On October 15th, Sony updated the terms of service for the Playstation Network and e-mailed all Playstation Network users about it. However, it didn’t take very long for Sony Insider to see that this updated service agreement is very intimidating. It is obvious that Sony wants zero-liability in every possible sense with Playstation Network users. We’re going to go over a few select addendums and offer our perspective..
Through PSN, you may participate in SCEA’s online community, play games online, and purchase access to content and services, such as new levels for your favorite games, movies, television shows or original programs such as Oore™.
There isn’t really anything wrong here, but they did misspell Qore – please fix that. 😛
This is where it gets a little strange. If you are 13 years old or younger, then you must use a Sub Account, and not a Master Account. What’s a Master Account? Well, read on..
There are two types of PSN accounts where available: Master Accounts and Sub Accounts. All PSN accounts must have an associated PSN mailbox for receiving text mail.
If you have reached the legal age of majority, you can create a Master Account for yourself. Where available, each Master Account can create up to six (6) associated Sub Accounts. You are not permitted to create Sub Accounts for persons under the legal age of majority who are not your children or for whom you are not the legal guardian. Your children must be of a certain age in order to have a Sub Account. Sub Accounts may not be available in all countries.
Where available, a child under the legal age of majority can only have a Sub Account associated with a Master Account of the child’s parent or legal guardian. If you are creating a Sub Account for a child, you must provide (i) your consent for SCEA to disclose, pursuant to SCEA’s privacy policy, your child’s personally identifying information to third parties for the purpose of allowing your child to participate in PSN activities, such as video and voice chat and gameplay; and (ii) your credit card information if requested by SCEA for Sub Accounts for children under the age of 13 in the United States and Canada or under the specific age applicable to your country.
It’s not exactly clear if Sony can really enforce this, nor what limitations a Sub Account actually have in comparison to a Master Account. It is a rather strange requirement, but will likely be rarely enforced by SCEA or parents who bought their kid a PS3. This is basically here so Sony can’t be held responsible for little hellions accessing adult material.
Let’s move on to the apex of this article, and what some in the industry are calling the “Big Brother” statement:
However, SCEA reserves the right to monitor and record any online activity and communication throughout PSN and you give SCEA your express consent to monitor and record your activities. SCEA reserves the right to remove any content and communication from PSN at SCEA’s sole discretion without further notice to you. Any data collected in this way, including the content of your communications, the time and location of your activities, your Online ID and IP address and other related information may be used by us to enforce this Agreement or protect the interests of SCEA, its users, or licensors. Such information may be disclosed to the appropriate authorities or agencies. Any other use is subject to the terms of the applicable Privacy Policy.
Should we just bend over now, or later? Just kidding. But that is a scary paragraph – anything said or done can be recorded and used by SCEA. Now, it’s not like they are just going to randomly record people playing each other in games. If you were doing something illegal through the Playstation Network, Sony could give the offending content and your location to the authorities. Any messages sent through the PSN could be removed without notification. They can basically do whatever they wish with your online activities with zero consent.
Here’s another gem:
Third parties, including publishers may administer access to some content, including delivery, gameplay or customer service. To enable third parties to provide such access to you, we must provide them with your personal information. If you do not consent to allow us to share your personal information with third parties for the purpose of providing you with access to PSN content, you will not be able to participate in PSN.
Sony: “RAWR! You will allow us to give all of your personal information that you filled out in your PSN profile to any game you are playing made by a third-party publisher, or you cannot be on our network!” I think we should be able to opt-out of such disclosure – the whole ultimatium thing just isn’t going to work in the real world.
Let’s move on, shall we? What about people who purchase a content (game, movie, etc) on the Playstation Store, only to see it discounted the next day? This has happened before, especially with Greatest Hits games, such as Warhawk. Well, you’re simply out of luck – if you buy a game and it is discounted the next day, there is no refund. This is disappointing, and it would be much friendlier if Sony were to offer a week-after protection plan that gives you credit for the difference if the content is reduced in price.
Features, specifications, prices and content are subject to change or withdrawal at any time and SCEA does not provide any refunds in the event of a price drop or a subsequent promotional offering.
Thanks, Sony.
Don’t even think about cancelling your Playstation Network account if you still have money in the Wallet, because, well, you’re not going to get a refund:
Upon termination for any reason, you will not receive a refund for items, value accumulated on in-game items or any unused balance in your wallet except as expressly provided in this Agreement and to the extent permitted by applicable law.
So, in conclusion, it is fair to state that Sony is far too strict in this user agreement. While I’ve never seen a jovial terms of service, I think that Sony needs to lighten the mood here and not be so restrictive. Some of the key additions to the service statement are very unfriendly and need a reevaluation.
