Forum Discussion

MizoreYukii's avatar
MizoreYukii
Seasoned Ace
7 years ago

Questions Regarding EA User Agreement

Hey everyone. Hopefully an EA official can answer these questions. I would have contacted support but they don't seem to have a category for this.

I have questions regarding the service agreement and User-Generated Content (UGC) and where it begins and ends for those of us who create. I've read a lot of posts on this subject already and the information is covered well enough for general use, but not the areas I'm concerned with, and I've only seen one other similar, but unanswered, question in the last post of this thread.

I understand that:

  1. Creators cannot restrict their content with stuff like "Don't include the mesh," but it is frowned upon if people disrespect creators.
  2. UGC cannot be exclusive or kept behind a paywall and must be released within 2-3 weeks of its initial release date.
  3. EA owns all content created with EA assets, no matter what it is.

With that said, my questions are:

  1. If a creator makes a mesh or texture COMPLETELY BY SCRATCH with no EA assets whatsoever, and then converts it to be used for Sims (aka CC), does EA own even the original mesh/texture, or just the converted file made for the Sims (aka .package file, the final product)? I plan on releasing my content on other sites and for other games eventually where they will have their own policies, etc. so I need to know if my mesh/texture that I spent hours on before converting it for TS4 is actually mine, or if EA retroactively owns that too. I'm assuming from what I'm reading that no, they don't and creators own the original mesh/texture, but I wanted to be sure (and also so I can explain it to others).
  2. Are people allowed to convert EA content, or even CC, to other games outside EA's company? If this is not allowed, are creators then allowed to remind people not to do so because it breaks the terms? 
  3. If someone requests a paid commission in private and only the parties involved know about it, does it still need to be released publicly? I'm assuming yes despite no one else knowing about it, and that it follows the same time frame as everything else. 
  4. Speaking of exclusive UGC, what happens if you make content for just friends or a winner of a competition, no payment involved? Are we still obligated to share it to the public? 

I hope I remembered to ask everything. Thank you for your time!

4 Replies

  • Sashas0nic's avatar
    Sashas0nic
    Seasoned Ace
    7 years ago

    Hi @MizoreYukii  you certainly need a few things cleared up for you.. 🙂

    You may find a better response by contacting EA support for the live chat:

    - Go here: https://help.ea.com/en/contact-us/#

    - Log in (top right corner) with Origin credentials

    - Click on Sims 4, then follow by choosing PC > Game Information > then features > then select the contact option 

    - On the next page click on + by the chat option, fill in what's necessary so EA support will contact you through chat

    This is the closest option I can think of, and may at least connect you with someone to get more answers, or a connection for further advice.

    Sasha



    nb: If this solves your question, please mark the reply as having been the solution, so as to help others with a similar problem in the future. 🙂
    I have no connection to EA

About The Sims 4 Gameplay Questions & Issues

Get help and answers to your gameplay questions and issues in The Sims 4.21,511 PostsLatest Activity: 3 seconds ago