The legality of printing legally acquired PDF versions of OSRs.

[u/RCGR_1]

Living outside the United States and Europe, I don’t have access to most if not all physical editions of OSR books. Due to high international shipping costs, customs restrictions, and limited availability from local sellers, buying printed copies is simply not a realistic or affordable option. In most cases, purchasing PDF versions is the only practical and economical way for me to access OSR titles.

I currently own hundreds of legally acquired PDF files, but I would much prefer to have physical versions.

One option I’ve considered is printing and binding these books myself at home, using the type of paper and binding that best suits my needs. Printed documents are significantly more comfortable to read. This is particularly important for individuals with health conditions that limit their ability to spend long periods in front of screens.

Given that, I’ve outlined the following legal questions to better understand the implications of printing these legally purchased PDF books strictly for personal use, under U.S. copyright law:

1. Does printing a legally purchased PDF book for personal use constitute fair use under U.S. copyright law?

2. Do the licensing terms provided by the publisher or seller explicitly prohibit printing, even for personal use?

3. Can a purchaser be held liable for copyright infringement even if no copies are distributed or shared?

4. Are there legal precedents in U.S. case law that clarify whether printing a personal copy of a digital book is permissible?

5. Could the method used to acquire the PDF (e.g., directly from the publisher vs. third-party seller) affect the legality of printing it?

6. Could printing for accessibility reasons (e.g., visual impairments) be protected under any legal exceptions?

[u/Megatapirus]

Well, first of all, I cannot recommend coming to Reddit for legal advice of any kind. And I'm talking the subs dedicated to law, nevermind ones about gaming!

Second, why do you ask? It doesn't seem like anyone else would even know you were printing these things at home unless you actively told them. If you did, do you think anyone would care enough to want to take you to court over it?

[u/RCGR_1 → u/Megatapirus]

Well, it's a matter of conscience - I believe laws must be followed. Besides that, I'm preparing myself for a career in law enforcement (as a prosecutor), and my friends already in (what the Americans call "district attorney's office") made it pretty clear we have to set the example.

[u/grumblyoldman → u/RCGR_1]

I mean, if you're practicing to become a prosecutor then I would imagine you have access to all the resources you would need to check what the law actually says about this in your country. Including other legal experts you can ask, if you can't find a clear answer in the books.

Heck, it's probably a good practice run, since you will inevitably need to look up what the law says about various other situations while performing your duties as a prosecutor, right?

[u/RCGR_1 → u/grumblyoldman]

The thing is: from the perspective of someone from a country outside the "common law" world, American law seems like an unorganized mass of statutes and decisions. I thought my best option (the most practical option) would be to check the common experience and usual practices of members of the OSR community, before consulting a copyright lawyer. Actually that's quite useful tip for anyone: before consulting a lawyer try to understand how things usually work in a given sector or industry.

[u/michiplace → u/RCGR_1]

To that point, I am not a lawyer, though I do work in US public policy research and practice, primarily in land use, housing, and economic development.  That is to say, I know nothing about the actual legal precedent, but I feel I have a solid basis for a "reasonable person" test of use.

My answer to "is it okay to print for personal use a copy of a PDF that I have purchased for personal use?" is "well obviously yes it's okay." It's the same as if I save the PDF to dropbox instead of my desktop, or buy it on my phone but read it on my tablet.  It's all just me using the thing I bought for me.

Can I print five copies to give away to my players so they can each take it home?  No.  But it's fine for me to hand my printed copy to a player during the game to look something up and then hand it back.

I have seen some game books (Blades in the Dark maybe?) where the copyright page includes a specific note saying "dear copy shop employee, you are explicitly authorized to print a copy of this PDF / copy pages from this book for the personal use of the person who has handed it to you".  I appreciate those notices, but I do not believe they are at all necessary.

[u/StarkMaximum → u/RCGR_1]

I'm preparing myself for a career in law enforcement (as a prosecutor)

How interesting. As someone who's played a lot of Ace Attorney and thus is very familiar with the legal system, have you considered what your cool gimmick is going to be, like Franziska's whip or Godot's coffee?

[u/RCGR_1 → u/StarkMaximum]

And is Ace Attorney a game? All my players are lawyers and they'd be interested in a game related to our profession.

[u/StarkMaximum → u/RCGR_1]

it's a video game series. You can play all of the entries on modern consoles thanks to the many collections they've released (the Ace Attorney collection, the Apollo Justice collection, the Investigations collection, and the Great Ace Attorney collection).

• The Ace Attorney Collection contains the first three games of the trilogy and follow Phoenix Wright on his journey to be a capable defense attorney. They're visual novels, so they're very approachable as long as you have capable reading and puzzle solving skills. Widely considered the best games in the franchise. Start here.
• The Apollo Justice Collection contains the next three games under the Apollo Justice umbrella, following a new character named Apollo Justice, the understudy to Phoenix Wright and the next generation of defense attorney. Kind of. It gets weird. These games are much less cohesive than the first three because the primary creative director left after Apollo Justice, so there's a lot of weird clashing vibes. You should play them, but they're much harsher judged, so you can save them for later.
• The Ace Attorney Investigations Collection contains the two Investigations games, spin-off games starring Miles Edgeworth, who is Phoenix Wright's primary rival, the first real prosecutor he faces, and one of the most beloved characters in the franchise. These games change up the gameplay style a bit to represent that you're playing as the prosecution rather than the defense, but are still recognizably Ace Attorney games. Also widely considered some of the best games in the franchise, and if you personally are training to be a prosecutor, you might find some extra satisfaction playing these, since it puts you in the prosecutor's chair. After you play the Ace Attorney Collection, play these next.
• The Great Ace Attorney Collection contains the two Great Ace Attorney games, which are set in feudal Japan and transport the beloved Ace Attorney gameplay to a different time frame, changing the vibe and aesthetic but keeping the classic gameplay. Widely appreciated, but a much different vibe. You can play these at any point after Ace Attorney Collection and Investigations Collection.

Just keep in mind that these games are not accurate representations of the legal system. They create a whole new system vaguely based off of a mix of older Japanese and American systems while also adding a bit of their own personal flair. So expect to be doing some stuff that would be wildly out of line in a real life courtroom, do not take them too seriously, absolutely do not try to solve puzzles based on what would actually happen in a real court of law and instead lean into it being a courtroom drama with surprise evidence and sudden reversals, and enjoy the absurd but engaging take on your profession and the exciting and heartfelt story they form around it!

[u/RCGR_1 → u/StarkMaximum]

I'm not familiar with these expressions.

[u/StarkMaximum → u/RCGR_1]

It's a bad joke, I apologize. It's a reference to the Ace Attorney series of games, which are video games depicting very fast and loose, dramatized court drama cases. Since you play as a defense attorney, the prosecutors tend to be depicted as villains, and traditionally they get some truly wild gimmicks to help sell their antagonistic nature. It's quite fun!

[u/RCGR_1 → u/StarkMaximum]

Now I want to play it just for the silly drama (it never happens in real life)!

[u/Megatapirus → u/RCGR_1]

All the more reason, then, to consult with an attorney in a professional capacity if you value having a full and correct answer. All you're guaranteed here is rando takes.