Press Start
News
Law and Gaming worlds collide at International Press Start event
Monday, 3 February, 2025Bath Spa University hosted an exciting interdisciplinary event last week at our Sion Hill campus, combining the worlds of gaming and law.
The Press Start event was hosted by BSU and run in partnership with CREATe and More Than Just A Game, and brought together scholars, legal experts, industry professionals, and creatives to explore the dynamic intersection of video games, law, and creativity.
The video game industry is ever evolving, and such expansion leads to changes in the legal landscape, with the space needing to adapt to many of the emerging challenges. The Press Start event aimed to tackle some of the biggest questions of the day with a platform of experts discussing how legal frameworks impact the creative processes in game development.
Over 40 academics, students and industry professionals attended the event, co-hosted by BSU’s very own Senior Lecturer in Law, Sevra Guzel. Speaking about the event, Sevra commented:
“Attendees gained valuable insights into the legal intricacies of the video game world and contributed to shaping a more robust and supportive legal environment for creativity and innovation in gaming."
Steven Goulton, Director of Law courses at BSU, also commented on the success of the event:
"As Director of Law courses, I was delighted to support the Press start conference which was a truly unique event and brought together a brilliant range of academics, students, regulators and social commentators to give their brilliant and insightful commentary on creative, legal and regulatory aspects of gaming."
Speakers from Vienna, Groningen, Galway and Edinburgh helped make it a trans-national affair, with speakers offering differing perspectives on how the world of gaming, and its attached laws, has developed and progressed over the past two decades.
At BSU, we empower professional creativity and this blending of worlds surmises the work done by academics and students to continually challenge perspectives and practically engage with present-day challenges.
The symposium itself consisted of a series of roundtable discussions where experts shared insights and perspectives on critical topics including intellectual property, competition law, and the role of technology in shaping creative industries.
The overall goal for the event was to foster an engaging, collaborative environment for scholars, industry professionals, and creatives to connect and discuss emerging challenges and innovations within games law and regulation.
Posting about the event on her LinkedIn page, third year Law student Zoe Debrie posted:
“Although I’m not an everyday gamer, I found the discussions extremely relevant and insightful. They also broadened my understanding of this niche area of law and provided valuable perspectives that will undoubtedly influence my approach to future legal studies and practice.”
As well as our LLB Law degree, BSU also offers a number of courses that mesh with the world of gaming, including Creative Computing and Games Development.