Microsoft Bans Thieves from Live

This is brilliant. And about time too. Some people modify their Xbox game consoles so that they can steal games. They don’t want to pay the developers for all the work that has gone into making the game. They are quite happy to be thieves when they think that they won’t be caught.

But Microsoft (MSFT) has caught them. They have quietly been using Xbox Live to check every machine on there (20ish million) to see if they have been modified. And now they are banning all the thieves. Microsoft say a small percentage have been banned. The BBC is reporting that it is 600,000. Rumour on the web has it at nearer a million.

An Xbox is absolutely brilliant with Xbox Live. It is the biggest and best gaming portal in the world. Take away Live and an Xbox is substantially degraded in what it offers. So taking Live away from the thieves makes their Xboxes close to useless.

So the thieves are screaming in anger all over the net. Which is exceptionally funny to watch as they have been caught red handed. They have no options now but to go and buy a new Xbox and start a new Live account. So that’s possibly a million extra Xbox 360s that Microsoft will sell this Christmas. The profit on these will probably not get them back what they have lost to their games being stolen, but it is a contribution. Also their timing is brilliant, just as the biggest game ever, Modern Warfare 2, is launched. No wonder the thieves are so annoyed.

Overall, this is one of the better moments in the ongoing war between those who work to create brilliant games and those thieves who try to steal that work from them.

Comments

[doodoo:]

Now MSFT needs to get busy in China and stop those super thieves form stealing everything but the welcome mat.China leaders are nothing but high class thiefs.They sell copies of the new operating system on street corners and the police protect them.What a crock when they cry about anything that has to do with fair trade.I thought Gates had some kind of pull with the powers that be in China.Every country in the world knows that this stuff goes on and lets them get away with it.Need to send in some head breakers and send a message that this crap needs to stop.

Nov 11 11:32 AM

[overbet:]

They have been overcharging on those games for years. $60.00 for a new game for a teenager is begging to be stolen. What do they expect. I definitely do not think stealing is okay but maybe game makers are stealing too even though they are doing it legally like Goldman. And if you think they are going to splurge for a new xbox cause of live....you are delusional. I have xbox, I play games, I use netflix subscription, I know better. Do you think they will find a way to modify their xbox for a $60 game but not find a way for a $200 xbox?

Nov 11 11:41 AM

[jack dee:]

You are so right Overbet, now maybe someone should break into your home and steal your xbox, after all $200 is lot and why should they work when they can steal your TV...........


On Nov 11 11:41 AM overbet wrote:

> They have been overcharging on those games for years. $60.00 for
> a new game for a teenager is begging to be stolen. What do they expect.
> I definitely do not think stealing is okay but maybe game makers
> are stealing too even though they are doing it legally like Goldman.
> And if you think they are going to splurge for a new xbox cause of
> live....you are delusional. I have xbox, I play games, I use netflix
> subscription, I know better. Do you think they will find a way to
> modify their xbox for a $60 game but not find a way for a $200 xbox?

Nov 11 12:37 PM

[politux:]

Great post from someone who either works for or is getting paid to espouse Microsoft's point of view. How about the people who simply upgraded their hard drive because they didn't want to pay twice as much for a crappy proprietary drive from MS? They didn't "steal" any games, yet are being punished for being intelligent enough to install a 3rd party hard disk drive.

Nov 11 12:56 PM

[mrxg4:]

I thought this website was SeekingAlpha, not IGN. I'm confused...

Nov 11 03:29 PM

[overbet:]

I dont get it.

On Nov 11 12:37 PM jack dee wrote:

> You are so right Overbet, now maybe someone should break into your
> home and steal your xbox, after all $200 is lot and why should they
> work when they can steal your TV...........

Nov 11 08:06 PM

[richiecomp:]

Here's a thought:

Are there any legitimate purposes on why anybody would modify their Xbox360 consoles? It is my understanding that, since many console generations ago, many users hacked their consoles in order to create home-brewed games. These self-taught developers learned the art of game making by using their game machines as guinea pigs. Now, I realize that there are a lot of people who modify their consoles in order to play pirated games. But, does Microsoft have the right to indiscriminately ban every console that has been modified, regardless of whether the user is actually playing a legitimately-purchased game? It seems to me that, if Microsoft wants to verify the legitimacy of the games being played online, then they can verify the bar-coded numbers that are inscribed on the disc itself. Why am I making a fuss over this? Several years ago, Sony was sued by the film studios because of Sony's creation of the Betamax. The Betamax was a video tape recorder that allowed the system to record video and sound from broadcast television signals. The film studios concluded that the Betamax could, theoretically, be used to record copyrighted material, such as movies that are broadcasted on television. However, the Supreme Court held that the Betamax held legitimate, non-infringing uses, such as being able to record non-copyrighted material, such as religious and educational programming. More recently, the courts have interpreted that consumers are allowed to make backup copies of discs that they legally own. After all, discs can be easily damaged. So, what exactly am I saying? I am saying that, if people want to make backups of their extremely expensive games, then others should not make such a fuss about it. Also, aspiring developers should be able to modify their systems in order to create games without the fear of being banned. On the other hand, if Microsoft wants to verify that the game that a user is currently using online is legal, all they have to do is scan the disc to make sure that it has the bar codes, thereby confirming its legitimacy.

Nov 12 12:29 PM

[Yang Wang:]

1. They may need a new Xbox but not a new Live account to play online again, they can still use the old account on the new Xbox because they paid monthly fee for it.

2. MS banned the Live function only, not the consoles, they can still play locally with piratical copies.

3. Agree that many Chinese people use piratical copies, but who cracks the games for them? who provides the technique to modify consoles for them? Google 'mod chip', they are all US companies.

Nov 12 02:01 PM

[Yang Wang:]

Google 'keygen crack' to see where the piratical copies come from,
if making drugs is allowed, how can you forbid people from buying it?


On Nov 11 11:32 AM doodoo wrote:

> Now MSFT needs to get busy in China and stop those super thieves
> form stealing everything but the welcome mat.China leaders are nothing
> but high class thiefs.They sell copies of the new operating system
> on street corners and the police protect them.What a crock when they
> cry about anything that has to do with fair trade.I thought Gates
> had some kind of pull with the powers that be in China.Every country
> in the world knows that this stuff goes on and lets them get away
> with it.Need to send in some head breakers and send a message that
> this crap needs to stop.

Nov 12 05:39 PM