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[Mahadev]

EDITED BY MR. GRUMPY - TO ADD CONTEXT TO THIS THREAD THIS TWEET NEEDS TO BE HERE AND WE'RE ALSO ALTERING THE THREAD TITLE AS THIS IS NOT PURELY A MICROSOFT THING. PEOPLE ARE WELCOME TO DISCUSS THE RIGHST AND WRONGS OF THIS PRACTICE BUT IT DOES SEEM TO BE PRETTY NORMAL FOR SERVICES WHERE YOU PAY FOR LICENSES OF DIGITAL CONTENT WHICH CONTAINS DRM TO YOYR SERVICE ACCOUNT.

OUR FIRST THOUGHT WAS TO LOCK THIS THREAD AS IT SEEMS TO HAVE BECOME PURELY DESTRUCTIVE BUT WE'VE DISCUSSED IT AND HAVE AGREED TO GIVE IT ONE MORE CHANCE.​

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Better watch out if you are playing Xbox, get ticked, and cuss. Microsoft might ban you for the “offensive language.” If they do, then say bye-bye to your Xbox Gold Membership and any Microsoft account balances.

Microsoft provided a summary of the changes; number 5 reads:

In the Code of Conduct section, we’ve clarified that use of offensive language and fraudulent activity is prohibited. We’ve also clarified that violation of the Code of Conduct through Xbox Services may result in suspensions or bans from participation in Xbox Services, including forfeiture of content licenses, Xbox Gold Membership time, and Microsoft account balances associated with the account.

Offensive language is fairly vague. Offensive to whom? What my granny might find offensive and what I might find offensive could be vastly different. But how would Microsoft even know if you had truly been “offensive”? Well, that part falls under Code of Conduct Enforcement, which states, “When investigating alleged violations of these Terms, Microsoft reserves the right to review Your Content in order to resolve the issue.”
Microsoft did add, “However, we cannot monitor the entire Services and make no attempt to do so.”

I’m not sure that will make you feel better, as another portion states that Microsoft “may also block delivery of a communication (like email, file sharing or instant message) to or from the Services in an effort to enforce these Terms or we may remove or refuse to publish Your Content for any reason.”

https://www.csoonline.com/article/3...rom-skype-xbox-office-and-other-services.html

So let me get this straight, if you tell someone to fuck off which can also considered offensive to some Microsoft has the right to steal your games and account balance? This shit keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?

Edit: Since Microsoft's PR is blatantly lying by denying there will be changes to their ToS -which includes Xbox Live- here is the link from their own website stating that the changes will be effective on May 1st 2018: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/servicesagreement/upcoming-updates.aspx

 

[The Bloody-Nine]

Farcical.

 

[Shifty]

I just typed a rude word into excel

Come at me

 

[-MD-]

Fuck that.

 

[Toe-Knee]

About time to be honest. The language used in online games is disgusting.

Hopefully Sony and Nintendo also go this route.

 

[Mahadev]

About time to be honest. The language used in online games is disgusting.

Hopefully Sony and Nintendo also go this route.

Yes corporations, please decide for me if I deserve to still have the products I just bought! Less consumer rights please because people are mean on the internet.

 

[The Bloody-Nine]

Hopefully they don't. I am an adult and if I'm playing an adult rated game, cursing shouldn't be an issue.

 

[Yoshi]

About time to be honest. The language used in online games is disgusting.

Hopefully Sony and Nintendo also go this route.

Blocking people from online chats / playing games online is fine. Blocking them from their library or their balance (though certainly good business for Microsoft) is not. Anyway, I think I'm safe, because you'd need to pay me to make me play online games.

 

[Dunki]

About time to be honest. The language used in online games is disgusting.

Hopefully Sony and Nintendo also go this route.

Next people who say anything against the current gov will be blocked from they bank accounts, subscriptions etc.

No thi si not ok. They can ban you maybe from xbox live online play but that should be it. Here they even state that they can check everything you have done in their products. ITs Stasi 2.0

 

[AquaticSquirrel]

On the one hand Online Chat on XBL is a cesspool and something has been needed to be done for a long time. I haven't played online on XBL in years, I've become mostly a PC gamer these days but back when I did play I pretty much only played in party chat or muted everyone in the lobby. A part of me is glad that something is being done about it.

On the other hand it is way too extreme to revoke games you have already payed for and money you have added to your balance. I don't agree with that practice at all, very draconian and one of the fears that people had when digital distribution started to become more common. I'm pretty sure people could rightfully win court cases regarding this as these are products you have already purchased and as such are owned by the person, not XBL/Microsoft.

I agree with banning players from Live or even banning them from chat, but the other measures go too far and are anti-consumer and possibly illegal.

 

[RedVIper]

This is fucking stupid...And people siding with with Microsoft, why? They shouldn't have a right to limit what you can do on a service you PAID for.

How about people grow a pair, jesus, if someone says something that's that insulting to you just block them and move on, I hear offensive language all day in the real world, but somehow thats not okay when I'm playing a video game?

 

[The Bloody-Nine]

This is fucking stupid...And people siding with with Microsoft, why? They shouldn't have a right to limit what you can do on a service you PAID for.

How about people grow a pair, jesus, if someone says something that's that insulting to you just block them and move on, I hear offensive language all day in the real world, but somehow thats not okay when I'm playing a video game?

There's extremely 'offensive' language IN video games. Yet if you curse while playing one you can potentially lose your games and account? Absurd.

 

[Facism]

About time to be honest. The language used in online games is disgusting.

Hopefully Sony and Nintendo also go this route.

What stops you muting or blocking people yourself?

 

[MayauMiao]

This is going to be the death of Xbox Live. I'm sure people will start to jump ship, maybe going back to PC games and stick to TeamSpeak for better experience.

 

[MayauMiao]

Also Microsoft shooting themselves in the foot by indirectly telling Skype users that they are monitoring what you say.

 

[PuppetMaster]

I am not ok with this.

Banning from online participation is one thing. But revoking access to digital purchases is crossing a line

 

[Toe-Knee]

What stops you muting or blocking people yourself?

Nothing but it would be better if users didn't have to.

 

[Toe-Knee]

Also for clarification. I am more for people getting banned /monitored for being vile human beings not for the removal of purchased products unless it was in the TOS that they agreed to without reading.

 

[The Shepard]

Reminder to self not to play any fighters on xbox live whilst the mic is on because I do get a lil "into it" and my swear box becomes fuller whenever I play a brawler. I don't swear in real life really.. it's just my competive streak goes into overdrive on fighters for some reason. I never have my headset on these games but what happens if I accidentally leave my camera on one day!?

 

[Boss Mog]

This is why you buy physical games. Nobody can take them away for arbitrary reasons.

 

[JimboJones]

Good stuff, hopefully they will actually enforce this, should hopefully make people think twice before spewing vile crap.

 

[Algorum]

Watch. Soon they’ll implement a severe voice recognition software to detect such crude language.

That will spark a dark age in pretty much the entire gaming community and for good reason.

They can literally go “eat a hotdog”.

Persona 5 literally doesn’t even let you play it unless it’s by signing a stupid in game agreement. Funny but totally unnecessary.

 

[LostDonkey]

This is why you buy physical games. Nobody can take them away for arbitrary reasons.

They can still strip away the license that allows you to play it. As long as consoles are online it's easily done.

 

[Northeastmonk]

I always hated the stereotype of every xbox player being some bad mouthed person.

I was shocked when I read it because I received an email from Microsoft talking about how their ToS changed. So much so that I took a screen cap with my phone lol

 

[Koala Driving a Ferrari]

This is why you buy physical games. Nobody can take them away for arbitrary reasons.

I completely agree. The "all physical future", here I come.

This is absolutely disgusting news. If this is accurate and where Microsoft is headed with their products and services then this will sour the brand for me to the same extent that the original Xbox One launch did.

 

[ilfait]

Fuck those cocking cunts.

 

[The_Mike]

So if I write “fuck” in my office or excel document my Microsoft account gets banned?

Isn’t it illegal they can read what I write privately in office ?

 

[Algorum]

I completely agree. The "all physical future", here I come.

This is absolutely disgusting news. If this is accurate and where Microsoft is headed with their products and services then this will sour the brand for me to the same extent that the original Xbox One launch did.

Most of the best games coming out are through the indie market are downloadable only and it’s how the market is moving unfortunately.

It’s sad but I don’t see the physical being a thing in the next 20 years.. or at least as prominent.

 

[EBE]

Recorded voice messages and text on Xbox live should be reviewed if they contain vicious threats, hate speech, and the like. I don't think anyone is seriously suggesting a simple 'fuck you' or 'your mom gay, 1v1 me' is gonna result in their harshest penalties

 

[Dunki]

This is why you buy physical games. Nobody can take them away for arbitrary reasons.

Wrong Even a physical copy is not yours. You have the right to use it. But by not respecting their TOS they can take it away. Not the disc but your ability to play it.

 

[TBiddy]

So if I write “fuck” in my office or excel document my Microsoft account gets banned?

Isn’t it illegal they can read what I write privately in office ?

Yes, that is clearly the intent here. Or perhaps it's more in line of "I'm going to hunt you down and fucking kill you" in a private message on XBL.

 

[ilfait]

So if I write “fuck” in my office or excel document my Microsoft account gets banned?

Isn’t it illegal they can read what I write privately in office ?

There goes your favourite passtime. : (

 

[Dunki]

Yes, that is clearly the intent here. Or perhaps it's more in line of "I'm going to hunt you down and fucking kill you" in a private message on XBL.

If I would write this to my friend as a joke for example in a private message they have no right to ban me for this. If I publicly shout "nigga" sure. but even If I wrote this a hundred times in a private message they should not be able to do anything.

Also since its common that black people can use it anyway they just assumed my race. Same with faggot? I get told over and over again that gay people can use it while others not. Do they now assume my sexuality as well? Or how about Feminism is Cancer? Can they assume I am a male?

 

[VertigoOA]

I’ve had buddies banned for writing messages to me using “offensive” language. I didn’t report it. Didn’t bother me. They monitor your messages.


I’m done with Microsoft

 

[llien]

Yes, that is clearly the intent here. Or perhaps it's more in line of "I'm going to hunt you down and fucking kill you" in a private message on XBL.

Are that kind of messages referred to as merely "offensive"?

 

[The_Mike]

Yes, that is clearly the intent here. Or perhaps it's more in line of "I'm going to hunt you down and fucking kill you" in a private message on XBL.

Well I don’t use excel to write death threats on XBL. It clearly says offensive use in Office also.

I do get your point, but I don’t see where office fits in.

 

[Calibos]

I am pretty sure it probably means “reported” misconduct.

If some kid is bullying another with racial slurs or explicit language and kid “B” reports it, then action is taken.

Covering off on excel and MS office products is completely ridiculous. Internet bullying and offensive language towards others is out of control though...have you watched these:

 

[TannerDemoz]

What a sad, sack of shit.

 

[CRAIG667]

If I heard some dude repeatedly saying "stupid fu**ing nig**r" over and over again to a 6 year old girl, damn right MS should have the power to remove his games etc!

 

[VertigoOA]

No, they should not. If you paid for them you should be able to keep your purchases. Sure, remove their socializing capacity but this is basically thievery.

Also they do monitor your messages to friends over xbl.

Disgusting company

 

[Fbh]

Yeah I don't like this.

I'm fine with the account being banned from online features but loosing the license of your game and the money on your account is taking it too far

This is fucking stupid...And people siding with with Microsoft, why? They shouldn't have a right to limit what you can do on a service you PAID for.

Lol, that's not how services work.
If you are renting a house you can't just do whatever you want with it because "you are paying to live there".

It's actually the service provider who mostly has the right to alter the terms of his service as he sees fit, and you do of course have the right to not accept those terms and look for an alternative

 

[RedVIper]

If I heard some dude repeatedly saying "stupid fu**ing nig**r" over and over again to a 6 year old girl, damn right MS should have the power to remove his games etc!

No, they shouldn't, its your responsability to make sure you kid doesn't play online games if you think hearing mean things isn't good for her. No sure what kinda of games she's playing where someone would say any of that but I'm sure it wouldnt be a game rated for her age, so again, your fault

 

[RedVIper]

Lol, that's not how services work.
If you are renting a house you can't just do whatever you want with it because "you are paying to live there".

It's actually the service provider who mostly has the right to alter the terms of his service as he sees fit, and you do of course have the right to not accept those terms and look for an alternative

I was refering to games there, maybe should have worded it more clearly, anyway, they shouldn't have a right to remove your games, office license, etc because you cursed, and I honestly don't get people defending it.

 

[Cranberrys]

This is fucking stupid...And people siding with with Microsoft, why? They shouldn't have a right to limit what you can do on a service you PAID for.

How about people grow a pair, jesus, if someone says something that's that insulting to you just block them and move on, I hear offensive language all day in the real world, but somehow thats not okay when I'm playing a video game?

I don't find it stupid. I pay for Xbox Live since 13 years and during that time, the average gamer is becoming more and more stupid. It's a fact. Just 5 or 6 years ago, you could do random matches and meet great people. Now, I've been insulted because I loved Mass Effect Andromeda. I have been called gay and a jew (true story) because I dared defend Dragon Age Inquisition. Online gaming has become a cesspool. So, no, I don't move on. And I don't see why exactly I should tolerate a stranger insulting my own mother because I happen to love a video game that for whatever reason he hates ? But you are welcome to explain to me why I should tolerate this ?

To me, such a person is totally stupid, and therefore do not belong in a service for which basic social skills are needed. So yeah, I don't care that stupid, disrespectful people are banned and their games taken away because, you don't expect an idiot to understand basic human behavior, but he will understand when his game library will be flushed down the drain.

 

[Fbh]

I was refering to games there, maybe should have worded it more clearly, anyway, they shouldn't have a right to remove your games, office license, etc because you cursed, and I honestly don't get people defending it.

Oh, I see.
In that case I agree. I know too little about the law regarding digital games to really say if they have a right or not but either way I agree that punishment for online behaviour should be limited to online features only

 

[bitbydeath]

If I heard some dude repeatedly saying "stupid fu**ing nig**r" over and over again to a 6 year old girl, damn right MS should have the power to remove his games etc!

No, they should ban him from live so he can’t do it again as the absolute maximum penalty.

 

[Morinaga]

Seems most people in this thread forget that MS need to provide ongoing services to supply their customers with games. Even when a game is bought, they still need to provide ongoing services for it to be downloaded via an account. Basically I think what they are saying in their terms is, if you fuck around against the terms then they will stop providing the services. Unfortunately as access to the games rely on MS providing ongoing services, its bye bye games.

I don't think there is any morale ambiguity in this, I thinks its pretty straight forward.

 

[Boss Mog]

They can still strip away the license that allows you to play it. As long as consoles are online it's easily done.

Wrong Even a physical copy is not yours. You have the right to use it. But by not respecting their TOS they can take it away. Not the disc but your ability to play it.

Yeah, no, that's not how things work.

They can either ban your account which means you can just make a new one. You'll only lose your Achievements and DLC but all your physical games will work fine on the new account.

Or, they can ban your console from going online ( this is rare though and only reserved for people with modified consoles or who use hacks to cheat) in which case you can still play your physical games, you just won't be able to play online with that console or download any patches or DLC. But if you get a new console then all your physical games will work perfectly on the new console.

Yes, that is clearly the intent here. Or perhaps it's more in line of "I'm going to hunt you down and fucking kill you" in a private message on XBL.

What makes you think you know their intent? "Offensive Language" is very vague. If somebody says "there's only 2 genders" I'm sure there's some that would take offense to that. What if somebody said "black people commit violent crimes at a much higher rate than whites in the US" again I'm sure some people would be offended. If they're not willing to go into detail about what they consider offensive language then people have every right to think that MS will overreach, especially in today's world of constant outrage over everything and censorship of free speech in democracies.

 

[Musky_Cheese]

Microsoft is a bunch of dumb fuc

User has been banned. Reason: almost typed fucking. Length: 4eva. All your game are belong to us.

 

[RedVIper]

I don't find it stupid. I pay for Xbox Live since 13 years and during that time, the average gamer is becoming more and more stupid. It's a fact. Just 5 or 6 years ago, you could do random matches and meet great people. Now, I've been insulted because I loved Mass Effect Andromeda. I have been called gay and a jew (true story) because I dared defend Dragon Age Inquisition. Online gaming has become a cesspool. So, no, I don't move on. And I don't see why exactly I should tolerate a stranger insulting my own mother because I happen to love a video game that for whatever reason he hates ? But you are welcome to explain to me why I should tolerate this ?

To me, such a person is totally stupid, and therefore do not belong in a service for which basic social skills are needed. So yeah, I don't care that stupid, disrespectful people are banned and their games taken away because, you don't expect an idiot to understand basic human behavior, but he will understand when his game library will be flushed down the drain.

It is stupid, at most you block their capability to communicate with other players, removing their game library is straigh up wrong, it's basically stealing, you paid for the game, you get to fucking play it. Get a thick skin will you, online game has always been a cesspool, you know what happened? 13 years went by, and you grew the fuck up, so now you look at the past and it seemed so much better, it wasn't.

You shoulnd't tolerate it, block them and move the fuck on, I'm sick of all this political correctness, oh you can't say this, oh you can't say that. And I'm not saying those people are in the right, there are a lot of assholes on games and online in general, but pretending that justifies Microsoft behaviour is stupid, its another way for them to control what you do and to justify seing everything you do,write and say. Online games should always be rated 18, and if someone insults you or your family wtv, you need to be a fucking grown up and ignore it, because if someone insulting you online makes you lose your shit like this I have no idea how you handle real life confrontation.

TLR: Grow up, block them if you don't like what they say. Stop giving them excuses to control people just because it doesn't affect you (Yet)