Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box

Posted by: JeffS

Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box - 06/07/2005 13:12

Article here. No suprise that they guy was convicted for piracy; however it is interesting that he was also found guilty for modding the console. Not a good precident I think. This was the UK; what is the law in the States?
Posted by: andym

Re: Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box - 06/07/2005 13:19

Yes, obviously selling an HD with 80-odd games on it is grounds enough, but apparently it was removing the copy protection that did it, that was the illegal bit of modding.
Posted by: eliceo

Re: Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box - 06/07/2005 13:21

I think under the dmca it is illegal to reverse engineer any technology that deals with copy protection.

I get the piracy part. Bad pirates. But saying the only/primary use for a modded console is piracy is another thing.
Posted by: g_attrill

Re: Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box - 06/07/2005 13:27

Quote:
I think under the dmca it is illegal to reverse engineer any technology that deals with copy protection.

The difference is that this was in the UK using the as-yet untested EU Copyright Directive.

Then again it was only in a magistrate's court, it would really need to be in a Crown Court before it becomes really interesting.

Gareth
Posted by: msaeger

Re: Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box - 06/07/2005 16:20

I think the deal with modding the xbox is microsoft has in the eula with it that you can't modify it so if you do you are violating the eula.
Posted by: g_attrill

Re: Guy Found Guilty For Modding an X-Box - 06/07/2005 16:42

Quote:
I think the deal with modding the xbox is microsoft has in the eula with it that you can't modify it so if you do you are violating the eula.

The EULA is also supposedly untested in UK/EU law - the idea is that it does not form a contract.

Again, this person was prosecuted under the EU Copyright Directive, or more precisely the The Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 2003, nothing else, apparently not even for selling the copyright software on the consoles.

Gareth