Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[The SOPAbox: Defeating online piracy by destroying the internet]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/10/the-sopabox-defeating-online-piracy-by-destroying-the-internet/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/10/the-sopabox-defeating-online-piracy-by-destroying-the-internet/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01/10/the-sopabox-defeating-online-piracy-by-destroying-the-internet/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

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Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column.

Unless you've been living under a rock, chances are you've heard of SOPA and PIPA. The Stop Online Piracy Act and PROTECT IP Act are two radical pieces of copyright legislation currently being pushed through the US government. Although the stated intent of the new legislation is to provide companies with additional tools with which to combat piracy, the bill's loose wording has raised some serious alarm bells. Opponents to the proposed law say it would give corporations the ability to shut down any almost any website under the guise of protecting copyright infringement.

Gamers will be affected worst of all, as the loose wording of the law makes any website with user-submitted content potentially vulnerable to a shut down order. That could include YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, any blog with a comment section, or even any online game with a chat system. Perhaps the scariest part is that you'll be affected even if you're not in the US, as one of the new law's enforcement mechanisms is to remove a site from the DNS records, a move that assumes the US has jurisdiction over the global Domain Name System. AOL is among many huge companies strongly opposing SOPA, and so naturally Massively opposes it too.

In this week's massive two-page Soapbox, I make the case for why you should be worried about SOPA, and I suggest what can be done to tackle piracy in the games industry. Comments can be left on page two.

Continue reading The SOPAbox: Defeating online piracy by destroying the internet

MassivelyThe SOPAbox: Defeating online piracy by destroying the internet originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>brendan-draincopyrightcopyright-infringementdnsdnssecdomaindomain-namesfeaturedfirst-amendmentfree-speechfreedom-of-speechgovernmenti-dont-want-to-live-on-this-planet-any-moreillegalintellectual-propertyiplawlegalmiscMiscellaneousnyphurpiracypiratesprotect-ipsoapboxsoapbox-brendan-drainsopasopaboxthe-soapboxthe-sopaboxus-governmentvideoTue, 10 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Anonymous declares war on Sony over SOPA support]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/30/anonymous-declares-war-on-sony-over-sopa-support/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/30/anonymous-declares-war-on-sony-over-sopa-support/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12/30/anonymous-declares-war-on-sony-over-sopa-support/#comments Anonymous Sony may once again be the target of hacking attacks, but at least this time the company has a little heads-up in advance. The secretive organization of hackers known as Anonymous released a video declaring its intent to strike at Sony over Sony's support of the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA).

The video contains your usual vague proclamations of doom and ego-boosting statements, although with Anonymous' past activity, it will be hard to ignore the threat. The collective of hackers were thought to be at least partially responsible for the attack on Sony earlier this year that forced the company to take its network and games offline.

SOPA is a proposed U.S. bill that would allow law enforcement to combat pirated digital goods by shutting down websites and blocking payments to site owners. While the bill is supported by Hollywood, the music industry, and some major game companies, SOPA opposers worry that the bill will infringe on First Amendment rights and permanently harm the internet.

You can watch the Anonymous declaration after the jump.

Continue reading Anonymous declares war on Sony over SOPA support

MassivelyAnonymous declares war on Sony over SOPA support originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 30 Dec 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>anonymousdeclarationfirst-amendmentfirst-amendment-rightshackhackerhackershackingoperation-blackoutpiracysoesonysony-online-entertainmentsopastop-online-piracy-actthreatvideowarFri, 30 Dec 2011 16:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Linden Lab explanation alienates educators]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/03/linden-lab-explanation-alienates-educators/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/03/linden-lab-explanation-alienates-educators/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/03/linden-lab-explanation-alienates-educators/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,


When news broke about Linden Lab sending a takedown notice to the core Second Life education community Web-site, our colleagues over at the Metaverse Journal put a number of questions about the matter to Linden Lab.

The Linden Lab response to those questions yesterday seems to have generated a reaction among educators akin to pouring gasoline on a blaze, coupled with a vigorous fish-slapping. While there's a undeniably a spectrum of reaction to the Lab's response, most of what we've seen seems to cluster around the livid end.

Continue reading Linden Lab explanation alienates educators

MassivelyLinden Lab explanation alienates educators originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>academicdean-groomeducationfirst-amendmentjokay-wollongonglanham-actlegallinden-labmetaverse-journalopinionpathfinder-lindenreactiongridsecond-classroomsecond-lifesl-policytrademarkvirtual-worldsSat, 03 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST