Sony Bars Class Action Suits in New terms and conditions..

  • Thread starter Thread starter gslooney
  • 23 comments
  • 1,992 views
Yeah I noticed this, they have already told me I basically don't own the hardware and now I can't sue them if they steal from me further...:ouch:
 
The problem is that gamers are using class action suits as a panacea for every ill that befalls them. These suits are so easy to file now, and they clog up the already backlogged civil court system. I've often said that the worst thing that could have happened is geeks discovering the legal system. "We're gamers and we're smart! We'll sue! We know how!!". There's also no shortage of lawyers who now think of this as their new "growth field".

The other thing is that if you agree to this, you still have legal recourse. Instead of filing a class action suit, you will have a federally appointed arbitrator to settle the case. You also have the option to "opt out" within thirty days of agreeing to the terms of service. Really though, if you have a problem that can be settled by an arbitrator, why the need to file a class action suit? The only ones who win are the lawyers!
 
Last edited:
Yeah I agree with that, half the suits brought forward are stupid and devalue the whole point of the legal system. If people are going to sue for something let it be something with a reasonable argument like the removal of Other OS or the PSN breech.

Especially with all these 'no win no fee firms' these days everyone takes a stab at suing and it becomes a joke. Having said that I do not want to be forced to give up all legal challenge just to play a damn games console, gosh the whole gaming industry got real serious real quick :yuck:

But its good to know there are other ways to get justice if needed even after the changes.
 
Saw this now too, in here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-14948701

I can understand why they're doing this but I think "irresponsible suing" (sorry, not an English native, my tentative wording will have to suffice) should be dealt with penalties on those who do it, and not by forcing all the people to give up (contractualy) a legal right.

In my case I'm not worried. This clause is illegal in my country so my agreement to those new T&C will be worthless (for Sony) in a portuguese court.
 
Hun200kmh
In my case I'm not worried. This clause is illegal in my country so my agreement to those new T&C will be worthless (for Sony) in a portuguese court.
Click to expand...
Same here, a company's T&C can never void your legal rights, ever.
 
The new terms and conditions say that you agree not to file a class action suit. It is not a ban on legal recourse completely. You still have legal recourse, such as federally appointed arbitration. You can also opt out of the agreement within thirty days.

See here's the thing guys. Those of you who aren't from the United States might not know this, but it's become entirely too easy to file these class action lawsuits in many states. There are lawyers who specialize in this type of litigation, who salivate at the thought of a corporation with deep pockets, and who will want to settle these cases quickly and with as little press as possible. There's been lawsuits over coffee being too hot, McDonald's french fries and those claiming they've made them obese as a result (nobody forced you to eat them), and a cleaning service in California was sued for over thirty million dollars because they lost a customers pants. I'm not making that one up.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/25/AR2007062500443.html

There's far too many lawyers who are eager to cash on on these suits, and they see "gamers" as their new growth field. Gamers are using these lawsuits as a cure all for EVERYTHING. I recently received an email regarding a class action suit against Electronic Arts, claiming they used their position to unfairly secure an exclusive deal with the NFL, wanting to know if I wanted to join the class. I deleted the email. Why? Because I don't want my name associated with such a frivolous lawsuit, and I will not endorse the further abuse of the United States civil court system. Unfortunately, not many choose to view it that way, and they'll find a lawyer will agree with them, and promise a big settlement to boot.

Now, that's not to say that there aren't instances where lawsuits are justified. Such as in the 1970's when the Ford Motor Company was sued because the Pinto was dangerous. Ford was paying off the families of those who had been killed to avoid a recall, and attempting to sweep the incident under the rug. Many people died because of Ford's negligence. That's an instance where a lawsuit is justified, and is valid.

The civil court in the United States was intended to render equity when the criminal courts could not. It wasn't designed so that gamers could abuse the system, and attempt to squeeze a freebie out multinational corporations.
 
Hun200kmh
Saw this now too, in here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-14948701

I can understand why they're doing this but I think "irresponsible suing" (sorry, not an English native, my tentative wording will have to suffice) should be dealt with penalties on those who do it, and not by forcing all the people to give up (contractualy) a legal right.

In my case I'm not worried. This clause is illegal in my country so my agreement to those new T&C will be worthless (for Sony) in a portuguese court.
Click to expand...

How exactly do you deal with those who file lawsuits irresponsibly? In the U.S. the judge can order you to pay the court fees if you lose. Sometimes those run into the thousands of dollars, and many of these lawyers promise that you don't have to pay them unless you get a settlement. So you have a system where lawsuits are filed for free, and there's no consequences if you lose the case.
 
It's not a good thing, but it doesn't really matter to me. Besides, they're always getting sued for stupid reasons,
 
gslooney
FYI ..

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/09/16/sony_bars_class_action_suits/

could be the first of Many, i suspect that this may be the way all online services try and protect themselves going forward.

some may never read these conditions ..
Click to expand...

So, people in the US are kind of trigger happy when it comes to lawsuits and stuff, if I'm not mistaken. Don't get me wrong, please. :)

But well, I doubt that their terms of use could really prohibit someone from starting a class action lawsuit. The court would most likely declare that part of the TOU illegal and allow the lawsuit to proceed, wouldn't it be like that, somehow?
 
Mr. S
So, people in the US are kind of trigger happy when it comes to lawsuits and stuff, if I'm not mistaken.
Click to expand...

You are not mistaken, Weird Al even wrote a song about it.


There have even been laws passed trying to cut down on frivolous lawsuits.
 
CaptainHarlock
How exactly do you deal with those who file lawsuits irresponsibly? In the U.S. the judge can order you to pay the court fees if you lose. Sometimes those run into the thousands of dollars, and many of these lawyers promise that you don't have to pay them unless you get a settlement. So you have a system where lawsuits are filed for free, and there's no consequences if you lose the case.
Click to expand...


In Portugal you ALWAYS pay the court fees if you lose the case (civil courts). It usually amounts to a few thousand euros. It's not even a fine, it's just how the system is designed to work.

What I meant is - and this happens in Portugal also - The judge can fine you if your litigation is deemed irresponsible, or malevolent (tentative English again ... what I mean is a situation when the court finds that you lied in the defense of your case, or that you didn't tell all you should, and also in cases where the court decides that you filed a lawsuit without any valid reason to do so, and that you knew that in advance but anyway decided to use up the court system anyway). Lately, we have seen a slow but steady progression in these fines value. Judges are getting harsher with people that "play" with the courts.
 
Last edited:
Whatever the cause (and I agree... class action is usually a simple way for lawyers to make big bucks... hello, Toyota SUA)... that clause is illegal and non-binding in almost any court on the planet.

It's simply a way for them to dissuade the less committed, but it's still very questonable from an ethical standpoint.

But then again, we are talking about Sony...
 
niky
Whatever the cause (and I agree... class action is usually a simple way for lawyers to make big bucks... hello, Toyota SUA)... that clause is illegal and non-binding in almost any court on the planet.

It's simply a way for them to dissuade the less committed, but it's still very questonable from an ethical standpoint.

But then again, we are talking about Sony...
Click to expand...

Don't fall into the whole "SONY BAD!!" trap. Sony isn't doing anything so insidious, as so many gamers WANT to believe. They aren't running guns to terrorists. They aren't hunting elephants for ivory. And they aren't spilling oil into the ocean, contaminating the environment. Granted the company isn't run by those who'd I would nominate for sainthood, but they aren't as vile as some want to believe they are.

Also like I said before, you are agreeing to not file a class action suit. That is not the only type of legal recourse open to you. You can agree to have a federally appointed arbitration to hear your case. You can also opt out of hte agreement, which you would do if you really disagree with the new terms of service. And you don't think that Sony also has lawyers who wrote this agreement? If you don't believe they do, then there's a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.
 
CaptainHarlock
Don't fall into the whole "SONY BAD!!" trap. Sony isn't doing anything so insidious, as so many gamers WANT to believe. They aren't running guns to terrorists. They aren't hunting elephants for ivory. And they aren't spilling oil into the ocean, contaminating the environment. Granted the company isn't run by those who'd I would nominate for sainthood, but they aren't as vile as some want to believe they are.

Also like I said before, you are agreeing to not file a class action suit. That is not the only type of legal recourse open to you. You can agree to have a federally appointed arbitration to hear your case. You can also opt out of hte agreement, which you would do if you really disagree with the new terms of service. And you don't think that Sony also has lawyers who wrote this agreement? If you don't believe they do, then there's a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.
Click to expand...

That's all well and good but why don't I see the other console manufacturers putting the same clauses in its terms and agreements?

Why is there one law for Sony and another for everybody else? They are particularly heavy handed with users compared to others.
 
Last edited:
XBOX Live Terms of Use
16. LIABILITY LIMITATION.

You can recover from us for all successful claims only direct damages up to a total amount equal to your Service fee for one month. You cannot recover any other damages, including consequential, special, indirect, incidental, or punitive damages and lost profits.
Click to expand...
Link


Isn't that more or less saying the same thing?(basically that you can't sue)
 
Basically it says that if you suffer problems with XBox live, they will refund it, but you can't claim that it ruined your marriage, caused you psychological distress and a nervous breakdown, or that not being able to sell in-game products to other gamers has hurt your livelihood. It doesn't say you can't sue, but that they won't feel obliged to pay you anything above and beyond what you paid them.

You can still sue, though. And if you sue successfully, they'll have to pay whatever the court tells them to pay.

CaptainHarlock
Don't fall into the whole "SONY BAD!!" trap. Sony isn't doing anything so insidious, as so many gamers WANT to believe. They aren't running guns to terrorists. They aren't hunting elephants for ivory. And they aren't spilling oil into the ocean, contaminating the environment. Granted the company isn't run by those who'd I would nominate for sainthood, but they aren't as vile as some want to believe they are.

Also like I said before, you are agreeing to not file a class action suit. That is not the only type of legal recourse open to you. You can agree to have a federally appointed arbitration to hear your case. You can also opt out of hte agreement, which you would do if you really disagree with the new terms of service. And you don't think that Sony also has lawyers who wrote this agreement? If you don't believe they do, then there's a bridge in Brooklyn I want to sell you.
Click to expand...

You can't agree not to sue. As such agreements to sign away your rights to legal recourse are against the laws of almost every country with a working legal system, including mine. No contract that causes either of the parties to lose their inherent legal rights is binding. Period.

And I'm not on the OMG SONY BAD! bandwagon. I think the Anonymous and LulzSec attacks on Sony were ridiculous as Sony had every right to sue George Holtz for trying to give away its trade secrets for free. I personally think the whole "Sony products break right after the warranty" meme is ridiculous, as I own a whole lot of Sony products and not one has broken until at least twice past warranty age. (Except one of our PS1s)

But in terms of corporate responsibility and customer relations? Sony sucks. Their obsessive-compulsive need to be in total control of all content... the whole OtherOS brouhaha was horrible, from end-to-end, that's why I can't use my PS3 as a mediacenter and why I have to buy myself a cheap WD Movie player to actually play my personal files. (Though that's a minor quibble, I got the PS3 to play PS3 games first and foremost)

Let's not forget to mention Sony's attempts at DRM, which basically involved infecting your computer with a virus (a rootkit to be more precise) which exploited a security loophole in Windows... which is outright illegal. This made Sony BMG one of the first companies ever to be sued by an entire state. They're still reeling from that.

Sony aren't the worst company in the world, yes, but in terms of how they treat their customers? They're pretty darn cruddy.
 
The thing is, even if you can in theory still sue them as an individual its nigh impossible for you to realistically be able to do so. The reason being that most would not be wealthy enough to sue Sony individually and also they would not take you seriously as one person. This is why class actions are so popular.

Giant Bomb has explained it really well and have even included a template document to mail to Sony to opt out of the terms (in the US).

http://www.giantbomb.com/news/sonys-asking-you-to-waive-your-rights-but-you-have-options/3674/

I am so glad that its been confirmed that Europe and Australia are not affected by these terms because luckily we have strong consumer rights laws which make such a clause illegal. I didn't see any terms changes come up when logging into PSN yesterday.

Sony have been a total disaster with this console generation stealing functionality away, punishing people for tinkering with their own property and now stopping you from blaming them for anything. They are just bitter that the PS3 sucked for nearly half its lifespan and is unlikely to ever be profitable.
 
Robin.
I am so glad that its been confirmed that Europe and Australia are not affected by these terms because luckily we have strong consumer rights laws which make such a clause illegal. I didn't see any terms changes come up when logging into PSN yesterday.
Click to expand...
It being in the US ToS doesn't make it anymore binding than it does if it wasn't there in the first place. As niky said, you cannot be forced to give up your legal rights, and if anyone seriously said screw it and sued Sony over something anyways than the clause would almost certainly be found no less illegal.


Sony only put it in their because it gives them a bit more cannon fodder to use in court if it comes to that, but that doesn't mean that it is actually valid or if challenged that it wouldn't fall to pieces.
 
Sony and AT-T are not the only ones who do this........ Pioneer Credit has the same clause that you must agree to use their services, nothing is forced. I'm not opting out because I just don't care. I don't need a false sense of sue happy security.

Pretty sure there are hundred of companies that do this in the US, you just don't hear about it. By the way you can opt out which makes disputing it a waste of time. Or if you just like to make things seems worse than they are (Kotaku).....
 
Looks like Anonymous got to the TOS page. Here is what is posted as Sony's TOS as of 4pm Eastern time. Read carefully, please:

Terms of Service
Welcome to the PlayStation® family of web sites (“Sites” or “our Sites”). These Terms of Service apply to us.playstation.com, all official game sites for games published by Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc., naughtydog.com and any other sites operated by SCEA or its subsidiaries (“SCEA”) or that link to these Terms of Service.

Don’t forget that you are legally obligated to the Terms of Service noted below as well as to any other agreements, terms and rules that we tell you apply to your use of our Sites.

Please don’t use our Sites if you don’t agree to these Terms of Service because once you are on our Sites, you have to follow the rules. SCEA and its subsidiaries, representatives and agents that assist in operating our Sites reserve the right to temporarily or permanently disable access to the Sites for anyone who violates these Terms of Service. Because of the importance of these Terms of Service, we will disable access to the Sites at our discretion and may do so without notice.

Because we reserve the right to change the Terms of Service at any time, we recommend visiting this page periodically to make sure that the rules have not changed since your last visit. By using these Sites, you agree to be bound by all of the current terms of service.



Here are the Terms of Service we expect you to follow:
1. ABILITY TO ACCEPT TERMS OF SERVICE
These Terms of Service form a legally binding contract between you and us. By using our Sites, you affirm that you are at least 18 years of age, an emancipated minor or possess legal parental or guardian consent, and are fully able and competent to enter into the terms, conditions, obligations, representations and responsibilities set forth in these Terms of Service, and to abide and comply with these Terms of Service.

2. ACCOUNT AND NON-ACCOUNT USERS
You do not need to create a PlayStation®Network ("PSN") account with us in order to view the Sites. However, if you already have a PSN account or if you create one, you will have access to more of the features on our Sites, as well as access to the PSN online community – which allows you to play games online and buy content and services, like new levels for your favorite games, movies, television shows or original programs. If you do not already have a PSN account, you can create one here: http://www.us.playstation.com/psn/signup/. Note that if you do choose to create a PSN account, you will need to agree to a separate Terms of Service and User Agreement ("ToSUA") and Privacy Policy that govern PSN. When you login to your PSN account while on one of our Sites, the PSN ToSUA and Privacy Policy also apply to your activities on that Site to the extent they do not conflict with these Terms of Service. Except for any internet fees that you are responsible for, creating a PSN account is free, so we encourage you to do so.

3. USE OF YOUR INFORMATION
We respect your information and privacy and will not publicly disclose your personal information to non-affiliated third parties other than as stated in our Privacy Policy. By using our Sites, you acknowledge that we are not responsible for any personal information that you publicly disclose (intentionally or unintentionally) using the Sites’ services such as through discussion forums or message boards. You should avoid saying anything personally identifying in these areas of our Sites.

If you use our Sites you also agree that through your use of the Sites, you may be provided with information about SCEA’s or a third party’s products or services, including promotions, advertisements, product placements or marketing materials within the Sites. You acknowledge that SCEA does not endorse any of the products or services advertised, promoted or marketed by third parties.

4. OWNERSHIP OF CONTENT ON SITES
Everything on or used in connection with our Sites, including text, images, graphics, logos, audio and video content and software (collectively, “Content”) – with the exception of User Generated Content as defined below – is owned by us or our affiliates, subsidiaries, licensors or suppliers. You may not modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale, create derivative works or in any way exploit any of the Content (including Content that the Sites enable you to download or save) without our express permission.

Here’s what permission we do give you to use the Content. First, we give you permission to use the Content to surf and view our Sites, which means displaying or loading the Content on your computer in connection with typical web browsing activity. Second, we give you permission to use the Content for your personal, non-commercial uses. This means, however, that you do not have our permission to distribute the Content, to publicly display the content, charge any fee for it, use the Content to create your own website, construct a database with the Content or replicate our Sites or any parts of it elsewhere. (We intend these only as examples and are not an exhaustive list of things you can’t do with our Content).

Regardless of the permissions we give you to use the Content, we remain the sole owner of all the Content, and you do not acquire any ownership rights in the Content by assembling, creating files, downloading or saving any of it. If we have included an author attribution, a trademark or copyright notice or other legal notices on the Content, you should not remove or alter any of these.

5. USER GENERATED CONTENT
Some of the Sites have tools that allow you to communicate with other users and to create, post, upload, share and distribute various forms of content for and in connection with the Sites, including pictures, photographs, videos and other information or materials (collectively, “User Generated Content”). Keep in mind that User Generated Content does not include your blog and message board postings. If you post your insights, ideas, opinions and comments on our blog site or message boards, you cannot prevent SCEA or other members of the community from using them, and you give your consent to SCEA and anyone else to use your posts in any manner.

A. YOUR USE OF USER GENERATED CONTENT

It’s great that users on our Sites can upload or share content with each other, but we do not authorize you to upload or share on our Sites certain items and content. Do not create, transfer, share, send, submit, post or upload any User Generated Content that:

1. Is protected by copyright, trademark, patent or trade secret or subject to third-party proprietary rights, including rights of privacy and publicity - unless you are or have permission from the rightful owner;

2. Contains fraudulent statements or misrepresentations that could damage us or any third party;

3. Contains any statements or materials that disparage, ridicule or scorn us or any third party;

4. Is obscene, defamatory, threatening, harassing, predatory, pornographic, hateful, racially or ethnically offensive, or encourages conduct that would violate any law or is otherwise inappropriate;

5. Is an advertisement, solicitation of business or engages in any commercial activity on the Sites;

6. Is an impersonation of another person;

7. Produces SPAM on or throughout the Sites publicizing a product or event; or

8. Violates any of the rules of Code of Conduct (described below), these Terms of Service, the PSN ToSUA, Privacy Policy or other agreements that we incorporate into these Terms of Service by reference.

B. LICENSE FOR USER GENERATED CONTENT

If you post, upload or make available any User Generated Content on our Sites, you will still own the User Generated Content (assuming you have rights to own it) but you are giving us the right to use your User Generated Content. If you create, transfer, share, send, submit, post or upload any User Generated Content to our Sites, you grant us certain rights to use it (described below) without getting your further permission or having to pay you for it.

In legal terms, by transferring, sharing, sending, submitting, posting, uploading or making available User Generated Content on these Sites, you grant SCEA a worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and fully sub-licensable license to use, copy, reproduce, distribute, publish, publicly perform, publicly display, modify, adapt, translate, archive, store, and create derivative works from your User Generated Content, in any form, format or medium of any kind now known or later developed, both on these Sites and other online locations, and in other forms or media off the Internet. You waive any moral rights you might have with respect to any User Generated Content you provide to us.

In addition, by transferring, sharing, sending, submitting, posting, uploading or making available User Generated Content on these Sites, you acknowledge that other users of the Sites may use your User Generated Content. SCEA is not responsible for enforcing any rights you may have with respect to your User Generated Content against other users. If you have a dispute with another user of the Sites, you are responsible for contacting the other user directly; do not contact SCEA.

C. SCREENING AND REMOVAL OF USER GENERATED CONTENT

SCEA may or may not pre-screen User Generated Content. SCEA has the right (but not the obligation) to move, remove, block, edit, or refuse to post any User Generated Content for any reason, including that User Generated Content violates these Terms of Service or other applicable terms, rules or agreements between you and us.

D. RISK FROM USER GENERATED CONTENT

We cannot and do not monitor or manage all User Generated Content. We therefore do not make any promises about the accuracy, integrity or quality of User Generated Content and do not endorse it in any manner. In other words, enjoy what other members post or share, but do it at your own risk.

All User Generated Content made available on the Sites is the sole responsibility of the person who provided it. This means that you are entirely responsible for all User Generated Content that you provide.


6. YOUR COPYRIGHTED WORK
Just as Sony Computer Entertainment America, Inc. (“SCEA”) requires users of our Sites to respect our copyrights and those of our affiliates, licensors and business partners, we respect the copyrights of others. To that end, we have adopted this Copyright Policy in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“Copyright Act”) (17 U.S.C. 512 et seq.).

Once SCEA’s representative who has been designated to receive notification of claimed copyright infringement (“Designated Agent”) – whose name and contact information is noted below – receives proper notice of the alleged infringement, or if SCEA otherwise comes to believe in good faith that any specific content, including user generated content, on the Sites contain material that infringes copyright (“Disputed Content”), SCEA may (1) promptly remove or block access to the Disputed Content or (2) deny access to the Sites to users that repeatedly violate copyright or other intellectual property rights. SCEA will take reasonable steps to notify a user who has uploaded Disputed Content if that Disputed Content is subsequently removed or disabled.

Procedure for Reporting Copyright Infringement:

If you believe in good faith that your copyrighted work has been reproduced on the Site without authorization in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, you or a person authorized to act on your behalf may notify our Designated Agent:

Riley Russell
Legal & Business Affairs Department
Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
919 East Hillside Blvd., 2nd Floor
Foster City, CA 94404
By phone: 650-655-8000
By email: infringement@playstation.sony.com

Pursuant to federal law, your notice must include the following information:

1. A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright that you alleged is being infringed;


2. Identification of the copyrighted work you claim has been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works on the Site are included in a single notification, a representative list of all those works on the Site;

3. Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;

4. Your contact information, including address, telephone number, and, if available, email address;

5. A statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the judicial district pertaining to your address, or if your address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which SCEA is located, and that you will accept service of process from the person who provided notification or an agent of such person. A statement made under penalty of perjury that the information in the notification is accurate and that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right under the Copyright Act that is allegedly infringed.

Supplying a Counter-Notice Regarding Alleged Copyright Infringement

If you are the provider of the Disputed Content and believe a copyright infringement notice has been wrongly submitted against you as a result of mistake or a misidentification of the claimed copyrighted material, you may send a counter-notification to our Designated Agent (whose address is included in Paragraph 1 above). The counter notification must provide the following information:

1. Physical or electronic signature of the subscriber;


2. Identification of the Disputed Content that has been removed or to which access has been disabled, and the location where the Disputed Content appeared before it was removed or access to it was disabled;


3. A statement under penalty of perjury that you believe in good faith that the Disputed Content was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification;


4. Your name, address, telephone number and, if available, email address; and


5.A statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the judicial district pertaining to your address, or if your address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which SCEA is located, and that you will accept service of process from the person who provided notification or an agent of such person.


If our Designated Agent receives a counter-notice from you, SCEA will send a copy of it to the original complaining party informing that person or entity that SCEA may replace the removed Disputed Content or cease disabling access to it. Please note that when we forward the counter-notice, it includes your personal information. By submitting a counter-notice, you consent to having your information revealed in this way. We will not forward the counter-notice to any party other than the complaining party.

Unless the Designated Agent receives notice from the original complaining party that the original complaining party has filed an action seeking a court order to restrain the user who posted the Disputed Content from engaging in infringing activity relating to the Disputed Content on the Site, SCEA will replace or restore access to the Disputed Content on the Site or permit the user to re-post the Disputed Content.


7. CODE OF CONDUCT
To allow the PlayStation® community to develop and grow in a healthy and respectful fashion, we have some rules that everyone needs to follow. Unfortunately, anyone who can't follow these rules may be banned from using the Sites or even the PlayStation®Network. If you are logged into the PSN, please note that the PSN ToSUA as well as this Sites’ Privacy Policy also apply.

You are not allowed to provide anyone with your real name or any other personally identifying information or the name, phone number, address, password or any other personally identifying information of any other person or business through any means on our Sites, including messaging, chat or any other forms of communication available through the Sites.

You are also prohibited from engaging in any of the following:

a. Deceptive or misleading practices;

b. Abusing, intimidating or harassing others and stalking behavior;

c. Taking any action, uploading, posting, streaming or transmitting any content, language, images or sounds in any forum, communication, public profile or other publicly viewable areas that SCEA, in its sole discretion, finds offensive, hateful or vulgar. This includes any content or communication that SCEA in its sole discretion deems to be racially, ethnically, religiously, or sexually offensive, libelous, defaming, threatening, bullying or stalking;

d. Organizing hate groups;

e. Uploading, posting streaming or transmitting any content that contains any viruses, worms, spyware, time bombs or other computer programs that may damage, interfere with or disrupt the Sites or computers or other users;

f. Causing disruption to the Sites or any system, hardware, software or network connected to the Sites;

g. Attempting to hack or reverse engineer any code or equipment in connection with the Sites;

h. Making a false report of user abuse to SCEA Consumer Services;

i. Violating any local, state or national law;

j. Taking any action that we consider to be disruptive to the normal flow of chat or other activities on the Sites, including uploading, posting, streaming or transmitting any unsolicited or unauthorized material, including junk mails, SPAM, excessive mails or chain letters;

k. Distributing commercial content such as advertisements, solicitations, promotions and links to websites;

l. Uploading, posting, streaming, accessing or otherwise transmitting any content that you know or should have known infringes or violates any third-party rights, any law or regulation or contractual or fiduciary obligations;

m. Impersonating any person, including an employee of Sony Corporation, SCEA or any third-party;

n. Using, making or distributing unauthorized software or hardware in conjunction with the Sites, or taking or using any data from the Sites to design, develop or update unauthorized software or hardware.


8. REPORTING ABUSE
To report violations of these Terms of Service call SCEA Consumer Services at 1-800-345-7669 or use the moderation tools that may be available on the Site where the conduct is occurring.

9. HOTSPOT AND INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS
SCEA is not associated with any Internet service providers, including hotspot operators (collectively, “ISPs”). SCEA is not responsible for any damages or injury arising from or related to your use of ISP services. When you access the Internet, you are providing information directly to the ISP and not to SCEA. This information is collected by the ISP and is not shared with SCEA. Before accessing the Internet, you should carefully read the ISP’s user agreement, terms and conditions and privacy policy carefully.

10. LINKING POLICY
If you link to these Sites from another web site: (i) the link must not damage, dilute or tarnish the goodwill associated with any SCEA name or entity; (2) the link must not create the false appearance that the other website is sponsored by, endorsed by, affiliated with or associated with SCEA; (3) the website may not “frame” or alter these Sites in any way; and (4) the linked website may not be unlawful, abusive, indecent or obscene, promote violence or illegal acts, be libelous, defamatory or otherwise deemed inappropriate, as determined by us in our sole discretion; and (iv) the linked website may not display our Content, including any of our logos, to create a link, without our prior written consent.

Our Sites may allow you to link to third-party websites. Just because third-party website links exists on our Sites does not mean that we have thoroughly evaluated the third-party websites. Those third-party websites do not belong to us, and we have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, accuracy, usefulness, safety, privacy policies or practices of these websites. By using our Sites, you expressly relieve SCEA of any and all liability arising from your use of any third-party websites linked to our Sites. Enjoy the links, but do so at your own risk.


11. SWEEPSTAKES, CONTESTS AND PROMOTIONS
From time to time, these Sites may provide information about sweepstakes, contests or promotions that may be governed by a separate set of rules and may also have eligibility requirements. You must read those rules to determine whether or not your participation, registration or entry will be valid and to determine all other applicable requirements.

12. WARRANTY DISCLAIMER
We really hope you enjoy the Sites, and we also hope the Sites will function properly. Your use of the Sites, however, is at your sole risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, SCEA, its officers, directors, shareholders, employees representatives, and agents disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including the implied warranties and conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement, in connection with the Sites and your use of them. SCEA makes no warranties or representations about the accuracy or completeness of the Sites, and assumes to the maximum extent permitted by law no liability or responsibility for any (a) errors, mistakes or inaccuracies on the Sites; (b) personal injury or property damage of any nature whatsoever resulting from your access to and use of the Sites; (c) unauthorized access to or use of our secure servers or any and all Personal Information that is not submitted using a secured transmission; (d) interruption or the cessation of transmission to or from our Sites; (e) bugs, viruses, trojan horses or the like that may be transmitted to or through our Sites by any third-party; or (f) errors or omissions on our Sites or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of your use of any content available via the Sites. SCEA does not warrant, endorse, guarantee, or assume responsibility for any product or service advertised or offered by a third-party through the SCEA or any hyperlinked website or feature in any banner or other advertising, and SCEA will not be a party to or in any way be responsible for monitoring any transaction between you and third-party providers of products or services. As with the purchase of a product or service through any medium or in any environment, you should use your best judgment and exercise caution where appropriate.

13.LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
We have to throw in some more legal language we need to protect us so that we can provide you the benefits of the Sites. In no event will SCEA, its officers, directors, employees, shareholders, representatives or agents be liable to you for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, punitive or consequential damages whatsoever resulting from any (a) mistakes or inaccuracies of content on the Sites, (b) personal injury or property damage of any nature whatsoever resulting from your access to and use of the Sites, (c) any unauthorized access to or use of our secure servers or any and all non-secured personal information (d) any interruption or the cessation of transmission to or from the Sites, (e) any bugs, viruses, trojan horses or the like that may be transmitted to or through the Sites; or (f) any errors or omissions in any content or for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of your use of any content posted, emailed, transmitted or made available via the Sites, whether based on warranty, contract, tort or any other legal theory and whether or not the company is advised of the possibility of such damages. This limitation of liability applies to the fullest extent permitted by law in the applicable jurisdiction.

14. INDEMNITY
You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless SCEA, its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers and directors, shareholders, agents, employees and partners, and any other parties with whom SCEA may contract to provide the Sites, from and against any and all claims, actions, suits, costs, liabilities, judgments, obligations, losses, penalties, fines or forfeitures, expenses or damages (including reasonable legal fees and expenses) of whatsoever kind and nature imposed on, incurred by or asserted against SCEA arising out of

your User Generated Content; or
your breach or alleged breach of any representation, warranty, covenant or obligation pursuant to these Terms of Service, the Privacy Policy or the PSN ToSUA.
We reserve the right to take over the exclusive defense of any claim for which we are entitled to indemnification from you. In such event, you shall provide us with cooperation reasonably requested by us.


15. MODIFICATION
SCEA at its sole discretion may modify the provisions of these Terms of Service at any time. You are responsible for reviewing these Terms of Service each time you use these Sites. By using the Sites, you agree to be bound by all current Terms of Service. To print out a current copy of these Terms of Service using your computer, go to http://www.us.playstation.com/termsofuse.

16. INDEPENDENT PARTIES
You and SCEA are independent parties, and nothing in these Terms of Service constitutes a partnership between or joint venture of you and SCEA or to make either party the agent of the other. You are not allowed to hold yourself out contrary to the terms of this paragraph (so please don’t), and SCEA is not liable for any representation, act or omission by you contrary to the provisions of these Terms of Service.

17. TERMINATION
SCEA has the right to terminate your access to use the Sites for any reason, including for violation of these Terms of Service. If we ever terminate your access to the Sites, sections 3-9, 12, 13, 15 – 19, 21 and 22 of these Terms of Service will still apply to you.

18. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS
You agree that regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to your use of the Sites or these Terms of Service must be filed within one (1) year after the claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.

19. GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION.
These Terms of Service and all questions relating to the performance, interpretation, breach or enforcement of these Terms of Service, or the rights, obligations and liabilities of you and us under them are governed by the laws of the State of California. You agree that all disputes, claims or litigation arising from or related in any way to these Terms of Service and our relationship with you will be litigated only in a court of competent jurisdiction located in San Mateo County, State of California. You agree to be subject to personal jurisdiction and venue in that location.

THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ ALL THAT LEGAL LANGUAGE. NOW GO ENJOY OUR SITES!
“PlayStation”, the “PS” Family logo, and “PSP” are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The Sony Computer Entertainment logo is a registered trademark of Sony Corporation. All other games and properties shown on this site are trademarked and copyrighted properties of their respective owners or licensors.

© 2011 Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC.
Click to expand...
 

Latest Posts

Back