Using the likenesses of a real person in a game app

Question

Hi there!

My team and I have launched our game design startup just recently. For or a new game app, we would like to use the names and likenesses of real people, notably celebrities and politicians. Are we generally allowed to do that? How do we avoid legal problems? I appreciate any assistance.

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Answers: 2 public & 1 private

Headshot corp
Lawyer

Hi,

There are a few considerations here:
1. Would having the likeness of a celebrity or politician indicate that they endorsed your product or game?
2. How are you getting their likeness? Are you drawing this yourself, or are you using photographs etc?

There are Competition/Consumer law issues, Privacy Law issues and Copyright/IP issues here in Australia. Let me know if you need more advice!

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