On 31 July 2026, the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property (SAIP) issued a dedicated report on intellectual property protection for the esports and gaming sector, alongside the Esports World Cup in Riyadh. The report separates a game into distinct protectable assets: source code and underlying scripts may fall under copyright, user interfaces and character models may qualify for industrial design protection, interactive technologies and hardware innovations may support patent filings, while names, event identities and commercial signs remain within the trademark system. For creators, developers and investors, the practical message is clear: protection should be built as a portfolio rather than around a single right.
The report also gives prominent attention to digital piracy, online dissemination and evidentiary challenges, signalling a compliance and enforcement agenda that runs in parallel with sector promotion. The difficult part will not be identifying possible rights, but documenting ownership and preserving evidence across development cycles. Version histories, code repositories, design iterations and licensing records will often determine whether the framework works in practice. Companies active in Saudi Arabia should therefore review development, publishing, platform and tournament agreements before disputes arise.
