Legal Keynotes from Turkey: Video Games — Original Research Note (2016)

Serhat Koç (LL.M.) — Original research note, July 2016. Digitized and added to the website archive in October 2026. The manuscript is reproduced in its historical form; the regulatory descriptions should not be relied on as statements of current law.

Archival dating: The document specifies July 2016 without a day. The WordPress archive uses 1 July 2016 as a technical month-only sorting date; this does not represent a verified publication day.

This is the complete original manuscript. For a shorter editorial overview, see Video Games and the Law in Turkey.

General Overview

In this brief note, I would like to give some tips regarding the regulations on video games in Turkey in general. As it is a well-known fact the legal scope of video games is covered by wide range of different areas of law. In the case of foreign or domestic Gaming Companies, specific regulatory issues that might arise from the market entry to the operation procedures can be briefly summarized as follows:

Registration and Classification Procedures (Offline and Online Games)
Copyright Issues
Tax regulations
Online Safety Issues
Data Protection Issues
Import Regulations
Consumer Protection Regulations
Credit card spending through hardware or apps
Internet/Gaming Cafes (Public places with children’s access)

Although there are many legal issues that can be dealt with in the area of video games, the purpose of this brief memo is to provide some specific information regarding the regulations on classification and registration process of video games in Turkey and protectability of video games by copyright law. Where it is necessary short information on tax regulations regarding video games.

And for most, it has to be mentioned here that for the purpose of this article the terms "videogame" and "computer game" are being used as interchangeable. It is preferable to refer all kinds of games (video, computer, digital etc.) as “video game”.

Video Games in Turkey

The videogame market in Turkey differs from that of the European Union and the United States in several important ways, including and most importantly regarding the relatively high levels of software piracy and a fragmented chain of regulatory authority.

Nevertheless Turkish video game industry has still displayed a positive outlook over the past six years. The video game industry has an estimated $ 100 million dollar value, albeit the considerable markets share dominance of Korean and Chinese stakeholders.

The young demographic of Turkey suggests this industry has further potentIal for growth and demands increased investment , notably in content development targeting regional and national interests.

In many jurisdictions, including the United States and Europe, the video game market is dominated by console games. In the case of Turkey, video game software for use with game consoles is subject to high piracy rates. As a result, Turkey’s video game market has evolved into primarily an online game market, with revenues from this segment constituting nearly all of video game revenues. Internet cafés have become one of the primary venues in Turkey at which users play online games offered by domestic game operators.

Self Declaration / Registration Procedure in Turkey

The first subject to be discussed in this article is the registration procedure of video games according to Turkish law. “Regulation on Registration of Intellectual and Artistic Works” designates a compulsory registration requirement for specific types of intellectual and artistic works. One of these specific types of works is video/computer games.

In order to a put box (ed) video game on the Turkish market, one must have a banderole and in order to obtain a banderole the video game must be registered to the designated national authority.

This registration process before the national authority shall not be construed as a necessary requirement to be considered as a copyright protectable work, but it is about having an official ticket to enter into the developers’ eco-system of the country. However you can also benefit from this registration process for evidentiary purposes in case of an alleged copyright infringement.

To enjoy copyright protection is not subject to registration according to Turkish Copyright Law, which is in accordance with the Berne Convention, the “registration process” mentioned here is designated for evidentiary purposes.

This registration requires a specific a process, which also necessitates submission of some related documents. One of the relevant ones, is a letter of commitment, which requires the applicant to make a self-declaration that the game does not include any elements that are detrimental to the mental and physical health of minors and youth; and that the applicant undertakes all the legal and criminal responsibility if this declaration is disproved.

Depending upon the assessment, the official commission under the auspices of Ministry of Culture and Tourism classifies the video games considering the facts of fear, sexuality and violence. The subjects that are not found suitable with the mentioned facts may not be placed on the market. The video games with the suitable context upon the assessment would be registered. Furthermore it has to be mentioned that for those that are not found suitable pursuant to the assessment, may still be registered on the condition that the required restricting measures are taken or the necessary fixations are made.

Ministry of Culture and Tourism is the national registration authority and the necessary documents must be submitted to the Ministry, which would eventually indicate that the referred video game is not harmful to mental and physical health of youth and children. By submitting these documents, one undertake all legal and criminal responsibility about your game’s content.

Following the registration, there is also the banderole (stamp) process for the copies of some specific types of copyrighted works. Banderole is obligatory for video games that are registered according to the above-explained procedure.

Digital/Online Games

As for the digital (e.g. online) games, currently there is no content regulation or a specific classification procedure in Turkey. In fact, this particular issue and the urgent and certain need to regulate this area of online games’ content have been raised by different reports of Turkish Government institutions and there have been different initiatives to regulate the content of online games.

It is observed that the relevant public stakeholders (such as the Internet Board and Internet Department of Turkish Information and Communication Technologies Authority) support the recommendations made in the official reports. Therefore it is likely that a system similar to the ones recommended in these report would be implemented in Turkey. Family and Social Research Directorate General of Prime Ministry, recommended establishing a rating system similar to the one in the US (Entertainment Software Association and ESRB) or the PEGI Online system. Although it has to be mentioned that the process and timing are not concrete at this stage.

Several official reports suggest that an institution to conduct scientific research activities on this matter or a center to employ subject matter experts should be established to make studies for sectorial and legal regulations on this issue. The reports address that it would be important to include sector representatives to these initiatives as well, so as to make the relevant regulations more realistic and applicable.

Turkish Copyright Code does not contain adequate regulations for electronic/computer games. Defining multimedia works and digital games which contains such works as a intellectual work class could be better for separately protecting digital games instead of using the provisions about software or cinematic works.

One can consider Turkish IP regulation in most part fully compatible with the European acquis. However the current administrative and implementation procedures have created a few potential issues.

Copyright Protection

As for our second issue, about copyright protection: I would like to address the most crucial defect of the Turkish Copyright Code is very related to the requirement of work classification. In order to enjoy copyright protection according to Turkish law: a work must fit in one of the work categories.

However multimedia or audiovisual works are not considered to be a category mentioned in the Turkish Code. Therefore currently videogames are protected either under scientific and literary works in which computer game is a sub category or cinematographic works.

One can consider Turkish IP regulation in most part fully compatible with the European acquis. However the current administrative and implementation procedures have created the following potential issues:

The control and audit mechanisms in place are inadequate;
The numbers of specialized courts are overwhelmed by demand, leading to a considerable case backlog.
Deficiencies in the investigation and prosecution procedures about the IP crimes result in a high rate of case dismissals;
Flawed evidence collecting practices of the police forces

In cases where an invoice or license is submitted to the authorities in the course of an investigation, it is not uncommon for the actus reus and the mens rea to be perceived as conflicting.

Expert reports not written in an accessible and digestible form for the benefit of the courts
The level of fines inflicted on the suspects are minimal
Judges mostly apply the judicial procedure of “postponing the announcement of the order” and that adversely affects the deterrence of their decisions

By the way there is a current copyright amendment in consideration, in the draft text: the title of the article on cinematographic works is going to be amended as audio-visual works. Although currently depending on the lack of protective regulations, after this amendment the video games can enjoy copyright protection as audio-visual works.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism is planning to amend the current legislation for a number of reasons including full harmonization with a number of EU Directives as envisaged in the latest National Program; problems and latest developments about collective societies, some procedural provisions, rearranging some articles of the current Law which conflict with each other, provisions about the digital field and clarifying some of the vague definitions in the current Law. The latest plan of the officers of the Ministry is to offer the latest draft to public consultation. It is a supported view that it would be of importance to follow the progress in relation to the draft law.

Tax Regulations

Tax has been a heavy issue for Turkey as the foreign investors are in the search of more gain and less tax which is also the reflection of becoming more and more global.

The tax regulations in Turkey vary as the taxable event such as; Value Added Tax (VAT), Income Tax, Corporate Tax, Private Consumption Tax, Private Communication Tax & Tax Procedure Law.

As to be a taxpayer in Turkey the main principle is; you need to be Turkish Citizen or a Company resident in Turkey. The secondary principles may also charge you tax but that shall be for a reason and may occur only for that reason such as; shopping.

The Tax Authority had enormous problems just because of this principle of residency, in recent years and tax exile become a top priority issue because of the markets that arise on the Internet, have giant economy.

Yet tax authorities had problems both with big foreign social-media companies and also most known foreign e-commerce sites as they were earning enormous amounts of money but giving no tax in return. The government decided banning the access to those sites should be the solution to get those companies open a branch in Turkey and pay tax. Now the foreign investors are advised to open a branch in Turkey and they are also welcome with some tax benefits.

Computer games are exempted from customs tax. On the other hand, value added tax rate is %18 and certificate is required to be received from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Game consoles are also exempted from customs tax. Value added tax rate is %18 and private consumption tax shall also apply.

As per Article 4 of Value Added Tax Law; Software, license, project, royalty, imports are deemed as services. Since Customs Act is only levy “goods” it cannot levy imports of such services. As for the Games, the taxes may vary as the game is on a CD/DVD or on the Internet or mobile. On the other hand, related tax shall apply according to Value Added Tax Law. Although Value added Tax Law is not able to levy software, it can still levy the carrier medium (e.g. CD/DVD) with the rate of %18..

Imports of data or information carriers shall be reported to the Customs Administration Obligation to pay customs tax and VAT arises. According to an official letter dated 26.04.2002 numbered 18720 that is sent by the Revenue Administration to Customs Administration, customs issues related with data or information carriers shall be in line with the following statements;

In case it is not possible to the value of the carrier media and the content cannot be separated from each other customs tax will be calculated based on the total value of the carrier and the content.
In case that the value of the carrier and the content’ values can be reported separately, customs tax will be calculated from the value of the carrier and value added tax will be calculated from the total value of the item.

Yet there is the problem of tax exile for the games on internet/mobile where the items of the game can be sold or exchanged without any tax retains. Virtual money is also another deadlock in Turkey as it can be used for money-laundering too.

Copyright Levies

In accordance with the specific regulation on copyright levies, for all blank media (carrier material) and technical devices that enable the copying of intellectual and artistic works are subject to copyright levies. The amount of these levies is designated by a Council of Ministers’ decision and is a percentage from the manufacturing or import price of the product. Copyright levies are collected from the manufacturers or importers of the stated products.

Council of Ministers has issued a decision, which lists the percentage to be withheld based on the type of the product. This list has been designated based on the Customs Tariff Statistics Position number of the product type. The ambiguities in the application of the copyright levies process (specifically on the designation of “technical devices which enable the copying of intellectual and artistic works”) are criticized by the sector. It is advised to consult a customs consultant about the specific Customs Tariff Statistics Position of the product.

Data Protection Issues

There are no specific data protection framework laws in effect in Turkey. As a general rule, Turkish Penal Code deems the illegal storage of personal data, illegal disclosure of personal data, and illegal possession of personal data as a crime. However, there is a long-term draft law on the protection of personal data (currently it is at the Parliamentary stage, in front of the Justice Commission) “Right to data protection” has been included to the Turkish Constitution in 2010 and Turkey (as a candidate country) has commitments to European Union (EU) to enact regulations on data protection.

Draft law is a framework regulation, which regulates the general rules on data protection. The Law states that on specific issues, respected Ministries shall immediately prepare their specific regulations. (Some examples to those specific issues can be health, communication and transportation, tourism, tax, judicial issues, law enforcement etc. Therefore, it should be expected that these kinds of data to be covered under these specific regulations. On the other hand, in absentia of those specific regulations, the framework draft law would be applied.

As for the credit card use on the computer games, one issue to be reminded is that it is forbidden by Turkish banking regulations to hold card information of the users. This issue should be of consideration, if there is a practice to hold the user’s card information on app or hardware.

Online Safety Issues

The first 7 articles of Law Numbered 5651 is very appropriate and useful for defining the rights and freedoms of Internet actors. Therefore, the provisions related to website blocking and right to issue refutation are needed to be updated.

Import Regulations

Undersecretariat of Customs is responsible for customs issues. However, there have been very recent structural changes in relation to the ministerial structure. A new ministry has been established called Ministry of Customs and Trade would be responsible for the support and execution of the customs policy, internal trade, preparation of the customs tariffs, to oblige rules and to monitor the customs undersecretaries and their deputies etc.

Prime Ministry Undersecretariat of Foreign Trade is responsible for several policy, regulatory and implementation issues regarding the imports and exports.

Consumer Protection Regulations

Turkish consumer protection regulations impose an obligation of “issuing a certificate of guarantee” for specific types of products. The Ministry of Industry and Trade designate the types of products for which it is compulsory to issue a “certificate of guarantee” by a regulation. According to this Regulation, it is compulsory to issue a certificate of guarantee for “any kinds of game devices which can be connected to a TV or a computer”. Please note that, software is not included to that list of products for which it is compulsory to issue a certificate of guarantee. The guarantee time for “any kinds of game devices which can be connected to a TV or a computer” is 2 years.

Internet/Gaming Cafes

Commercial cafés can provide Internet access and let its customers use gaming software. They have both Internet access and gaming facilities. This group of cafés needs to be at least 200 meters (about 600 feet) away from educational institutions and mosques.

On March 26, 2001, the Turkish Police further regulated the commercial and gaming cafés. According to this latest legislation, there is no longer a minimum age requirement for entering commercial cafés. For game cafés, the minimum age was decreased from 15 to 12, but parental consent was made necessary for everyone below age 18.

Conclusion

In general, the Turkish laws are sufficient to be able to tell apart from a few missing points. We already do not have to do too much regulation in the field of Internet and information technology; in fact these are very fast growing fields.

So the money exchanges and taxable events that occur on the internet are also still in Grey area as our tax regulations are a bit out dated, yet the Authorities are aware of this issue and trying to solve by renovating the Codes which takes time.

That said, the determination of the applicable law with respect to computer games is highly debatable and the related subject area is sufficiently broad. Therefore with the intention of limiting the scope of this article, the issue of protection of computer games is only handled in relation to copyright law and even more specifically, in relation to classification of protected works. A computer game consists of different elements, which may solely be protected under Turkish Copyright Law, such as its story, codes, audio-visual components or cinematographic presentation.

Therefore, the main purpose of this article becomes specifying whether or not the computer games should be protected under the category of cinematographic works or whether they should be considered merely computer program. Thus, the advantages and disadvantages of falling under different categories are analysed throughout the article. Moreover, the crucial role of the courts and an urgent need for the development of the case law, taking into consideration the lack of clarity within the scope, has been mentioned. Consequently, in order to protect the intellectual efforts, put forth and also to provide an adequate consolidation to the financial investments and thus to support the growth of the sector, it has acknowledged as a necessity, in this article, to suggest an amendment with respect to Turkish Copyright Code no.5846.

For the final words: it is important to be mentioned that the application of laws is far more important than the law itself. Even with the best of the code, mistakes and misunderstandings of the practice is greatly multiplied by misuses. The application side of the laws by police, prosecutors, judges and lawyers should be made to train for and by the necessary initiatives.

Archival note: References to draft laws, regulations, rates and institutions reproduce the original manuscript’s 2016-era text and may now be outdated.