Dpp1978
Posts: 1007
Joined: 2/4/2006
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quote:
ORIGINAL: paulyboy
quote:
ORIGINAL: Vadersville
Exactly. It's a stupid argument that game developers are somehow losing out on second hand sales. Can anyone name any other item or product that is sold second hand where the original manufacturer gets a slice? Because I certainly can't think of any.
I've been trying to think of an example all day and I honestly can't. That said I'm sure companies would if they could, companies like Microsoft and the such are just in a privileged position of being able to in the first place, it's a logistical nightmare trying to force such a regime with other products.
Whilst I think it's utterly unfathomable of them to do such a thing, ultimately second hand games sales will die on their arse the instant we start downloading all our purchases.
PC games have been policing piracy with various measures for years, which has the knock-on effect of obliterating any second hand sale period. Obviously with platforms like Steam second hand sales aren't even an issue. So whilst I think it's an utter, utter cheek for Microsoft and the like to pull such a stunt (if they do, I'm not convinced they will) at this moment in time, ultimately, it won't matter eventually, second hand game sales simply won't exist in a few years time.
There is a principle in law called "the doctrine of first sale". This basically states that once a person (natural or legal) sells a product they lose any rights over what the purchaser does with it afterwards; providing of course none of their retained rights (notably copyright in this instance) are infringed.
There was a recent case in the ECJ on this point. It was about whether a software company can restrict the resale of software by claiming it was not a sale: rather a licensing agreement. The ECJ was very clear that when the right to use software is transferred for remuneration, without any limitation on how long it can be used for, it amounts to a sale. It is irrelevant whether the sale was by way of physical media or via digital distribution. Therefore the doctrine applies and any measure to prevent the reselling of licences will be unlawful.
That case is directly applicable to the current proposals. If these rumoured measured are true they will almost certainly amount to a breach of EU law if put in place.
You can read a summary of the judgment here.
It should probably be noted that this ruling is in direct contrast to a US decision which deemed that in such cases the licence was merely a licence, and the doctrine does not apply. It is possible that such measures could be used in the US (and Japan where resale is, strictly speaking, illegal) but not in the EU.
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Printable Version
RE: The new "XBOX" - 
It's only the matter of time before future releases become competitive with retail prices. 
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