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Securing rights to creative material, how much royalties should i offer

I am producing a game, for PC. It is based on the settings of an old series of tabletop roleplaying games (books). I have been in contact with the publishers who currently own the rights to use the content, and are still publishing books using it.

I am also planning and have already mentioned about using them for marketing the game.

I have been asked to provide figures for an advanced against royalties and royalty rate. I am aware of what these things are but have no comparison, for which to provide my values.

Answer 1397

The best advice would be to research comparison rates in your industry. What are people doing your sort of work getting for their work? What should you expect both as an advance and in ongoing royalties?

The publishing industry could provide you with a similar vein as far as royalties and advances go, but depending on the nature of your game, the policies of the company you are working for and the state of the industry you might be off by an order of magnitude.

If this is something you can (legally) take to other firms who might make a bid on it make sure to consider doing that. It will be much better for you to have options on the deal especially if they let you develop a meaningful understanding of what you are worth.

Good luck!


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