized expertise which they apply to the particular needs of the client, providing practical solutions.

 

Chetcuti Cauchi, with pleasure, provides numerous services in this dynamic and expeditious digital games sector comprising legal advice and assistance in relation to:

  • Application for and attainment of fiscal benefits available to the Malta digital gaming industry 
  • Corporate structure planning and the development or expansion of any company in the digital gaming sector;
  • Gambling licensing exemptions in case of boarder-line game models;
  • Compliance with the national laws and regulations; 
  • Drafting of EULA (End-of-User Licence Agreement or End-of-User Software Agreement) and terms of service;
  • Registration of trademarks both at national level and at the European Union level;
  • Copyright, particularly in relation to copyright infringements and consequent investigation, prosecution and consequent copyright infringement proceedings through the pursuit of cyber squatters;
  • Protection of intellectual property rights like software codes; platform names; game names; character names and images and so on;
  • Digital rights management systems;
  • The creation of licensing, merchandising and distribution agreements;
  • The handling of any employment issues arising in a digital game scenario; 
  • Advertising and marketing contracts drafting/review

 

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The professionalism and international collaboration of Chetcuti Cauchi’s team are a testament to their cohesive corporate culture. They are prompt in communication and consistently reliable, always delivering on their promises and never committing to tasks they cannot fulfil. This dependability gives us great peace of mind at the start of every project. In particular, we have been working with Magdalena Velkovska and Antoine Saliba Haig, who have been pivotal in building our trust in CC.

Chetcuti Cauchi Advocates is a very strong team with a great understanding of complex matters. They enjoy a profound knowledge and expertise.

My  wife and I have an association with Chetcuti Cauchi since 2009. They assisted  us with our original residence permit applications for Malta and since then  have taken care of our annual income tax submissions and PR sticker /  E-residence card renewals. They always handle our matters very efficiently  and professionally. The consultants that work with us are friendly, helpful  and very competent. They are familiar with the regulations and procedures in  the related government departments, and this makes the process run extremely  smoothly for us. We are very satisfied with the service we received from  Chetcuti Cauchi and will continue to maintain our relationship with them in  future. We can highly recommend them for any of the services that they offer.

I  highly recommend the services of Chetcuti Cauchi. They assisted me as my  appointed Resident Agent with the MDIA, they fully understood my requirements  and also have a great reputation as a top law firm in Malta, making them an  ideal chioce. They delivered my project on scedule, which had a tight  deadline.

I have had the pleasure of having Chetcuti Cauchi as my lawyers for my Maltese Citizenship application and also for property acquisition in Malta. I am extremely satisfied with their professionalism and attention to detail at all times making them, in my experience, one of the best law firms I have ever dealt with anywhere. I am truly honoured to be their client and shall continue to remain so.

Chetcuti Cauchi Advocates boasts an incredibly diverse and talented team. Everyone brings skills, knowledge and experience to the table, creating a dynamic and collaborative environment.

Not only do Chetcuti Cauchi have experience, they’re academically proficient as well. They offer a wide variety of different expertise.

Dr. Chetcuti has always shown great wisdom and knowledge. He’s remarkably courteous and client-oriented.

Chetcuti  Cauchi has been doing many different aspects of IP work for us for several  years, and I have always been more than satisfied with their work.    All the people at the firm with whome I have been in contact have been very  professional, efficient and quick in their efforts to assist us.    Dr Maria Chetcuti Cauchi has always kept me well informed about every angel  of the matters we have dealt with, extremely professional and I fully trust  her advice and suggestions. Another thing which I have appreciated is her  swift way of replying to our requests.I can highly recommend the firm  Chetcuti Cauchi to anybody who needs IP advice on Malta.

Jean-Philippe was a key advisor to me on the general European and in particular Maltese related tax, legal, accounting and secretarial aspects of a rather complex corporate group structure. We were operating in an extremely dynamic situation, and I was most grateful for his patience and understanding when we had to scrap the last idea and start all over again. He is highly professional, responsive and is excellent at finding practical solutions to difficult situations, whatever the time of day or night. He also has an excellent relationship with his team, and the service provided by his firm is intelligent, joined up and seamless. He is good humoured and imminently likeable and I look forward to working with him again in the future.

I  approached Chetcuti Cauchi with the objective of establishing a company in  order to provide public health information management services to  collaborators throughout the European Union.From my first interaction  with them through phone discussions and emails to ongoing communications and  a visit to their offices in Valletta, I have been extremely pleased with  their professionalism, competence, and timeliness.They have been very  attentive to the specific needs of my company’s collaborations and have  provided much-valued guidance and support both in establishing the company  and in its ongoing operations.Iam very satisfied with the work so  far, and look forward to more successful interactions in the future.

Chetcuti  Cauchi has embraced a flexible and modern approach to hybrid working. Rather  than prescribe a set number of office days, the firm empowers employees to  exercise their judgement in how they manage their working schedule. So long  as underlying principles of providing an excellent client service and a  collaborative team environment are met, employees have a great degree of  freedom in how, and where, they work.

Antoine is very professional and knows his field of expertise very well.

Chetcuti Cauchi Advocates offers great ability and strength in handling and resolving difficult and complex matters.

Dr Natasha Cachia’s experience in Financial services in Malta were invaluable to Porterpays team as we establish our business here in Malta. They have worked in a professional manner and were constantly supportive and open to understand new innovative ways in payments and provided us with a stellar advice.

Chetcuti Cauchi is a firm with very educated and knowledgeable lawyers and advisors.

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