Cleveland partner Deborah Wilcox, Ohio coordinator for the firm's Intellectual Property, Technology and Media Practice, co-authored an article, "Special Terms in Fan Kit Licenses," with former Baker Hostetler associate Rosanne Yang, which was published in the October 2008 edition of The Licensing Journal.
According to the article, "Video game producers discovered long ago that providing 'fan kits'—artwork and text that are approved for use by the fans on their personal websites—is good for both public relations and for maintaining control over copy-righted content and trademarks . . . the kit comes with a license through which control is maintained. The license sets the rules and the consequences for not following them."
The authors go on to describe the terms and considerations for fan kit licenses which differ from "standard" licensing terms, including:
The article concludes: "Fan kits and their accompanying licenses provide several benefits to character licensors . . . Because each property varies in its fan reach and core product, all traditional terms should be reevaluated when drafting a fan kit license so as to tailor a solution best suited to the property and its fans."