Copyright law in the tech and gaming industry plays a significant role, and Free Guy offers an exciting glimpse into the complexities of source code theft. In this film, a major plot point revolves around the unlawful use of code and a legal battle over copyright infringement.
The story follows Millie, a game developer, on a mission to prove that the popular videogame Free City was built using code she developed for her own game, Life Itself. Millie launches a copyright infringement lawsuit because Free City’s developers failed to obtain her permission to use her code. According to U.S. copyright law, the unauthorized use or copying of code is illegal since code is considered an original expression of ideas and is therefore protected under copyright law.
Can Code Be Protected by Copyright?
In the movie, Millie plays Free City to find a scene proving her code was copied. However, in real-life cases, this wouldn’t be necessary. Since code is written in binary (zeroes and ones), a side-by-side comparison of the source code from Life Itself and Free City would likely reveal any similarities.
Legally, this would satisfy the substantial similarity requirement of copyright infringement. But it doesn’t stop there. Millie would also need to prove that the Free City developers had access to her original code. This is where the film’s plot thickens.
Proving Access to Code in Copyright Cases
The movie hints that Millie and her former work partner, Keys, had collaborated with Antwan—the CEO of the company behind Free City—while developing Life Itself. This prior connection could be enough to establish that Antwan had access to the original code, further supporting the copyright infringement claim.
By meeting both the access and substantial similarity criteria, Millie’s case would likely be strong in a real-world court setting.
(This is not intended as legal advice. Contact a lawyer for assistance in your particular situation.)
