Deus Ex Leak Ends in Lawsuit

[Xanthious]

So what this is saying is that people actually like to play the game a bit before they slap down a nonrefundable 60 dollars for it? That's just crazy! If only there were a way for developers to put out a small demonstration of the game early, maybe like the first stage or first 15 minutes, and let people grab that off XBL or PSN or Steam or where ever a bit before the game is released. I know it sounds crazy but it just might work I'm thinking.

 

[]DustArma[]

Square Enix stated that it had suffered damages in excess of $5,000 thanks to lost sales, and was seeking an unspecified sum in restitution.

This makes no sense. How can a illegal download of a non-finished game constitute as a 'lost sale'?

yeah, I was puzzled by that too.

anyway, most of the people who illegally download the games wouldn't buy them anyway so that 'lost sales' concept is a bit slippery.

I'm more surprised by the fact they are only asking for $5000, cases like this usually end up with much more money being on the line, if we go by the PC version alone, that's only 100 copies not being sold according to them.

 

[Iscin]

I find it crazy that they have lost sales because of this. Quite on the contrary I know that for myself, and likely others, will now buy it at full price. Besides, the Preview is like an extended demo, it isn't the full game so they haven't lost a single full copy of it.

 

[lomylithruldor]

Square Enix stated that it had suffered damages in excess of $5,000 thanks to lost sales, and was seeking an unspecified sum in restitution.

I always wonder if publishers realize they're essentially saying "Our game is so shitty that showing people an alpha build will make them cancel their preorders." Way to go smart-asses, now you might actually lose sales.

It says a lot about a publisher when "pirates" do a better job at promoting the game than the marketing department.

Well, alpha builds are so full of bugs and almost not working, that yes, showing a pre-release build can make people not buy the game because some stupid people don't understand that the game is not working properly while in alpha and beta. The goal of these phases are to add features and stabilize the game respectively.

 

[SinisterGehe]

...that is a lawsuit? I had to pay more for the DUI I got in Arizona. Also, fuck Arizona.

OT: In excess of five thousand dollars... this whole thing sounds useless. I imagine the lawyer fees were about the same, if not more.

I think the fee is so small because they want to show that: It is not right or legal to do that" but they still realize that they will benefit from the leak. I think this is more about principle than getting compensation for anything.

I think this is OK, after all they did break the law and stole the copy of the build and uploaded it to torrent sites illegally. And I think 5,000 is reasonable sum compared to what they would have demanded in America "67trillion-billion dollar$", like the people who are being sued can even pay this sum in few years instead of getting their lives destroyed by stupid demands.

I think this is just OK. They broke the law, they get punished and the punishment is reasonable.

 

[GrizzlerBorno]

Played the build, loved it so much, pre ordered the augmented edition. That is all

Exactly. That demo build gave them SO much good publicity. I haven't heard too many negative things about it, and even when I did, they were waved off as problems of the build.

 

[Formica Archonis]

Square Enix stated that it had suffered damages in excess of $5,000 thanks to lost sales, and was seeking an unspecified sum in restitution.

This makes no sense. How can a illegal download of a non-finished game constitute as a 'lost sale'?

The same way every single download of an MP3 from Napster Kazaa eMule Limewire Bittorrent is a lost sale and that's why the music industry can sue for more money than is on the planet.

 

[Socken]

They're not actually asking for just $ 5,000 dollars, that's just the sum that turns it from small claims to serious business legally speaking. Also they're legally required to take legal action against any kind of copyright infringement. Besides, their shareholders would probably not approve of the company just letting people steal their property.

 

[Disthron]

Umm... if they have no idea who committed the "crime" how are they going to sue them. Are they just going to try and convict them now and figure out who they are latter? Seems a bit like putting the horse before the cart to me.

 

[Realitycrash]

Loooooooooooooooooool did they actually sue someone for "lost sales of 5000 USD"?
(No, ofc they did not. They sued someone because they managed to get their game released too early and pirated, but why not simply say that? The 5000 USD is just laughable. Heck, I could pay that!)

 

[Shamanic Rhythm]

FUCK YOU, SQEENIX. This leak was nothing but beneficial, and has likely been more successful than any of their marketing to date, as those that have tried the leak discuss it with those that haven't. This has proven the most effective style of viral marketing regardless of whether intentional or not, and now they're suing over LOST SALES.

This really has touched a nerve on me. I am unimpressed.

So they should overlook the theft of their intellectual property because it had some positive outcomes for them? That would set a fantastic precedent for future piracy. "Hey guys, I know someone who works at Rockstar. Let's use him to steal the Alpha build of GTA V. Don't worry, as long as the game is good they won't sue us because we'd be doing them a favour."

 

[Yeager942]

To my knowledge, the leak caused them to actually gain sales. I know I wouldn't have bought it otherwise.

 

[aPod]

I'm not sure this wasn't faked. Normally when a games company goes after pirates they sue for a billion trillion dollars! A reasonable demand of $5000 makes it seem half-hearted.

Well'm not sure; though $5000 actually seems like a fairly reasonable fine. Okay, $5000 is a lot of money, but that's about 100 sales in damage they're projecting? I'm not sure if that wil actually be the case, but it's rare to see games publishers or whatver not thinking that they're going to lose half of their sales or something.

Even if there aren't lost sales you could think of it as a fine under the Computer Misuse Act or something similar instead.

It is odd that they're suing for a paltry sum over something most in the industry would try to get a ridiculous amount for. So I am wondering if this is Squares version of "slap on the wrist".

They can't condone the actions taken to leak the build but they also most have noticed the notable positive impact it had on sales and excitement for the game.

Or maybe it was them the whole time, and now they're milking it to the point where it is backfiring on them and bringing about negative feedback. Not that square would ever milk something.

wink, wink, nudge, nudge, know what i mean, know what i mean.

 

[rembrandtqeinstein]

the publisher is unlikely to waste the courts time for a marketing stunt.

I think you give too much credit to the kind of people who work in "marketing".

 

[Denamic]

Damages in lost sales?
Jesus fucking christ, people loved the leak and are spreading loads of free PR.
The leak probably gained them hundreds of thousands of sales.
I pre-ordered immediately after playing it.

 

[Duskflamer]

Yea, it's not like this is a full release copy of the game that got leaked, and from what I can tell this leak has led to an increase in pre-orders, so where does SE get off claiming that they're losing sales over this?

 

[Roboto]

FUCK YOU, SQEENIX. This leak was nothing but beneficial, and has likely been more successful than any of their marketing to date, as those that have tried the leak discuss it with those that haven't. This has proven the most effective style of viral marketing regardless of whether intentional or not, and now they're suing over LOST SALES.

This really has touched a nerve on me. I am unimpressed.

As a company, you protect your IP. That's the rule.

 

[thenamelessloser]

They should sue whoever made the early trailers that made the game look super dull. (actually just joking here, people sue way too much and it just wastes the courts time) I wasn't that hyped up about the game until I read what random people thought of when they played the leak to be honest especialy since many of them were fans of the first Deus Ex. I think the leak was better marketing than anything Squareenix did and even jokingly thought the leak was a conspiracy to get more people interested in the game especially considering how Deus Ex games have tons of conspiracies. I'm just gong to be telling myself that this whole suing over the leak is just part of the grand marketing conspiracy. SHUT UP HANLON"S RAZOR DO NOT RUIN DEUS EX FOR ME! http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ptitle97h4eweh

Damn you HANLON"S RAZOR!


NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO


but seriously i suppose tnhe person who uploaded it still performed idenity theft but still overall think the leak actually helped more than hurt the number of sales...