In Week 06 of Advanced 3D Computer Animation, Professor Nigel Mairs guided me to focus on defining my research question and refining the direction of my thesis. I worked on shaping my topic into a clear and focused research question around player-created avatars and digital ownership. I broke the topic into smaller parts to identify what I want to investigate and what the reader should understand. I considered the purpose of my research and how it connects to current issues in games, copyright, and platform control. I started forming sub-questions to guide my structure and support a logical flow in my writing.
Step 1: Choosing the Research questions
Who qualifies as the legal author of a player created avatar under copyright law?
How do terms of service redefine or override default intellectual property ownership for avatars?
What type of license do platforms require from users, and how broad are these rights in practice?
How do enforcement tools such as bans, content removal, and account suspension shape actual ownership?
To what extent do players retain control over avatars after uploading them to a platform?
How do different platforms structure ownership differently across open systems and closed systems?
What legal differences exist between creating avatars from scratch versus using platform provided assets?
How do monetisation rules affect claims of ownership over avatars and related content?
Are player created avatars better understood as independent works or as derivative works owned by platforms?
How do platform policies address infringement, and what happens when users include third party intellectual property in avatars?
What role do copyright, trademark, and publicity rights play in disputes over avatar ownership?
How does the imbalance of power between users and platforms influence legal interpretations of ownership?
I also evaluated whether my topic is practical in terms of available sources and research scope. This session helped me narrow my focus and move from a broad idea to a more achievable and structured research direction.