Self-Published / Self-Funded

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andreidaldegan Posted: 03-05-2012 10:49 PM

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Hi, can someone please clarify the meaning of Self-Published and Self-Funded ?

Filed under: licensing

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Philippe Da Silva replied on 03-06-2012 4:25 AM

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Self-Published means that you don't have a 3rd party company (called Publisher) that will be doing the job of distributing your game. As long as "you" (the developer individual or company) are publishing your game on your own and therefore finding deals with distributors (such as the Xbox Live Marketplace, WP7 Marketplace, Steam, Desura, etc...) you are considered as Self-Publishing.

Self-Funded means that you don't rely on any other company to create the budget that will allow you to develop and distribute your game. So, if you are using your own cash to get your game out there, you're Self-Funded.

Just to clarify a bit more, in the game industry, you can distinguish 3 core roles:

Studios: who actually develop games (code/art/game design)
Publishers: who finance studios to a certain extent and market the game in exchange of a share of revenue and potentially the Intellectual Property of the game
Distributors: who put games on physical or digital shelves

A company can have all othe above, two or only one. Self published and self funded generally means that you are a Studio and responsible of publishing your game.

Regards

Philippe

Posts 19

Anton replied on 03-06-2012 5:32 AM

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If this is the online game, which is a free download from the site? And the players are paid on the site for additional opportunitiesin the game? No publisher. What license is needed then?

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Philippe Da Silva replied on 03-06-2012 5:47 AM

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If you're talking about the free to play model which implies you have additional features/content available for players that require them to pay you, any license will make it.

The business model you decide to pick for your game doesn't interact with SunBurn's license model. You should only consider the Studio license if you are actually a development studio working on a game commanded by another company/publisher.

Otherwise you're good to go. SynapseGaming even don't ask you to upgrade your license if you reach a certain revenue which is generally the case for most engines ;)