Lawyer for streamers and digital influencers in gaming

When you stream, post or create games and esports content, you stop being just a player once money starts coming in: sponsorships, ads, channel subscriptions, donations, affiliate commissions or event fees. From then on the activity involves contracts, taxes, image rights and advertising rules, and settling deals over chat messages often turns out expensive.

A lawyer helps on three fronts: organising the activity (contracts, formalisation and billing), protecting what is yours (name, channel, image and content) and preventing problems before they show up (unlabelled advertising, music use, locked accounts).

Advertising: what must be clear

Advertising must be recognisable as such. The Brazilian Consumer Code (art. 36) requires consumers to notice at once that something is an ad, and the advertising self-regulation council (Conar) has published a guide for digital influencers on how to flag sponsored content. Labelling a post as an ad is not a detail but an obligation, and responsibility can reach both the brand and the creator.

Promoting betting sites, gambling or products aimed at children calls for even more care, because there are specific rules and audience restrictions. Before accepting a campaign, review the contract and its terms.

Sponsorship, agency and network contracts

A sponsorship or ad contract should state what will be delivered (posts, streams, mentions), the term, the fee and payment method, who approves the content, how long the brand may reuse the material and whether there is exclusivity. Overlong exclusivity and open-ended image reuse are the clauses that most need negotiating.

• Term and fee, with payment date and late-payment penalty
• Exclusivity: which brands and for how long
• Use of your image and content by the brand, with term and media
• Approval and revision of content
• Termination, and what happens to payment if the channel is locked

Contracts with agencies, creator networks and management companies deserve the same attention: revenue share, term, exclusivity and who keeps the channel and the audience when the contract ends.

Name, image, music and content

Your image and stage name are legally protected: the Constitution and the Civil Code (art. 20) require authorisation to use someone’s image commercially. The channel name can be protected as a trademark at INPI, which keeps someone else from registering it and then charging you. See the steps in trademark registration.

Music, game footage and third-party images in streams and videos may infringe copyright (Law 9,610/1998) or the usage rules set by the game’s publisher. The result is usually demonetisation, content removal or a notice. Knowing each game’s and platform’s policy keeps your channel from being penalised.

Formalisation and locked accounts

As content income grows, it is worth reviewing how you receive it (as an individual, sole-proprietor MEI or company), always with an accountant, and keeping contracts and invoices up to date. If your channel or game account is locked, hacked or banned, the route starts with preserving evidence and contacting the platform; see what to do in banned accounts. If you also compete, see esports contracts.