UAE: Got an idea for a video game? Here's how to register it, protect your intellectual rights

For only Dh50, individuals can apply for the registration. Complaints can also be made if they feel their copyrights are infringed

Yasmin Hussein

Published: Mon 18 Nov 2024, 7:00 AM

If you have an idea for a new video game, you should start thinking of registering it to protect your intellectual rights and safeguard the creations of your mind against infringement in today's digital world.

The UAE Ministry of Economy has urged those who have video games' ideas of their own to hurry and register their rights, contribute to the development and growth of the video game industry and to foster the digital economy.

"Registering video game copyrights is a crucial process that ensures the protection of intellectual property rights for creative entrepreneurs in the digital environment," it said in a post on X.

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Here's how to do that:

Steps

Visit moec.gov.ae or the ministry's smart app then go to eServices
Choose Intellectual Works Rights Registration Service
Sign in with UAE Pass or credentials of your account on the ministry's website
Fill in the application data and attach the required documents
Pay the fees
Your application will go through an auditing and reviewing process by the ministry
If your request meets all conditions, a certificate will be issued

Required Documents

For individuals:

A copy of the authors' Emirates ID (both sides)
A letter of authorisation to register if the applicant is acting on behalf of a group of authors

For companies and government entities:

A letter of authorisation to register

A power of attorney for the author or the company if the applicant is a legal person

Service Duration

The whole process takes three working days in average and applications can be made 24/7.

Fees

For each individual, registering an idea is for Dh50 while each company or institution is required to pay Dh200.

Conditions and requirements

Applications can be made by the author or the rights' owner or their agents who provide the required documents.

What to do in case of infringement?

If individuals, companies or establishments want to complain of copyright infringement, they can do so via the ministry's website or smart app through eServices.

The auditing process takes five working days in average. Individuals are required to pay Dh100 while the service's fee for companies and institutions is Dh350.

Applicants are required to provide documents to identify their capacity to file the complaint and documents that indicate how their copyrights were infringed. In addition to this, they should provide documents proving their ownership of the intellectual works.

If the applicant is a legal person, he should provide what proves his client’s ownership of the intellectual works that are the subject of the complaint

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