I have recently finished an app I've been working on to-and-from for a while. Now I'm looking forward to publishing it on Google Play. The app uses some MapleStory content such as monsters images (like those that can be found on hidden-street). These images can be viewed in the app, but not downloaded. So I am not distributing them in any way. I wonder, if my app will agree with the distribution agreement below. I believe I should also state clearly somewhere, that all content belongs to Nexon (or Wizet? - I have to look that up), thereby not "claiming" it to be my own. Please read the little Spoiler and see what you think. If there is someone here who have previously uploaded an app or in any other way encountered these issues before, I'd greatly appreciate to be helped out by you. The following can be read in the Google Play Developer Distribution Agreement (https://play.google.com/intl/ALL_us/about/developer-distribution-agreement.html): Spoiler: License Grants "5.5 You represent and warrant that you have all intellectual property rights, including all necessary patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright or other proprietary rights, in and to the Product. If You use third-party materials, You represent and warrant that you have the right to distribute the third-party material in the Product. You agree that you will not submit material to Google Play that is copyrighted, protected by trade secret or otherwise subject to third party proprietary rights, including patent, privacy and publicity rights, unless you are the owner of such rights or have permission from their rightful owner to submit the material." (my highlight) Oh and the app will be free to download and use, forever. Thanks!
if these images are native to your app (the users download them as they download your app) you are distributing content that Nexon / Gamania owns which they probably wouldn't be too happy about.
Thanks for your reply. Technically, they are downloaded yes. A user with some more knowledge might be able to grab those out of some folder, I guess. I kind of fear it would still be wrong if made the images not actually "being there" but instead loaded into the view temporarily from bbb.hidden-street This annoys me. On the one hand, I feel like it shouldn't be a big issue (these images are already available to anyone via hidden street and others) but on the other hand, I want to make things right.
According to the agreement, you do not have the rights. It's not just about the distribution, it's also about "using" the material, just simply "having" the material, and even "submitting" the material in the first place to Google Play. Although I do have friends who have developed apps and successfully submitted them to Google Play without owning licenses to all the materials that they use, and as far as I know it's something that actually happens pretty often with the development/production of apps as a whole. Essentially, my understanding is that it's not really a big deal until your app happens to get big enough to the point where the owners of any copyrighted materials will make a big deal about it. My personal opinion is go for it fuck Nexon lmaoooo
I wouldn't risk playing with big cooperation like NEXON, but if you really want to do it, the least you could do is to give credits. If you're doing it for personal hobby, it should be fine. But it won't be fine it that project is meant for commercial usage (i.e. involves payment, etc).
Thanks for your replies. It helps that someone else reads these agreements and gives their interpretation, because the language is sometimes so complicated. I think you're right, just a quick search on "Maplestory" on Google Play gives me apps which also has images that would be equally wrong with mine. It's possible that they got permission to use them but I highly doubt that. Now I feel like I have all the information I need, I just need to make a decision to either upload to GooglePlay, upload to my own website or not upload at all (would be kind of sad, considering the amount of effort I put into this app...) I have both a little devil and a little angel sitting on my shoulders having a little argument. : : Listen to the devil or to the angel.... aaargh!! I am doing it as a hobby. It started with me wanting to learn Android, and thinking Maplestory-related apps would be a good way to learn/practice It would be uploaded as a free app, and once that is done it can never be changed, which means it will never be commercialized.
Sounds fine to me then. I believe there are tons of maple related apps if you just search the playstore. Don't worry about it. At most your app gets taken down and no harm done!
After a lot of thinking, back and forth, and input from a lot of people on this forum, other forums, and IRL, I've finally decided to publish my app on Google Play. If you're interested, check it out here: https://royals.ms/forum/threads/accuracy-calculator-app-for-android.114585/ Thank you all for your replies
