You own your game or product, but Epic retains full ownership of Unreal Engine itself. The rights you receive are a license only, not a purchase, and no additional rights are implied beyond what is explicitly stated.
This analysis describes what Unreal Engine's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
Understanding that Unreal Engine is licensed, not purchased, is fundamental to the agreement: Epic can modify, restrict, or terminate your right to use the engine, and you have no ownership claim to the engine technology embedded in your products.
Developers own their creative work but not the engine powering it; Epic's ownership of the Licensed Technology means that changes to the license terms or termination of the agreement can affect how you can use or distribute products built with the engine.
How other platforms handle this
As between Customer and Cohere, Cohere retains all right, title, and interest in and to the Services, including all intellectual property rights therein. Customer retains all right, title, and interest in and to the Customer Data.
As between you and OpenAI, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, you retain any rights you have in the content you submit to our Services. OpenAI will assign to you all of its rights, title, and interest, if any, in and to the output of the Services generated in response to your input (the ...
You retain any and all of your rights to any content you submit, post or display on or through the Services ('User Content') and you are responsible for protecting those rights. By submitting User Content through the Services, you hereby grant to Unity a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, fully...
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"As between you and us, you own all rights, other than rights in the Licensed Technology, in the Products you develop under this Agreement, and we own all title, ownership rights, and intellectual property rights in the Licensed Technology. All rights granted to you under this Agreement are granted by the License only and not by sale, and all of those rights are limited by and subject to the terms of this Agreement. No license or other right in any Epic technology or intellectual property rights other than the Licensed Technology is granted under this Agreement, and no license or other rights will be created under this Agreement by implication, estoppel, or otherwise.— Excerpt from Unreal Engine's Unreal Engine EULA
REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: Intellectual property ownership provisions in software licenses are governed by copyright law in applicable jurisdictions. The statement that rights are granted by license and not by sale engages the first sale doctrine debate in software, where US courts have generally held that licensed software does not trigger first sale rights. EU software directive provisions may apply different rules in European jurisdictions regarding the resale or transfer of software licenses. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Low. The IP ownership structure is standard for proprietary software licenses and is clearly articulated. However, the statement that no rights are created by implication, estoppel, or otherwise may be relevant in disputes where studios argue that Epic's conduct created additional rights beyond those expressly granted. JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU software directive may affect the extent to which the license-not-sale characterization limits transferability rights for EU-based licensees. The no-implied-rights clause may face challenge in jurisdictions with equitable doctrines that recognize implied licenses in certain circumstances. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Studios seeking to transfer, sell, or assign their Unreal Engine license (for example, in an M&A transaction) should note that the license is non-transferable and non-sublicensable. Acquirers of studios using Unreal Engine must obtain their own license or negotiate a transfer with Epic. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: M&A legal teams should flag Unreal Engine license non-transferability as a diligence item in any transaction involving a studio that uses the engine. Studios should not represent to investors or acquirers that the Unreal Engine license is a transferable asset without confirming Epic's consent to any transfer.
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Understanding that Unreal Engine is licensed, not purchased, is fundamental to the agreement: Epic can modify, restrict, or terminate your right to use the engine, and you have no ownership claim to the engine technology embedded in your products.
Developers own their creative work but not the engine powering it; Epic's ownership of the Licensed Technology means that changes to the license terms or termination of the agreement can affect how you can use or distribute products built with the engine.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 24 platforms. See the full comparison.
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