Consumer Rights Wiki - User contributions [en]

Mozilla

2025-08-18T17:02:19Z

Elxroid: Grammar changes and added context

{{Incomplete|Issue 1=This page needs some work to match the format of our [[Consumer Action Taskforce:Sample/Company| sample company page]]. Mainly in the consumer impact summary section and minor things like the see also section and dating the incidents.}}

{{InfoboxCompany
|Name=Mozilla|Type=Private|Founded=1998|Industry=Open Source Software, Advertising|Official Website=https://www.mozilla.org/|Logo=Mozilla Logo 2024.svg.png}}
'''[[Wikipedia:Mozilla|Mozilla]]''' is a [[Wikipedia:Free software|free software]] community which develops, publishes and supports open-source software. The community is supported institutionally by the [[Wikipedia:Nonprofit organization|non-profit]] [[Wikipedia:Mozilla Foundation|Mozilla Foundation]] and its tax-paying subsidiary, the [[Wikipedia:Mozilla Corporation|Mozilla Corporation]].

==Consumer-impact summary==
===Mozilla Manifesto===
Mozilla has published the community Manifesto, with 10 key principles:<ref>https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/about/manifesto/details/</ref><blockquote>
#The internet is an integral part of modern life—a key component in education, communication, collaboration, business, entertainment and society as a whole.
#The internet is a global public resource that must remain open and accessible.
#The internet must enrich the lives of individual human beings.
#Individuals’ security and privacy on the internet are fundamental and must not be treated as optional.
#Individuals must have the ability to shape the internet and their own experiences on the internet.
#The effectiveness of the internet as a public resource depends upon interoperability (protocols, data formats, content), innovation and decentralized participation worldwide.
#Free and open source software promotes the development of the internet as a public resource.
#Transparent community-based processes promote participation, accountability and trust.
#Commercial involvement in the development of the internet brings many benefits; a balance between commercial profit and public benefit is critical.
#Magnifying the public benefit aspects of the internet is an important goal, worthy of time, attention and commitment.
</blockquote>

==Incidents==

===Removing the "We don't sell your data" promise===
In February 2025, Mozilla started to delete references to their "We don't sell your data" promise from the source code, as first reported on [https://www.haiku-os.org/ Haiku operating system] by developer ''waddlesplash'' on the forum thread for their Firefox/Iceweasel port.<ref>https://discuss.haiku-os.org/t/iceweasel-telemetry-acceptible-for-firefox-trademarks/16106/51</ref><ref>https://github.com/mozilla/bedrock/commit/d459addab846d8144b61939b7f4310eb80c5470e</ref>

They also switched the wording from "The best privacy" to "Always protected".

===Introducing TOS for Firefox (2025)===
{{Main|Mozilla introduces TOS to Firefox}}
{{Important| This situation is ongoing so the full impact to consumers has yet to be determined}}In February 2025 Mozilla introduced [[terms of use]] (TOS) for the Firefox browser for the first time as well as an updated [[privacy policy]]. The new privacy policy has caused concern among the browser's user revolving around the way the section that describes the rights Mozilla has over their data is phrased.

===Privacy-preserving attribution===
'''Privacy-preserving attribution (PPA)''' is an experimental feature introduced in Firefox version 128, designed to help advertising sites measure the performance of their ads while maintaining user privacy. It is marketed as an alternative method for performing attribution without relying on online tracking of users' browsing activity, which is incompatible with privacy. The functionality is explained on the Mozilla support page as follows:<ref name=":0">https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/privacy-preserving-attribution#w_how-can-i-disable-ppa</ref><blockquote>
#Websites that show you ads can ask Firefox to remember these ads. When this happens, Firefox stores an “impression” which contains a little bit of information about the ad, including a destination website.
#If you visit the destination website and do something that the website considers to be important enough to count (a “conversion”), that website can ask Firefox to generate a report. The destination website specifies what ads it is interested in.
#Firefox creates a report based on what the website asks, but does not give the result to the website. Instead, Firefox encrypts the report and anonymously submits it using the Distributed Aggregation Protocol (DAP) to an “aggregation service”.
#Your results are combined with many similar reports by the aggregation service. The destination website periodically receives a summary of the reports. The summary includes noise that provides differential privacy.
</blockquote>Browsing activity information is not sent to anyone, not even Mozilla. Users with PPA enabled, however, must rely solely on the company to honor principle number 4 in its Manifesto.<ref name=":0" /><blockquote>PPA does not involve sending information about your browsing activities to anyone. This includes Mozilla and our DAP partner (ISRG). Advertisers only receive aggregate information that answers basic questions about the effectiveness of their advertising.</blockquote>This feature does not allow users to make an informed decision and choose whether to opt in or not, as it is enabled by default and requires that the user actively opt out.<ref>https://cybernews.com/privacy/firefox-data-collection-feature-sparks-backlash/</ref> This goes against principle number 8 of the Manifesto.

===Anonym acquisition===
In June 2024, Mozilla became an advertiser by acquiring Anonym, a company claiming to be a privacy-preserving digital advertiser, potentially going against its mission of being a proponent of privacy.<ref>https://blog.mozilla.org/en/mozilla/mozilla-anonym-raising-the-bar-for-privacy-preserving-digital-advertising/</ref>

===Mr Robot promotional web extension===
In December 2017 Mozilla, in collaboration with the Mr Robot team, created and included by default a web extension in [[Firefox]] called Looking Glass.<ref name=":1">Mozilla addressing the Looking glass incident

[https://blog.mozilla.org/en/products/firefox/retrospective-looking-glass/ https://blog.mozilla.org/en/products/firefox/retrospective-looking-gla]

[https://blog.mozilla.org/en/products/firefox/retrospective-looking-glass/ ss/]</ref> While the extension was disabled by default, many users were confused and worried to discover a unknown extension installed in their browser with a cryptic description "MY REALITY IS JUST DIFFERENT THAN YOURS".<ref>Firefox's users worried about the looking glass extension https://www.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/7jh9rv/what_is_looking_glass/</ref> This description was later expanded to include references to Mozilla's collaboration.<ref>Locking glass extension description changed https://github.com/mozilla/addon-wr/commit/21ff53d2d5baab591d29b4ea5847d74cb6901b2c</ref>

When activated, the extension executes code on all websites visited by the user, searching for all words matching a list. Every match is then wrapped in HTML span tags,<ref>looking glass extension injecting HTML https://github.com/mozilla/addon-wr/blob/da464ac8f1c3b089405ca96fc68b999d2b624ef4/addon/webextension/content-script.js#L27</ref> and tooltips are injected to be displayed when the user hovers over these matches. CSS code is injected to make the words appear upside down and the tooltips work.<ref>Looking glass extension injecting CSS https://github.com/mozilla/addon-wr/blob/da464ac8f1c3b089405ca96fc68b999d2b624ef4/addon/webextension/background.js#L78</ref> Also three specific websites did have their headers changed to have a value "x-1057" injected.

While the extension could in rare occasion break some website with the HTML and CSS injection, it did not do anything malicious or dangerous. The extension was not collecting any personal information at all, but Mozilla admitted it had made a mistake in its response addressing the issue.<ref name=":1" />

<blockquote>'''A SHIELD study must be designed to answer a specific question.'''

We evaluated Looking Glass based on whether or not it upheld user privacy. Since it did not collect any data, we felt that it was safe. In retrospect, not capturing data was a strong indicator that this was not a good SHIELD study candidate, so we’re making sure we’re going to specifically evaluate future studies based on this criteria to ensure that we don’t repeat our mistake.</blockquote>

==Alternatives==
There are other browsers using the same browser engine as Firefox, but with the telemetry and data gathering removed and privacy-friendly preferences set by default. For desktop operating systems, these include [https://librewolf.net/ LibreWolf] and [https://icecatbrowser.org/index.html GNU Ice Cat]. On Android, [https://f-droid.org/packages/org.mozilla.fennec_fdroid/ Fennec] is available through the F-Droid store.

Completely free alternative browsers are currently under active development, some of which show promise to become viable, truly independent, open-source browser engines in the foreseeable future. These include the browser initiated by SerenityOS creator Andreas Kling.

As for Thunderbird, some open-source soft forks such as [https://www.betterbird.eu/ BetterBird] are available.

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Mozilla]]

Talk:Bungie

2025-08-17T18:54:16Z

Elxroid: /* add a section for their hostility towards Linux? */ Reply

==add a section for their hostility towards Linux?==

from their steam user help page at https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049024592-Destiny-2-Steam-Guide we have this gem:

"Steam Deck and Destiny 2

Destiny 2 is not supported for play on the Steam Deck or on any system utilizing Steam Play's Proton unless Windows is installed and running. Players who attempt to launch Destiny 2 on the Steam Deck through SteamOS or Proton will be unable to enter the game and will be returned to their game library after a short time.

Players who are not accessing Destiny 2 through Windows and attempt to bypass the SteamOS/Proton incompatibility will be met with a game ban."

:Good question, while it's not percieveably as egregious as their other actions, its still limiting consumer freedoms. [[User:Elxroid|Elxroid]] ([[User talk:Elxroid|talk]]) 12:11, 17 August 2025 (UTC)

:I assume this is something to do with [[Kernel Level Anti-Cheats]]? it would seem odd to separate it as an 'anti-linux' stance if it's more about Kernel-level anticheats (which are just not compatible with Linux in the first place). [[User:Keith|Keith]] ([[User talk:Keith|talk]]) 13:33, 17 August 2025 (UTC)
::Yes, its to do with anti-cheat, though I'm not sure if it was kernel level as this was back in 2021? users had been able to get around the Linux ban by editing the (hypervisor?) so that it looked like a windows device and the game apparently worked fine. However, people doing this would get their accounts banned. All this information is from recall and I'm not sure on my own accuracy. [[User:Elxroid|Elxroid]] ([[User talk:Elxroid|talk]]) 13:38, 17 August 2025 (UTC)
:::In that case it would definitely be best to get some proper sources on it, especially if it ends up in the article [[User:Keith|Keith]] ([[User talk:Keith|talk]]) 18:34, 17 August 2025 (UTC)
::::Awesome, I'll start looking into it :) [[User:Elxroid|Elxroid]] ([[User talk:Elxroid|talk]]) 18:54, 17 August 2025 (UTC)

Netflix Games deactivated

2025-08-17T16:27:53Z

Elxroid: Added Caps to appropriate places

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Netflix Games removing some of their games}}

==Summary==
Some Games provided by the "Netflix Games" service were pulled, and of those games that were already downloaded became unplayable too.

==Background==
On 2021-11-01, Netflix launched its "Netflix Games" service, the games in the service were simple arcade games at first, and it was available to everyone that had an active subscription. <ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=Frosty Pop CEO Faisal Sethi Talks About Netflix’s First Wave Mobile Games |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/interview-with-frosty-pop-ceo-faisal-sethi-studio-behind-netflixs-first-mobile-games/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=what's-on-netflix.com |publication-date=2021-11-12}}</ref>

Over time more games were added with a bigger scope and from larger publishers, and some ports of PC games to mobile became more frequent; like ''Into the Breach, Moonlighter, Braid: Anniversary Edition, Katana Zero, Hades,'' and many more''.''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=Best Netflix Mobile Games to Play in 2022 |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/what-to-watch/best-netflix-mobile-games-to-play-in-2022/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=what's-on-netflix.com |publication-date=2022-08-10}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=New Games Coming to Netflix in May 2022 |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/coming-soon/new-games-coming-to-netflix-in-may-2022/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=what's-on-netflix.com |publication-date=2022-04-28}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=Every New Mobile Game Showcased at Netflix’s Geeked Week |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/every-new-game-announced-at-netflixs-geeked-week/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=what's-on-netflix.com |publication-date=2023-11-11}}</ref>

==Netflix Games removing some of their games==
Since 2021-11-01 until 2024-12, Netflix Games has only been adding games into its catalogue, but during the month of December Netflix Games began removing some games from their library; like ''Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon, Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City,'' and many more.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=Full List of 114 Mobile Games on Netflix & Every Removed Game |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/whats-new/full-list-of-mobile-games-on-netflix/#list-of-removed-mobile-games-from-netflix-3 |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |publication-date=2025-05-07}}</ref>

A representative for Netflix Games said:<blockquote>Just like with series and film, games will be removed from Netflix as licenses expire. Players will notice a “Leaving Soon” badge and be notified by the app itself well in advance of removal. <ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=Grand Theft Auto III and Vice City Leaving Netflix Games in December 2024 |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/leaving-soon/grand-theft-auto-iii-and-vice-city-leaving-netflix-games-in-december-2024/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=what's-on-netflix |publication-date=2024-11-14}}</ref></blockquote>Going into 2025, the games scheduled to be removed by 2025-07-15 increased in number to include:<ref>{{Cite web |last=Moore |first=Kasey |date=2025-08-16 |title=Netflix To Remove Over 20 Mobile Games Including Monument Valley Trilogy and Hades |url=https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-games/netflix-to-remove-over-20-mobile-games-including-monument-valley-trilogy-and-hades/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=what's-on-netflix |publication-date=2025-06-23}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Parrish |first=Ash |date=2025-08-16 |title=Netflix is letting go of some of its best indie games |url=https://www.theverge.com/news/692227/netflix-games-delisting-hades-braid-gaming-strategy |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=theverge.com |publication-date=2025-06-24}}</ref>

*Braid, Anniversary Edition
*Battleship
*Carmen Sandiego
*CoComelon: Play with JJ
*Death’s Door
*Diner Out: Merge Cafe
*Dumb Ways to Die
*Fashionverse
*Ghost Detective
*Hades (Note: Only available on iOS devices – Leaving July 1st)
*Katana ZERO
*LEGO Legacy: Heroes Unboxed
*Ludo King
*Monument Valley
*Monument Valley 2
*Monument Valley 3
*Rainbow Six: SMOL
*Raji: An Ancient Epic
*SpongeBob: Bubble Pop F.U.N.
*TED Tumblewords
*The Case of the Golden Idol
*The Rise of the Golden Idol
*Vineyard Valley

==Consumer response==

Losing access to games you previously could play caused many frustrations for people.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-16 |title=Why does it feel like Netflix Games is going downhill? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixGamers/comments/1m6jwc4/why_does_it_feel_like_netflix_games_is_going/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=Reddit |publication-date=2025-07-22}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-16 |title=Will more games be removed in August? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixGamers/comments/1m5rb09/will_more_games_be_removed_in_august/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=Reddit}}</ref>

As most had questions about whether they'll be able to play the games somewhere else.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-16 |title=Discontinued games |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixGamers/comments/1m1fuu6/discontinued_games/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=Reddit}}</ref>

Or if they could move their saves to another device to not lose their progress as most games don't have cloud saving.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-16 |title=Can I transfer btd6 Netflix save data to normal btd6 |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/btd6/comments/17jzpp7/can_i_transfer_btd6_netflix_save_data_to_normal/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=Reddit}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-16 |title=Have I lost my save? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/NetflixGamers/comments/1lv22yo/have_i_lost_my_save/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=Reddit}}</ref>

==Reference==
{{reflist}}{{DEFAULTSORT:Netflix Games removing some of their games}}
[[Category:Netflix Games]]
[[Category:Netflix]]

Adobe ToS update gives the company rights over consumers' works

2025-08-17T15:43:00Z

Elxroid: grammar changes and additional reason

[[File:Adobe tos.jpg|thumb|Adobe's updated Terms of Service, which does not include an "opt-out" nor a "decline" option.]]

'''[[Adobe]]''' made changes to the terms of use of their software offerings in 2024 using wording that granted Adobe a licence to make use of the users' created content in a variety of ways.

==Background==
Adobe, a computer software company that specializes in programs for content creation, editing, and publishing, has stirred controversy with an update to their [[Terms of Service]] (ToS) which declares that by accepting, users grant Adobe a "non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license"<ref name="tos-sec4.3" /> to their content. This license allows Adobe to "reproduce, distribute, create derivative works, publicly display, publicly preform, and sublicense" the user's content.<ref name="tos-sec4.3">
{{cite web
|author=
|date=18 June 2024
|title=Adobe General Terms of Use Section 4.3
|url=https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html#root_content_flex_copy_1721445329_items_flex_928057436_items_position_position-par_position_402910982_c_2129676765
|website=Adobe
|url-status=live
|access-date=19 Feb 2025
|archive-date=16 Feb 2025
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250216212938/https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html#root_content_flex_copy_1721445329_items_flex_928057436_items_position_position-par_position_402910982_c_2129676765
}}</ref>

==Consumer Impact==
This controversy stems from concerns that the updated ToS may violate existing [[Non-disclosure agreement|non-disclosure agreements]] (NDAs) and their own [[wikipedia:Intellectual_property|Intellectual property]] rights. When the change to the policy was made users were unable to access their content without first agreeing to the updated ToS, leaving many users unable to retrieve their work.

While Adobe claims they do not use your content to train generative AI, Adobe does admit they may use your content for machine-learning purposes, and states that users always have the option to opt out, despite there being no option on the ToS-acceptance screen to decline or opt out.

==References==

[[Category:Adobe]]
[[Category:Incidents]]
[[Category:Feature Ransom]]
<references />

Downloadable content

2025-08-17T15:20:54Z

Elxroid: fixed citation mistake

{{Under Development|stage=Somewhat developed}}

'''[[wikipedia:Downloadable_content|Downloadable Content (DLC)]]''', also referred to as Expansions or Expansion Packs, are a method for developers and/or publishers to extend the monetization of their products. This practice is not inherently anti-consumer, such as Factorio's Space Age DLC being regarded as paying for a new game according to fans, however, companies such as [[Electronic Arts|'''Electronic Arts''']] and '''[[Ubisoft]]''' have been known to use DLC to break up their complete products into multiple purchases with no regard to the consumers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hruska |first=Joel |date=14 August 2015 |title=Executive calls on disc dlc complaints nonsense but the truth is more complicated |url=https://www.extremetech.com/gaming/212245-ea-executive-calls-on-disc-dlc-complaints-nonsense-but-the-truth-is-more-complex |access-date=17 August 2025 |website=extremetech.com}}</ref>

==Dark patterns involving DLC==

===Pre-order bonuses===
A very popular method used by companies to incite the customer to purchase their game is to offer them additional content for pre-ordering.

This can range from:

*[https://blog.bestbuy.ca/video-games/goro-lives-as-you-when-you-pre-order-mortal-kombat-x Extra characters]
*Cosmetics
*In-game currency
*Entire gamemodes
*Closed Beta access
These pieces of pre-order pieces of content rarely will see a re-release, only in some scenarios where special edition re-releases will allow consumers who miss out on pre-ordering to have access to this content. These bonuses are reliant on a phenomenon known as [[FOMO]].

===Day-one DLC===
Often seen mostly from larger companies, day-one DLC if offered as a way to further monetize a product on launch. This has however caused concern from consumers since these games that are hasty to offer DLC on launch appear to essentially break up the base game content, thus harming consumers. These games can also have the DLC content already available on-disc, and it has historically caused outrage from consumers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Watts |first=Steve |date=3 Mar 2010 |title=BioShock 2 DLC is Already On the Disc |url=http://www.1up.com/news/bioshock-2-dlc-disc |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151108174303/http://www.1up.com/news/bioshock-2-dlc-disc |archive-date=8 Nov 2015 |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=1UP.com}}</ref>

===DLC overload===
A more recent trend among major publishers has been live-service games. What this has brought however, is the need for monetization to keep development persistent. Unfortunately, these same companies have also been excessive with offering large amounts of DLC. For example, [[Electronic Arts]]' [[wikipedia:The_Sims_4|The Sims 4]] has currently over $1000 in DLC,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Sims 4 |url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1222670/The_Sims_4/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Steam]]}}</ref> ranging from what could be considered as micro-DLC with kits and stuff packs, to larger DLC such as expansion packs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Naletilic |first=Dora |date=11 Jan 2024 |title=Here’s Why The Sims 4 DLCs Are So Expensive (& How to Get Them Cheaper) |url=https://fictionhorizon.com/heres-why-the-sims-4-dlcs-are-so-expensive-how-to-get-them-cheaper/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=GameHorizon}}</ref> Consumers have criticized the games for being lackluster without purchasing DLC,<ref>{{Cite web |title=TS4 feels empty? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/thesims/comments/f009sl/ts4_feels_empty/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Crane |first=Maris |date=5 Jan 2024 |title=Why Does Playing The Sims 4 Make Me Feel Empty Inside? |url=https://www.superjumpmagazine.com/why-does-playing-the-sims-4-make-me-feel-empty-inside/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2024 |website=SuperJump}}</ref> with theories surrounding that it may be intentional.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Is it just me or does TS4 feel 'empty'? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/thesims/comments/161t8eq/is_it_just_me_or_does_ts4_feel_empty/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> These theories are more solidified when comparing how DLC is handled between each game in the series.<ref name=":0" />

====Micro-DLC====
Micro-DLC functions as the middle child between standard DLC and [[microtransactions]]. This is directly defined by the content it offers, where you are buying a significant amount of items, like a stuff pack, or a small thing that has a noticeable impact on the gameplay, such as a new character. Often micro-DLC is offered among a large pool of other pieces of small dlc. In [[Microsoft Flight Simulator X]], there's over $4k in dlc for planes or airstrips.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Are there any games on steam with more expensive DLC than this? (microsoft flight simulator x) |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/Steam/comments/90e436/are_there_any_games_on_steam_with_more_expensive/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> This is only surpassed by Train Simulator's $8k+ in DLC.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Train Simulator Classic 2024 |url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/24010/Train_Simulator_Classic_2024/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Steam]]}}</ref>

An honorable mention for an excessive amount of micro-DLC is Rocksmith, where the original has had nearly $1k in individually purchasable songs.<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/rocksmith/comments/2k39t7/total_dlc_price_question/

"Edit: u/OsagaTheGreat points out that the Rock Hits packs, which I believed were subject to 3-pack pricing, are in fact mere labels for single tracks that were released contemporaneously. The names are at times confusingly inconsistent, culminating in "Rock Hits 70's 2" being distinct from "Rock Hits 1970s 2". I count 19 Rock Hits pseudopacks (including "Indie Rock Hits", which doesn't sort next to the others), each containing 3 songs. Each 3-pack in the original calculation contributed a price reduction of $0.98 compared to purchasing single tracks, so debundling all of them increases the total by $18.62 to $973.39. However, in contrast to my original strategy, you ''would'' now purchase the Allman, Öyster, and Pearl song packs to save $2.94. The revised total is '''$970.45'''."

- u/PierreSimonLaplace</ref>

===Season Passes===
[stub section!] This section is a stub and the person who included this section appears to have left it blank

===DLC bias===
Often, the DLC featured in games can leave bias from either the developer or publisher, and thus imbalance the game to encourage consumers to purchase this DLC. This imbalance problem is mostly seen in competitive games, such as Mortal Kombat or Super Smash Brothers. Super Smash Brothers in particular has brought the largest amount of concern from consumers,<ref>{{Cite web |title=DLC characters are overpowered and brainless. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/SmashBrosUltimate/comments/11e977q/dlc_characters_are_overpowered_and_brainless/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> as DLC fighters end up being cited as more powerful for casual players.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Littlechild |first=Chris |date=6 Aug 2019 |title=Smash Ultimate: Does The Hero's Down-Special Make Him OP? |url=https://www.thegamer.com/smash-bros-ultimate-hero-dlc-down-special-op/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=The Gamer}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Steve is OP 😩 |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/SmashBrosUltimate/comments/jdf910/steve_is_op/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref>

==Historical examples==
Products to potentially mention later on: The Sims 4, super smash Brothers ultimate, Minecraft bedrock edition, certain Ubisoft or EA games, Fortnite, Halo infinite, assassin's Creed, Destiny

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Common terms]]

Downloadable content

2025-08-17T15:17:13Z

Elxroid: Copy changes, added citation, removed citation needed

{{Under Development|stage=Somewhat developed}}

'''[[wikipedia:Downloadable_content|Downloadable Content (DLC)]]''', also referred to as Expansions or Expansion Packs, are a method for developers and/or publishers to extend the monetization of their products. This practice is not inherently anti-consumer, such as Factorio's Space Age DLC being regarded as paying for a new game according to fans, however, companies such as [[Electronic Arts|'''Electronic Arts''']] and '''[[Ubisoft]]''' have been known to use DLC to break up their complete products into multiple purchases with no regard to the consumers.<ref>{{Cite article |last=Hruska |first=Joel |date=14 August 2015 |title=Executive calls on disc dlc complaints nonsense but the truth is more complicated |url=https://www.extremetech.com/gaming/212245-ea-executive-calls-on-disc-dlc-complaints-nonsense-but-the-truth-is-more-complex |access-date=17 August 2025 |website=extremetech.com}}</ref>

==Dark patterns involving DLC==

===Pre-order bonuses===
A very popular method used by companies to incite the customer to purchase their game is to offer them additional content for pre-ordering.

This can range from:

*[https://blog.bestbuy.ca/video-games/goro-lives-as-you-when-you-pre-order-mortal-kombat-x Extra characters]
*Cosmetics
*In-game currency
*Entire gamemodes
*Closed Beta access
These pieces of pre-order pieces of content rarely will see a re-release, only in some scenarios where special edition re-releases will allow consumers who miss out on pre-ordering to have access to this content. These bonuses are reliant on a phenomenon known as [[FOMO]].

===Day-one DLC===
Often seen mostly from larger companies, day-one DLC if offered as a way to further monetize a product on launch. This has however caused concern from consumers since these games that are hasty to offer DLC on launch appear to essentially break up the base game content, thus harming consumers. These games can also have the DLC content already available on-disc, and it has historically caused outrage from consumers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Watts |first=Steve |date=3 Mar 2010 |title=BioShock 2 DLC is Already On the Disc |url=http://www.1up.com/news/bioshock-2-dlc-disc |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151108174303/http://www.1up.com/news/bioshock-2-dlc-disc |archive-date=8 Nov 2015 |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=1UP.com}}</ref>

===DLC overload===
A more recent trend among major publishers has been live-service games. What this has brought however, is the need for monetization to keep development persistent. Unfortunately, these same companies have also been excessive with offering large amounts of DLC. For example, [[Electronic Arts]]' [[wikipedia:The_Sims_4|The Sims 4]] has currently over $1000 in DLC,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Sims 4 |url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1222670/The_Sims_4/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Steam]]}}</ref> ranging from what could be considered as micro-DLC with kits and stuff packs, to larger DLC such as expansion packs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Naletilic |first=Dora |date=11 Jan 2024 |title=Here’s Why The Sims 4 DLCs Are So Expensive (& How to Get Them Cheaper) |url=https://fictionhorizon.com/heres-why-the-sims-4-dlcs-are-so-expensive-how-to-get-them-cheaper/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=GameHorizon}}</ref> Consumers have criticized the games for being lackluster without purchasing DLC,<ref>{{Cite web |title=TS4 feels empty? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/thesims/comments/f009sl/ts4_feels_empty/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Crane |first=Maris |date=5 Jan 2024 |title=Why Does Playing The Sims 4 Make Me Feel Empty Inside? |url=https://www.superjumpmagazine.com/why-does-playing-the-sims-4-make-me-feel-empty-inside/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2024 |website=SuperJump}}</ref> with theories surrounding that it may be intentional.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Is it just me or does TS4 feel 'empty'? |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/thesims/comments/161t8eq/is_it_just_me_or_does_ts4_feel_empty/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> These theories are more solidified when comparing how DLC is handled between each game in the series.<ref name=":0" />

====Micro-DLC====
Micro-DLC functions as the middle child between standard DLC and [[microtransactions]]. This is directly defined by the content it offers, where you are buying a significant amount of items, like a stuff pack, or a small thing that has a noticeable impact on the gameplay, such as a new character. Often micro-DLC is offered among a large pool of other pieces of small dlc. In [[Microsoft Flight Simulator X]], there's over $4k in dlc for planes or airstrips.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Are there any games on steam with more expensive DLC than this? (microsoft flight simulator x) |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/Steam/comments/90e436/are_there_any_games_on_steam_with_more_expensive/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> This is only surpassed by Train Simulator's $8k+ in DLC.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Train Simulator Classic 2024 |url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/24010/Train_Simulator_Classic_2024/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Steam]]}}</ref>

An honorable mention for an excessive amount of micro-DLC is Rocksmith, where the original has had nearly $1k in individually purchasable songs.<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/rocksmith/comments/2k39t7/total_dlc_price_question/

"Edit: u/OsagaTheGreat points out that the Rock Hits packs, which I believed were subject to 3-pack pricing, are in fact mere labels for single tracks that were released contemporaneously. The names are at times confusingly inconsistent, culminating in "Rock Hits 70's 2" being distinct from "Rock Hits 1970s 2". I count 19 Rock Hits pseudopacks (including "Indie Rock Hits", which doesn't sort next to the others), each containing 3 songs. Each 3-pack in the original calculation contributed a price reduction of $0.98 compared to purchasing single tracks, so debundling all of them increases the total by $18.62 to $973.39. However, in contrast to my original strategy, you ''would'' now purchase the Allman, Öyster, and Pearl song packs to save $2.94. The revised total is '''$970.45'''."

- u/PierreSimonLaplace</ref>

===Season Passes===
[stub section!] This section is a stub and the person who included this section appears to have left it blank

===DLC bias===
Often, the DLC featured in games can leave bias from either the developer or publisher, and thus imbalance the game to encourage consumers to purchase this DLC. This imbalance problem is mostly seen in competitive games, such as Mortal Kombat or Super Smash Brothers. Super Smash Brothers in particular has brought the largest amount of concern from consumers,<ref>{{Cite web |title=DLC characters are overpowered and brainless. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/SmashBrosUltimate/comments/11e977q/dlc_characters_are_overpowered_and_brainless/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> as DLC fighters end up being cited as more powerful for casual players.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Littlechild |first=Chris |date=6 Aug 2019 |title=Smash Ultimate: Does The Hero's Down-Special Make Him OP? |url=https://www.thegamer.com/smash-bros-ultimate-hero-dlc-down-special-op/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=The Gamer}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Steve is OP 😩 |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/SmashBrosUltimate/comments/jdf910/steve_is_op/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 Mar 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref>

==Historical examples==
Products to potentially mention later on: The Sims 4, super smash Brothers ultimate, Minecraft bedrock edition, certain Ubisoft or EA games, Fortnite, Halo infinite, assassin's Creed, Destiny

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Common terms]]

Circular economy

2025-08-17T14:57:54Z

Elxroid: Heading change from: "Why it is a problem" to "Hurdles to overcome"

{{StubNotice}}

[[wikipedia:Circular_economy|'''Circular Economy''']] ideas and concepts have been studied extensively in academia, business, and government over the past ten years. It has been gaining popularity because it can help to minimize carbon emissions and the consumption of raw materials, open up new market prospects, and, principally, increase the sustainability of consumption.

==How it works==
Consumers are able to participate in the circular economy in many ways from utilizing seemingly defunct electronics or components in repurposed use cases for the hardware no longer appropriate for the originally intended use-case to they themselves repairing / upgrading damaged components of electronics with (preferably used) components to restore functionality.

Enthusiasts are also able to interact with others, sharing and pooling concepts, talents, resources, and tools with others both online and offline within venues where decorum and civility are prioritized with the underlying goal of expanding the growing community where circular economy practices are implemented to counterbalance, and eventually, subsume, the questionable practices typically associated with seasonal marketing campaigns of many entities encouraging seemingly haphazard purchases of consumers.

==Hurdles to overcome==
===The Digital Millennium Copyright Act===
Potential pitfalls antithetical to the concept and implementation of circular economy in the United States of America include but are not limited to existing provisions of and potential addenda to the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act]]<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=28 Oct 1998 |title=DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT |url=https://www.congress.gov/105/plaws/publ304/PLAW-105publ304.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=6 May 2025 |website=www.congress.gov}}</ref>" (DMCA) enacted into federal law. .

===Storage Devices===
Certain computer components including but not limited to storage devices, such as SSDs / HDDs, Network Interface Devices (NICs) and other devices which have embedded MAC addresses, and other devices containing sensitive information stored as data, represent devices with core functionality that could represent potential privacy concerns were they improperly introduced into the circular economy.

==Examples==
Some examples of {{PAGENAME}} include:

*https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/videos/20250214211054467/
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIQBkkpHYE0
*https://www.techradar.com/pro/sustainability-week-how-can-ai-help-deliver-on-the-circular-economy

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Common terms]]

Circular economy

2025-08-17T14:45:38Z

Elxroid: Copy changes of subsections and grammar edit

{{StubNotice}}

[[wikipedia:Circular_economy|'''Circular Economy''']] ideas and concepts have been studied extensively in academia, business, and government over the past ten years. It has been gaining popularity because it can help to minimize carbon emissions and the consumption of raw materials, open up new market prospects, and, principally, increase the sustainability of consumption.

==How it works==
Consumers are able to participate in the circular economy in many ways from utilizing seemingly defunct electronics or components in repurposed use cases for the hardware no longer appropriate for the originally intended use-case to they themselves repairing / upgrading damaged components of electronics with (preferably used) components to restore functionality.

Enthusiasts are also able to interact with others, sharing and pooling concepts, talents, resources, and tools with others both online and offline within venues where decorum and civility are prioritized with the underlying goal of expanding the growing community where circular economy practices are implemented to counterbalance, and eventually, subsume, the questionable practices typically associated with seasonal marketing campaigns of many entities encouraging seemingly haphazard purchases of consumers.

==Why it is a problem==
===The Digital Millennium Copyright Act===
Potential pitfalls antithetical to the concept and implementation of circular economy in the United States of America include but are not limited to existing provisions of and potential addenda to the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act]]<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=28 Oct 1998 |title=DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT |url=https://www.congress.gov/105/plaws/publ304/PLAW-105publ304.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=6 May 2025 |website=www.congress.gov}}</ref>" (DMCA) enacted into federal law. .

===Storage Devices===
Certain computer components including but not limited to storage devices, such as SSDs / HDDs, Network Interface Devices (NICs) and other devices which have embedded MAC addresses, and other devices containing sensitive information stored as data, represent devices with core functionality that could represent potential privacy concerns were they improperly introduced into the circular economy.

==Examples==
Some examples of {{PAGENAME}} include:

*https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/videos/20250214211054467/
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIQBkkpHYE0
*https://www.techradar.com/pro/sustainability-week-how-can-ai-help-deliver-on-the-circular-economy

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Common terms]]

Circular economy

2025-08-17T14:40:05Z

Elxroid: /* Why it is a problem */ removed template content

{{StubNotice}}

[[wikipedia:Circular_economy|'''Circular Economy''']] ideas and concepts have been studied extensively in academia, business, and government over the past ten years. It has been gaining popularity because it can help to minimize carbon emissions and the consumption of raw materials, open up new market prospects, and, principally, increase the sustainability of consumption.

==How it works==
Consumers are able to participate in the circular economy in many ways from utilizing seemingly defunct electronics or components in repurposed use cases for the hardware no longer appropriate for the originally intended use-case to they themselves repairing / upgrading damaged components of electronics with (preferably used) components to restore functionality.

Enthusiasts are also able to interact with others, sharing and pooling concepts, talents, resources, and tools with others both online and offline within venues where decorum and civility are prioritized with the underlying goal of expanding the growing community where circular economy practices are implemented to counterbalance, and eventually, subsume, the questionable practices typically associated with seasonal marketing campaigns of many entities encouraging seemingly haphazard purchases of consumers.

==Why it is a problem==
===Point 1===
Potential pitfalls antithetical to the concept and implementation of circular economy in the United States of America include but are not limited to existing provisions of and potential addenda to the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act]]<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=28 Oct 1998 |title=DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT |url=https://www.congress.gov/105/plaws/publ304/PLAW-105publ304.pdf |url-status=live |access-date=6 May 2025 |website=www.congress.gov}}</ref>" (DMCA) enacted into federal law. .

===Point 2===
Certain common computer components including but not limited to storage devices, such as SSDs / HDDs, Network Interface Devices (NICs) and other devices which have embedded MAC addresses, and other devices containing sensitive information stored as data represent devices with core functionality that could represent potential privacy concerns were they improperly introduced into the circular economy.

==Examples==
Some examples of {{PAGENAME}} include:

*https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/videos/20250214211054467/
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIQBkkpHYE0
*https://www.techradar.com/pro/sustainability-week-how-can-ai-help-deliver-on-the-circular-economy

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Common terms]]

Non-fungible tokens

2025-08-17T14:20:17Z

Elxroid: Added more context around how NFTs work and corrected use of images in article

{{Incomplete|Issue 1=Needs some sources added, some replaced with more reputable sources|Issue 2=Potential section - Genericide - See discuss tab for details}}

'''Non-fungible tokens''' (also referred to as 'NFTs' or simply 'tokens') are a type of media centered around purely digital ownership backed through [[cryptocurrency]] infrastructure. Ownership of NFTs are however, reliant on the maintenance of the systems these tokens are designed for, and often due to either the usage of pump and dump schemes or neglect of these systems, ownership of these tokens becomes effectively useless, or worse, [[Quidd|ownership of these NFTs are voided]]. What exactly is owned is also questionable as many users may associate the media itself as the NFT, however due to the large size of many media formats, NFTs are commonly just links to the media, not the media itself. <ref>{{Cite web |date=December 21, 2021 |title=Right Clicking All The NFTs |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_VsgT5gfMc |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=youtube.com}}</ref>

==How it works==
'''Non-fungible tokens''' are centered around a digital code that proves ownership over a form of media, commonly an image,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=McCormack |first=Jon |date=May 3, 2021 |title=The paradox of NFTs: What are people actually paying for? |url=https://lens.monash.edu/@technology/2021/05/03/1383163/the-paradox-of-nfts-what-are-people-actually-paying-for |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |website=Monash University}}</ref> and often [[cryptocurrency]] infrastructure, also referred to as the blockchain, handles the data behind who owns these codes.<ref name=":0" /> The most common cryptocurrency NFTs are associated with is [[Etherium]],<ref name=":0" /> however later NFT projects would crop up with its own cryptocurrencies to handle the tokens.{{Citation needed}}

==Why it is a problem==

===Fraud===
Often, many NFTs are generated with the exclusive intent to generate revenue,{{Citation needed|reason=check comment}} and as there are no regulations established within the NFT market, tokens can be minted fraudulently through various means.

====Plagiarism====
As there are a lack of measures to verify the authenticity of media ownership when minting NFTs, especially when these tokens are associated with its own custom cryptocurrency, there is a common pattern of these users claiming the content of others for the purposes of minting their own tokens.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=Oct 1, 2022 |title=Common NFT Scams: Duplicated or Plagiarized NFTs |url=https://notcommon.com/articles/common-nft-scams-duplicated-or-plagiarized-nfts |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |website=Not Common}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Bailey |first=Johnathan |date=Mar 16, 2021 |title=NFTs and Copyright |url=https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2021/03/16/nfts-and-copyright/ |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |work=Plagarism Today}}</ref> [[OpenSea]]'s '[[OpenSea lazy minting|lazy minting]]' provides an easy model for malicious actors to freely mint these tokens and profit off of the effort of artists with zero financial investment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=Feb 8, 2022 |title=Plagiarism, Theft, And Scams: The Daily Problem Of Artists In The NFT Era |url=https://www.nfthubble.com/plagiarism-theft-and-scams-the-daily-problem-of-artists-in-the-nft-era/ |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |website=NFT Hubble}}</ref> Alternatively, malicious actors could mint NFTs that are clones of the visual assets of existing tokens.<ref name=":1" />

This lack of authenticity in minting tokens means that users may unwittingly invest in offending NFTs on platforms such as [[OpenSea]] and lose the token they paid for due to a DMCA from the author.

====Pump-and-dump====
Frequently, NFT projects, much like the cryptocurrencies that back them,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gonzalez |first=Oscar |date=Aug 6, 2021 |title=Cryptocurrency pump-and-dump schemes: What you should know about these scams |url=https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/crypto/cryptocurrency-pump-and-dump-schemes-what-you-should-know-about-these-scams/ |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |work=CNET}}</ref> will face pump-and-dump schemes, wherein the creator of the token, or a group of malicious actors, will attempt to inflate the value of the NFTs they own, and essentially scam users via tactics such as [[Fear of missing out|FOMO]] to have said users invest in tokens from the promoted collection, thus inflating the value of the product, before the actor(s) attempt to quickly dump the tokens they own onto the market, causing the value to quickly tank,<ref>{{Cite web |date=Dec 8, 2023 |title=Pump and Dump Schemes in NFTs |url=https://immunebytes.com/blog/pump-and-dump-schemes-in-nfts/ |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |website=Immune Bytes}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Castor |first=Amy |title=Here's why NFTs are crypto's latest pump-and-dump scheme designed to make crypto insiders rich |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/nfts-cryptos-scheme-value-pump-and-dump-2021-6?op=1 |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |work=Business Insider}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Itimi |first=Stephanie |date=Jan 26, 2023 |title=Pump-and-Dump NFT Scams: The Do’s & Don’ts |url=https://medium.com/protegr/pump-and-dump-nft-scams-the-dos-don-ts-f87076cd2dd1 |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |work=Medium}}</ref> harming all unaware parties in the process.

===Ownership===
NFTs can be associated with content beyond just a link to a JPEG file, such as items and cosmetics for games. However, despite the tokens themselves persisting on exchanges if they are minted with non-custom cryptocurrencies, users can be rugpulled, either intentionally<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Biase |first=Nicholas |date=Mar 24, 2022 |title=Two Defendants Charged In Non-Fungible Token (“NFT”) Fraud And Money Laundering Scheme |url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/two-defendants-charged-non-fungible-token-nft-fraud-and-money-laundering-scheme-0 |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |website=United States Attorney Office - Southern District of New York}}</ref> or through neglect,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hitchcock |first=Logan |date=May 2, 2025 |title='The Walking Dead' Ethereum NFT Game Is About to Be Killed Off |url=https://decrypt.co/317687/the-walking-dead-ethereum-nft-game-is-about-to-be-killed-off |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |work=Decrypt.co}}</ref> and have the products they paid for as NFTs be rendered effectively useless. Particularly in the NFT gaming space, this introduces concerns with [[right to own]], as companies such as [[Electronic Arts]] and [[Ubisoft]] attempt to produce NFT games, with some that end with excessively short lifespans<ref>{{Cite news |last=Klotz |first=Johnathan |date=Nov 5, 2024 |title=Ubisoft's New Pay-To-Win Game is So Broken No One Can Play It |url=https://hardcoregamer.com/ubisofts-new-pay-to-win-game-is-so-broken-no-one-can-play-it/ |access-date=Jun 13, 2025 |work=Hardcore Gamer}}</ref> and inflame the problems caused by [[predatory microtransactions]].

==Examples==
{{Incomplete section}}
Some predatory examples of NFTs include:

*Frosties - A NFT game project which rug-pulled investors, and incurred $1.3M in fines from the DOJ.<ref name=":2" /> 

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Common terms]]

Bitly QRCodeGenerator.com QR code lockout

2025-08-17T14:10:57Z

Elxroid:

{{Stub}}
{{IncidentCargo
|Company=Bitly
|StartDate=2025-07-30
|Status=Active
|ProductLine=qr-code-generator.com
|Product=qr-code-generator.com
|ArticleType=Product
|Type=Terms of Service
|Description=Bitly’s QR-Code-Generator.com markets “free” QR codes that later break unless users pay, causing losses for printed materials.}}
[[Bitly]] is a platform that manages links and shortens URLs. Users have complained that QR codes created with Bitly were unexpectedly deactivated once the user's free trial has expired, these codes can only be reactivated with a subscription to a paid plan.

==Background==
{{Ph-I-B}}
Bitly owns and operates [https://QR-Code-Generator.com QR-Code-Generator.com], a platform marketed as offering “free” QR code creation. Many users have reported that while the service initially generates functioning QR codes at no cost, those codes are later deactivated unless the user subscribes to a paid plan, this is not made clear to users when creating the QR code.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 Jun 2024 |title=How can I reactivate my QR Codes? |url=https://support.qr-code-generator.com/hc/en-us/articles/7665090677005-How-can-I-reactivate-my-QR-Codes#:~:text=Your%20QR%20Codes%20may%20be,more%20of%20your%20QR%20Codes |access-date=15 Aug 2025 |website=QR Code Generator Support}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=11 Jun 2025 |title=I received a message saying that my QR Codes will be deactivated. What does that mean? |url=https://support.qr-code-generator.com/hc/en-us/articles/7665013224205-I-received-a-message-saying-that-my-QR-Codes-will-be-deactivated-What-does-that-mean#:~:text=Any%20Dynamic%20QR%20Codes%20you,QR%20codes%20or%20vice%20versa. |access-date=15 Aug 2025 |website=QR Code Generator Support}}</ref> This can result in substantial financial and reputational losses for individuals and businesses who have already printed the codes on packaging, signage, or promotional materials.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=u/Administrative_Bit10 |date=27 Jul 2023 |title=If ever need a QR code for your design, stay away from (qr-code-generator.com ) |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/graphic_design/comments/15asa5h/if_ever_need_a_qr_code_for_your_design_stay_away/ |access-date=15 Aug 2025 |website=Reddit}}</ref>

A widely discussed Reddit post from 2021 titled "Don't order a QR code from qrcodegenerator.com..." has over 230 comments detailing similar consumer complaints.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=u/whoisfryingbaloney |date=23 Aug 2021 |title=Don't order a QR Code from QR-code-generator.com. They say NOTHING about a paid monthly subscription of 15$/ mo when you sign up but wait 2 weeks after you've gotten your code (and had it printed on material) before they disable your QR code and try to make you pay once your backed into a corner. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/assholedesign/comments/pa96df/dont_order_a_qr_code_from_qrcodegeneratorcom_they/ |url-status=live |access-date=15 Aug 2025 |website=Reddit}}</ref> Despite being over four years old, users continue to post on this article, indicating the practice has persisted for years.

==Incident==
{{Ph-I-I}}
Multiple new user reports emerged describing the same pattern of QR codes becoming inactive after creation unless a subscription fee was paid. Many users claim they were unaware of any time limit or requirement for ongoing payment at the time of code creation. These codes would later cease to function, leading to wasted production costs and damaged customer trust.

==Bitly's response==
{{Ph-I-ComR}}
As of this writing, Bitly has not issued a public statement addressing the continued consumer concerns about QR code deactivation. The official Terms of Service mention subscription requirements, but users argue these conditions are not clearly disclosed during code creation, especially when marketed as “free.”

==Lawsuit==
{{Ph-I-L}}
No known lawsuits have been filed as of now. However, given the multi-year pattern of complaints, the issue may attract regulatory or class-action scrutiny if not addressed.

==Consumer response==
{{Ph-I-ConR}}
Users have expressed frustration across social media platforms, Reddit, and review sites, warning others about the practice.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> Some suggest that public posts on LinkedIn and other platforms tagging the company could pressure Bitly to change its approach. The consensus among dissatisfied customers is that the business model is deceptive and undermines trust, and that repairing such a damaged reputation is far more difficult than preserving it in the first place.

==References==
{{reflist}}

Talk:Bungie

2025-08-17T13:38:01Z

Elxroid: /* add a section for their hostility towards Linux? */ Reply

UK Online Safety Act

2025-08-17T13:26:29Z

Elxroid: /* Background */ added William Perrin's ties to both Ofcom and Carnegie UK and the lack of a conflict of interest investigation. - should this be its own section?

{{StubNotice}}
{{IncidentCargo
|StartDate=2023-10-26
|Status=Active
|Type=Digital restrictions
|Description=On 26 October 2023, the UK Online Safety Act passed and became law. This act restricts the freedom of UK users of the internet and increases censorship.
|ArticleType=Legislation}}

United Kingdom's [[wikipedia:Online Safety Act 2023|Online Safety Act 2023]] is a set of laws that claims to protect children and adults online.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=April 24, 2025 |title=Online Safety Act: explainer |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-safety-act-explainer/online-safety-act-explainer |website=Gov.uk}}</ref> The act applies to search services and services that allow users to post content online or to interact with each other.

The act requires all affected websites to implement their own solution for identity verification to prove one's age. There is no official government-sanctioned identity verification platform. Each service provider must implement their own solution or find a third party solution to use to remain compliant.

While the press release says "the measures platforms have to put in place must confirm your age without collecting or storing personal data, unless absolutely necessary,"<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |last=Kyle |first=Peter |date=2025-08-01 |title=Keeping children safe online: changes to the Online Safety Act explained |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/keeping-children-safe-online-changes-to-the-online-safety-act-explained |access-date=2025-08-16 |work=Gov.UK}}</ref> the legislation requires that companies track usage by specific people and provide data and/or remote access to Ofcom on demand ([https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/50#section-100 Section 100]) <ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |date=2025-07-25 |title=Online Safety Act 2023 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/50 |journal=UK Public General Acts |volume=2023 |issue=50}}</ref>
Enforcement of this act is done by the UK's Office of Communications ([[OFCOM]]). The penalty for breaking these rules is the greater of £18 million and 10% of the person’s qualifying worldwide revenue ([https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/50#schedule-13-paragraph-4 Schedule 13.4]).<ref name=":1" />

==Background==
The Online Safety Act is a "Bill to make provision for and in connection with the regulation by [[OFCOM]] of certain internet services; for and in connection with communications offences; and for connected purposes."<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=2024-08-19 |title=Online Safety Act 2023 |url=https://bills.parliament.uk/bills/3137 |access-date=2025-08-17 |website=UK Parliament: Parliamentary Bills}}</ref>

The Online Safety Act received royal assent on 26 October 2023, following five years of work by [[Carnegie UK]], working in concert with over 50 partners. In 2018, Carnegie UK published a series of blogs by [[William Perrin]] and [[Professor Lorna Woods]], outlining the proposal for social media regulation. The UK Government published its [https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/online-harms-white-paper White Paper] on 8 April 2019, tackling online harm, with a duty of care approach at its core. Carnegie UK ended their work on the Online Safety Act in October 2023.<ref name="online-safety-and-carnegie-uk">{{Cite web |last=Davidson |first=Sarah |date=26 October 2023 |title=Online safety and Carnegie UK |url=https://carnegieuk.org/blog/online-safety-and-carnegie-uk/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250701203854/https://carnegieuk.org/blog/online-safety-and-carnegie-uk/ |archive-date=2025-07-01 |access-date=2025-08-17 |website=Carnegie UK}}</ref>

The bill was sponsored by [[Michelle Donelan]], the (now former) Conservative MP for Chippenham and [[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay]], a current member of the House of Lords. Both on behalf of the [[UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport]]. <ref name=":4" />

The Online Safety Act is one act in two different stages. The original that reached royal assent on 26 October 2023 under [[Rishi Sunak]]'s Conservative government, and the amended version in 2025, under [[Kier Starmer]]'s Labour government. In February 2025, amendments related to making corporations more accountable for the content on their websites, as well as accountability for people accessing inappropriate content were brought to and voted on in parliament. The bill was changed again in May 2025 to include biometric face scans and government ID requirements, which was was not voted on in parliament.

[[OFCOM]], the UK's Office of Communications, is the regulator for the Online Safety Act. {{Ph-I-B}}

[[William Perrin]] has also assisted in creation of [[OFCOM]] <ref>{{Cite web |title=William Perrin - International Institute of Communications |url=https://www.iicom.org/profile/william-perrin/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250817131102/https://www.iicom.org/profile/william-perrin/ |archive-date=2025-08-17 |access-date=2025-08-17 |website=iicom.org}}</ref>. Due to the Ofcom having to handle the Online Safey Act and [[William Perrin]]'s ties to both Carnegie UK and Ofcom, this would be subject to a conflict of interest investigation however due to Carnegie UK stopping their work with the Online Safey Act <ref name="online-safety-and-carnegie-uk" />, such investigations never took place.

==The impact==
Since the UK Online Safety Act applies to search services and services that allow users to post content online or to interact with each other, <ref name=":2" /> it has a broad impact across the entire internet for those accessing websites from within the UK. All online services that [[OFCOM]] deems to be within the scope of the Online Safety Act must incorporate an identity verification process to determine each user's age.<ref name=":3" /> This has forced many websites to geo-block the UK because they are too small to justify or afford implementing their own the identity verification process or partnering with a third provider. A list of affected websites is available on [https://OnlineSafetyAct.co.uk OnlineSafetyAct.co.uk]. {{Ph-I-I}}

===YouTube===
{{Main|Youtubes Requirement for Government ID}}
On July 30, 2025, [[YouTube]] responded by announcing its verification system, requesting users for either a government-issued ID, a photo, or credit card, in order to show that users are 18 and older. Age will be estimated through various information, including videos watched, and would lock users flagged below 18 unless they send one of aforementioned proofs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ingram |first=Michael |date=30 Jul 2025 |title=YouTube is Rolling Out A New Controversial Feature |url=https://gamerant.com/youtube-new-age-verification-feature-id-recognition/ |url-status=live |access-date=14 Aug 2025 |website=GameRant}}</ref>

===Wikipedia===
The [[Wikimedia Foundation]] (WMF) sued the United Kingdom to prevent them from forcing age checks on their websites. The WMF made a statement that being forced to comply with this act would compromise the privacy of its editors and the neutrality of the encyclopedia. On August 11, 2025, the London High Court denied the WMF's reasoning, but didn't necessarily force age checks for the website.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Castro |first=Chiara |date=August 12, 2025 |title=Case dismissed – Wikipedia loses UK Online Safety Act legal challenge, but it may still be safe from age checks |url=https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/case-dismissed-wikipedia-loses-uk-online-safety-act-legal-challenge-but-it-may-still-be-safe-from-age-checks}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=11 August 2025 |title=Wikimedia Foundation Challenges UK Online Safety Act Regulations |url=https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2025/08/11/wikimedia-foundation-challenges-uk-online-safety-act-regulations/}}</ref>

==Consumer response==
{{Ph-I-ConR}}
United Kingdom saw an increased VPN usage by 1400 percent.<ref name="UK_VPN">{{Cite web |last=Speed |first=Richard |date=July 28, 2025 |title=UK VPN demand soars after debut of Online Safety Act |url=https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/28/uk_vpn_demand_soars/ |access-date=August 15, 2025 |website=The Register}}</ref> As of August 16, 2025, there has been at least 500 thousand signatures petitioning to repeal the act.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Baynham |first=Alex |date=2025-04-22 |title=Repeal the Online Safety Act |url=https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/722903 |website=Petitions: UK Government and Parliament}}</ref>

===OnlineSafetyAct.co.uk===
[https://onlinesafetyact.co.uk/in_memoriam/ OnlineSafetyAct.co.uk] is operated by Neil Brown<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Neil |title=OnlineSafetyAct.co.uk |url=https://onlinesafetyact.co.uk/contact/ |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=OnlineSafetyAct.co.uk}}</ref>, a UK tech lawyer ([https://decoded.legal decoded.legal]).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Neil |title=Neil Brown (@neil@mastodon.neilzone.co.uk) |url=https://mastodon.neilzone.co.uk/@neil |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=mastodon.neilzone.co.uk}}</ref> It lists all of the websites affected by the Online Safety Act, with the help of user submissions.

==Government response==
Ofcom discouraged the promotion of VPNs.<ref name="UK_VPN" />

UK Parliament considers all petitions that get more than 100,000 signatures for debate. On 28 July 2025, when the petition to repeal the act had about 400,000 signatures, the government responded with this message: "The Government has no plans to repeal the Online Safety Act, and is working closely with Ofcom to implement the Act as quickly and effectively as possible to enable UK users to benefit from its protections.", only a few days after coming into force.<ref name=":0" /> This was only after three days (25 July 2025) the "highly effective age assurance" requirement came into force.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Department for Science, Innovation and Technology |date=2025-07-24 |title=Collection: Online Safety Act |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/online-safety-act |website=Gov.UK}}</ref>

The technology minister [[Peter Kyle]] said on Good Morning Britain, "if you want to overturn the Online Safety Act you are on the side of predators. Not those who want to keep children safe."<ref>{{Cite news |date=2025-07-29 |title=Peter Kyle Says 'Nigel Farage Is on the Side of Predators' |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-MaeOLISlA |access-date=2025-08-16 |work=Good Morning Britain, Youtube}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Legislation in Europe]]

Mojang

2025-08-17T12:34:39Z

Elxroid: /* Gambling */ added note about gambling self exclusion

{{Incomplete}}
{{CompanyCargo
|Founded=2009
|Industry=Video game
|Logo=Mojang.png
|ParentCompany=Microsoft
|Type=Private
|Website=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us
|Description=Mojang is a video game company most known for creating Minecraft.
}}Mojang is a game development studio owned by [[Microsoft]]. Mojang is widely known for the development of Minecraft and its spinoffs. The studio was founded by Markus Persson in 2009 and was purchased by Microsoft in late 2014.

==Consumer-impact summary==
Mojang's most popular product, Minecraft, can be accessed after an initial up-front purchase, which gives users access to the Java & Bedrock editions of the game. Bedrock Edition offers in-game purchases through the form of a premium currency system. Purchases are not inherently pay to win within the official game but, some multiplayer experiences made by non-Mojang developers, commonly called as community servers, do have pay to win elements.

==Incidents==
===Unnotified T&C changes===

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_UF_4gZclI Kian Brose is bringing a class action lawsuit against Mojang] as they have failed to comply with European Consumer protection laws by changing their terms and conditions without notifying their customers of the change several times. They claim "It’s up to you to occasionally check back here to see if these guidelines have changed" <ref name="minecraftUG">{{Cite web |title=Minecraft Usage Guidelines |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/usage-guidelines |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=Minecraft}}</ref>

[https://www.gofundme.com/f/hold-mojang-accountable-for-their-unlawful-behaviour GoFundMe Campaign]

There are two forms available to fill out to join the class action lawsuit and submit evidence, One [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe6eKtgsS5HbTHjADrWHACUCNt5aQmbgc738xi3aTwsARUl5w/viewform Using Google Docs], An American company with questionable protections, the other using [https://app.formbricks.com/s/cmdw6100889yczv017dxhtprc Formbricks], A UK based company, with slightly less questionable protections.

Retroactive Enforcement of EULA incidents (2014-present):

*[[Minecraft account migration|Minecraft account migration incident]] (October 2020-December 2023)

*[[Shutting down of community-run Minecraft servers by Mojang]]

===Gambling===
Under the Minecraft Usage Guidelines it says "Do not do anything that would harm or damage our name, brand, or assets (for example: gambling, pornography, violence, terrorism, or other unsafe/mature content)"<ref name="minecraftUG">{{Cite web |title=Minecraft Usage Guidelines |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/usage-guidelines |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=Minecraft}}</ref>. According to these guidelines that Mojang created all servers that include gambling are against Usage Guidelines, however Mojang only takes action if the gambling looks like casinos and roulette tables, not if they are loot boxes even though loot boxes are a form of gambling<ref>{{Cite news |last=Greer |first=Nancy |last2=Boyle |first2=Cailem Murray |last3=Jenkinson |first3=Rebecca |title=Harms associated with loot boxes and simulated gambling in video games |url=https://aifs.gov.au/research_programs/australian-gambling-research-centre/loot-boxes-simulated-gambling-video-games-harms |url-status=live |work=Australian Institute of Family Studies |language=English}}</ref>. It is also Important to note that these servers can be accessed by people with gambling issues as there is no compliance with existing gambling self-exclusion practices.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Servers<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 Sep 2025 |title=Exposing Minecraft's ILLEGAL Server Gambling Operations... |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgrKo1mpeGo |url-status=live |access-date=17 Sep 2024 |website=youtube.com}}</ref>
!Server Name
!Owned by
!Problem
|-
|CosmicPVP
|PrestonPlayz
Mr. Waffles
|Rigging Rates in lootboxes
|-
|PurplePrisons
|Saito
|Allows for buying unbansAlso Against Mojang TOS
|}

===Forced migration of accounts to Microsoft===

After Microsoft acquired Mojang on 15th of September 2015 Mojang started the process of migrating Minecraft accounts to Microsoft, This process would force users to link their Minecraft account to a Microsoft account to continue to have access to their purchase. Read More on the main article: [[Minecraft account migration]]

==Products==
*[[Minecraft]] (2011): Minecraft is a sandbox game
*[[Caller's Bane]] (2014): Strategy-based digital collectible card game
*[[Crown and Council]] (2016): A turn-based strategy game
*[[Minecraft Dungeons]] (2022): A dungeon crawler video game
*[[Minecraft Legends]] (2023): Real-time action-strategy game

==See also==
{{Ph-C-SA}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Mojang

2025-08-17T12:30:34Z

Elxroid: Steamlined Forced migration of accounts to Microsoft & linked to main article

{{Incomplete}}
{{CompanyCargo
|Founded=2009
|Industry=Video game
|Logo=Mojang.png
|ParentCompany=Microsoft
|Type=Private
|Website=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us
|Description=Mojang is a video game company most known for creating Minecraft.
}}Mojang is a game development studio owned by [[Microsoft]]. Mojang is widely known for the development of Minecraft and its spinoffs. The studio was founded by Markus Persson in 2009 and was purchased by Microsoft in late 2014.

==Consumer-impact summary==
Mojang's most popular product, Minecraft, can be accessed after an initial up-front purchase, which gives users access to the Java & Bedrock editions of the game. Bedrock Edition offers in-game purchases through the form of a premium currency system. Purchases are not inherently pay to win within the official game but, some multiplayer experiences made by non-Mojang developers, commonly called as community servers, do have pay to win elements.

==Incidents==
===Unnotified T&C changes===

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_UF_4gZclI Kian Brose is bringing a class action lawsuit against Mojang] as they have failed to comply with European Consumer protection laws by changing their terms and conditions without notifying their customers of the change several times. They claim "It’s up to you to occasionally check back here to see if these guidelines have changed" <ref name="minecraftUG">{{Cite web |title=Minecraft Usage Guidelines |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/usage-guidelines |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=Minecraft}}</ref>

[https://www.gofundme.com/f/hold-mojang-accountable-for-their-unlawful-behaviour GoFundMe Campaign]

There are two forms available to fill out to join the class action lawsuit and submit evidence, One [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe6eKtgsS5HbTHjADrWHACUCNt5aQmbgc738xi3aTwsARUl5w/viewform Using Google Docs], An American company with questionable protections, the other using [https://app.formbricks.com/s/cmdw6100889yczv017dxhtprc Formbricks], A UK based company, with slightly less questionable protections.

Retroactive Enforcement of EULA incidents (2014-present):

*[[Minecraft account migration|Minecraft account migration incident]] (October 2020-December 2023)

*[[Shutting down of community-run Minecraft servers by Mojang]]

===Gambling===
Under the Minecraft Usage Guidelines it says "Do not do anything that would harm or damage our name, brand, or assets (for example: gambling, pornography, violence, terrorism, or other unsafe/mature content)"<ref name="minecraftUG">{{Cite web |title=Minecraft Usage Guidelines |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/usage-guidelines |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=Minecraft}}</ref>. According to these guidelines that Mojang created all servers that include gambling are against Usage Guidelines, however Mojang only takes action if the gambling looks like casinos and roulette tables, not if they are loot boxes even though loot boxes are a form of gambling<ref>{{Cite news |last=Greer |first=Nancy |last2=Boyle |first2=Cailem Murray |last3=Jenkinson |first3=Rebecca |title=Harms associated with loot boxes and simulated gambling in video games |url=https://aifs.gov.au/research_programs/australian-gambling-research-centre/loot-boxes-simulated-gambling-video-games-harms |url-status=live |work=Australian Institute of Family Studies |language=English}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+Servers<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 Sep 2025 |title=Exposing Minecraft's ILLEGAL Server Gambling Operations... |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgrKo1mpeGo |url-status=live |access-date=17 Sep 2024 |website=youtube.com}}</ref>
!Server Name
!Owned by
!Problem
|-
|CosmicPVP
|PrestonPlayz
Mr. Waffles
|Rigging Rates in lootboxes
|-
|PurplePrisons
|Saito
|Allows for buying unbansAlso Against Mojang TOS
|}

===Forced migration of accounts to Microsoft===

After Microsoft acquired Mojang on 15th of September 2015 Mojang started the process of migrating Minecraft accounts to Microsoft, This process would force users to link their Minecraft account to a Microsoft account to continue to have access to their purchase. Read More on the main article: [[Minecraft account migration]]

==Products==
*[[Minecraft]] (2011): Minecraft is a sandbox game
*[[Caller's Bane]] (2014): Strategy-based digital collectible card game
*[[Crown and Council]] (2016): A turn-based strategy game
*[[Minecraft Dungeons]] (2022): A dungeon crawler video game
*[[Minecraft Legends]] (2023): Real-time action-strategy game

==See also==
{{Ph-C-SA}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Talk:Bungie

2025-08-17T12:11:36Z

Elxroid: /* add a section for their hostility towards Linux? */

User:Elxroid

2025-08-17T12:01:03Z

Elxroid: created

How do you do fellow Clippies!

I'm Elxroid, a software dev that cares about his rights, hence why im here. I'm not great at editing wiki articles but I'll do my best and keep to the best practices as well as I can.

I mainly edit stuff that I feel that I can improve but now I'm just getting sick of all the BS corporations can get away with, so now I'm going out of my way to edit an maintain.

ALL HAIL CLIPPY!

Mojang

2025-08-17T11:56:21Z

Elxroid: Undo revision 20375 by Elxroid (talk)

{{Incomplete}}
{{CompanyCargo
|Founded=2009
|Industry=Video game
|Logo=Mojang.png
|ParentCompany=Microsoft
|Type=Private
|Website=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us
|Description=Mojang is a video game company most known for creating Minecraft.
}}Mojang is a game development studio owned by [[Microsoft]]. Mojang is widely known for the development of Minecraft and its spinoffs. The studio was founded by Markus Persson in 2009 and was purchased by Microsoft in late 2014.

==Consumer-impact summary==
Mojang's most popular product, Minecraft, can be accessed after an initial up-front purchase, which gives users access to the Java & Bedrock editions of the game. Bedrock Edition offers in-game purchases through the form of a premium currency system. Purchases are not inherently pay to win within the official game but, some multiplayer experiences made by non-Mojang developers, commonly called as community servers, do have pay to win elements.

==Incidents==
{{Ph-C-Inc}}

This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{FULLPAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]].

===Unnotified T&C changes===

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_UF_4gZclI Kian Brose is bringing a class action lawsuit against Mojang] as they have failed to comply with European Consumer protection laws by changing their terms and conditions without notifying their customers of the change several times. They claim "It’s up to you to occasionally check back here to see if these guidelines have changed" <ref name="minecraftUG">{{Cite web |title=Minecraft Usage Guidelines |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/usage-guidelines |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=Minecraft}}</ref>

[https://www.gofundme.com/f/hold-mojang-accountable-for-their-unlawful-behaviour GoFundMe Campaign]

There are two forms available to fill out to join the class action lawsuit and submit evidence, One [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe6eKtgsS5HbTHjADrWHACUCNt5aQmbgc738xi3aTwsARUl5w/viewform Using Google Docs], An American company with questionable protections, the other using [https://app.formbricks.com/s/cmdw6100889yczv017dxhtprc Formbricks], A UK based company, with slightly less questionable protections.

Retroactive Enforcement of EULA incidents (2014-present):

*[[Minecraft account migration|Minecraft account migration incident]] (October 2020-December 2023)

*[[Shutting down of community-run Minecraft servers by Mojang]]

===Forced migration of accounts to Microsoft===

After Microsoft acquired Mojang on 15th of September 2015 Mojang started the process of migrating Minecraft accounts to Microsoft, This process would force users to either link their Microsoft Xbox account to their Minecraft account or, create a Microsoft Xbox account. Non-compliance with these requirements would mean that people who had previously purchased Minecraft would lose access to the purchase <ref name="minecraftUG"/>.

==Products==
*[[Minecraft]] (2011): Minecraft is a sandbox game
*[[Caller's Bane]] (2014): Strategy-based digital collectible card game
*[[Crown and Council]] (2016): A turn-based strategy game
*[[Minecraft Dungeons]] (2022): A dungeon crawler video game
*[[Minecraft Legends]] (2023): Real-time action-strategy game

==See also==
{{Ph-C-SA}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Mojang

2025-08-17T11:54:06Z

Elxroid: added Category:Video game companies

{{Incomplete}}
{{CompanyCargo
|Founded=2009
|Industry=Video game
|Logo=Mojang.png
|ParentCompany=Microsoft
|Type=Private
|Website=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us
|Description=Mojang is a video game company most known for creating Minecraft.
}}Mojang is a game development studio owned by [[Microsoft]]. Mojang is widely known for the development of Minecraft and its spinoffs. The studio was founded by Markus Persson in 2009 and was purchased by Microsoft in late 2014.

==Consumer-impact summary==
Mojang's most popular product, Minecraft, can be accessed after an initial up-front purchase, which gives users access to the Java & Bedrock editions of the game. Bedrock Edition offers in-game purchases through the form of a premium currency system. Purchases are not inherently pay to win within the official game but, some multiplayer experiences made by non-Mojang developers, commonly called as community servers, do have pay to win elements.

==Incidents==
{{Ph-C-Inc}}

This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{FULLPAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]].

===Unnotified T&C changes===

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_UF_4gZclI Kian Brose is bringing a class action lawsuit against Mojang] as they have failed to comply with European Consumer protection laws by changing their terms and conditions without notifying their customers of the change several times. They claim "It’s up to you to occasionally check back here to see if these guidelines have changed" <ref name="minecraftUG">{{Cite web |title=Minecraft Usage Guidelines |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/usage-guidelines |access-date=August 17, 2025 |website=Minecraft}}</ref>

[https://www.gofundme.com/f/hold-mojang-accountable-for-their-unlawful-behaviour GoFundMe Campaign]

There are two forms available to fill out to join the class action lawsuit and submit evidence, One [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe6eKtgsS5HbTHjADrWHACUCNt5aQmbgc738xi3aTwsARUl5w/viewform Using Google Docs], An American company with questionable protections, the other using [https://app.formbricks.com/s/cmdw6100889yczv017dxhtprc Formbricks], A UK based company, with slightly less questionable protections.

Retroactive Enforcement of EULA incidents (2014-present):

*[[Minecraft account migration|Minecraft account migration incident]] (October 2020-December 2023)

*[[Shutting down of community-run Minecraft servers by Mojang]]

===Forced migration of accounts to Microsoft===

After Microsoft acquired Mojang on 15th of September 2015 Mojang started the process of migrating Minecraft accounts to Microsoft, This process would force users to either link their Microsoft Xbox account to their Minecraft account or, create a Microsoft Xbox account. Non-compliance with these requirements would mean that people who had previously purchased Minecraft would lose access to the purchase <ref name="minecraftUG"/>.

==Products==
*[[Minecraft]] (2011): Minecraft is a sandbox game
*[[Caller's Bane]] (2014): Strategy-based digital collectible card game
*[[Crown and Council]] (2016): A turn-based strategy game
*[[Minecraft Dungeons]] (2022): A dungeon crawler video game
*[[Minecraft Legends]] (2023): Real-time action-strategy game

==See also==
{{Ph-C-SA}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Video game companies]]

Bungie

2025-08-17T11:46:18Z

Elxroid: /* Sunsetting paid content */ added referances

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Bungie
| Type = Subsidiary
| Founded = 1990
| Industry = Entertainment Software
| Official Website = https://Bungie.com
| Logo = Bungie Logo - Official.png
}}Founded in 1990 by ''[[wikipedia:Alex_Seropian|Alex Seropian]]'', '''[[wikipedia:Bungie|''Bungie'']]''' is a game development studio that has been known to develop games for their popular franchises, such as ''[[wikipedia:Marathon_(video_game)|Marathon]]'', ''[[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game)|Destiny]]'', and initially ''[[wikipedia:Halo_(franchise)|Halo]]''. Originally, the company exclusively developed for ''[[wikipedia:MacOS|MacOS]]'' platform, but after being acquired by ''[[Microsoft]]'', ''Bungie'' was seen developing instead for the ''[[Xbox]]'' platform (and 3rd parties such as ''[[wikipedia:Gearbox_Software|Gearbox Software]]'' handling ports to ''[[wikipedia:Microsoft_Windows|Windows]]''), until its departure shortly after [[wikipedia:Halo:_Reach|''Halo'' ''Reach'']]'s release. In January of 2022, the company was yet again bought out, this time by ''[[Sony]] Interactive Entertainment''.<ref>Dring, Christopher (January 31, 2022). "[https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-01-31-playstation-bungie-will-considerably-accelerate-our-journey-with-multiplatform-live-service-games PlayStation: Bungie deal is about multiplatform, live-service games]". ''Gamesindustry.biz''. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220131184555/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-01-31-playstation-bungie-will-considerably-accelerate-our-journey-with-multiplatform-live-service-games Archived] from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2025</ref>

==Consumer-impact summary==

*User Freedom: Historically would revoke content consumers paid for.<ref name=":12">{{Cite news |last=Savage |first=Phil |date=Aug 23, 2020 |title=Here's everything being removed from Destiny 2 at the end of this season—it's a lot |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-everything-being-removed-from-destiny-2-at-the-end-of-this-seasonits-a-lot/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=PC Gamer}}</ref>
*User Privacy: Unknown
*Business Model: Software sales, [[microtransactions]]
*Market Competition: ''[[Microsoft]] (Xbox), [[Nintendo]], [[Valve]]'', indie studios

==Controversial practices==
This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:Bungie|''Bungie'' category]].

===Sunsetting paid content===
Near the release of the Destiny 2 expansion "Beyond Light" (November 2020) ''Bungie'' announced the sun-setting of paid content. This meant that said content for the game was going to be removed and made inaccessible <ref>{{Cite news |last=Savage |first=Phil |date=Aug 23, 2020 |title=Here's everything being removed from Destiny 2 at the end of this season—it's a lot |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-everything-being-removed-from-destiny-2-at-the-end-of-this-seasonits-a-lot/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=PC Gamer}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Glagowski |first=Peter |date=Jun 9, 2020 |title=Bungie To Remove Four Planets And All But Three Raids From Destiny 2 |url=https://www.thegamer.com/destiny-2-content-removal/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=The Gamer}}</ref>. This included storylines, playable activities and locations that players were required to pay to access. This also affected equipable items to a different extent as they would no longer drop in the game limiting you to only being able to use weaker versions of that gear. Sunset content includes but is not limited to:
* The red war campaign (Base game story)
* The curse of osiris expansion (Paid DLC 1)
* The warmind expansion (Paid DLC 2)
* The forsaken expansion (Paid DLC 3)
* Seasonal content (Paid battle passes that came with story & gameplay content, was sunset on a yearly rotation where each year 4 battle passes would be released which could be paid for as a bundle or separately)

Since sunsetting was annouced, some content was un-sunset, this would commonly occur when paying for seasonal content but would sometimes also be available to players that didn't pay.<ref>{{Cite news |last=GB Times Gaming Team |date=Mar 21, 2025 |title=Why is Bungie Removing Content from Destiny 2? The Content Vault Controversy Explained |url=https://gbtimes.com/gaming/why-is-bungie-removing-content/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=GB Times}}</ref>

===Concerning legal agreements===
Inside the ''Bungie'' "''Limited Software License Agreement''" (LSLA)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bungie LSLA |url=https://www.bungie.net/7/en/Legal/sla |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=Bungie}}</ref> since at least August 17, 2021, there is [[Forced arbitration|binding arbitration]], which takes effect the moment any user has run any ''Bungie'' software since the introduction of this term.

Additionally, Bungie can, and has taken advantage of a stipulation<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=xXLjordSireXx |date=Jun 21, 2023 |title=Comment from xXLjordSireXx |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/destiny2/comments/14evilb/comment/joxpajc/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> within their forums which states:<blockquote>"By using the form, you are submitting content to Bungie. When you submit content to Bungie, you agree to the Bungie Services Terms of Use, which also means you're promising us that you have the right to upload that content, that we can freely use it without condition, and that you agree that your submission follows our Code of Conduct."</blockquote>A highlight from this agreement<blockquote>"...that we can freely use it without condition..."</blockquote>has been cited by consumers<ref name=":3" /> as a reason why a piece of user-generated content<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ikari |first=Shinji |title=The Veil of Darkness |url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Community/Detail?itemId=257325114 |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=Bungie Forums}}</ref> was used commercially within ''[[wikipedia:Destiny_2|Destiny 2]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kinduhgood |date=Jun 20, 2023 |title=Bungie stole someone's art for the new cutscene. His art was made over 2 years ago |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/destiny2/comments/14evilb/bungie_stole_someones_art_for_the_new_cutscene/ |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=[[Reddit]] - r/Destiny2}}</ref>

==Products==

===Software===

*''[[wikipedia:Marathon_(video_game)|Marathon]]'' series
*''[[wikipedia:Halo_(franchise)|Halo]]'' series (formerly)
*''[[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game)|Destiny]]'' series

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Bungie]]

Mojang

2025-08-17T11:35:13Z

Elxroid: added usage guidelines refenace, changed some copy & added Forced migration of accounts to Microsoft subsection

Mojang

2025-08-17T08:20:32Z

Elxroid: /* Consumer-impact summary */

Mojang

2025-08-17T08:19:34Z

Elxroid: Consumer-impact summary -> content changes to be more through and use more recognisable language.

Disney

2025-08-15T12:57:35Z

Elxroid: Disney+ (201x) -> Disney+ (2019)

{{StubNotice}}

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Disney
| Type = Public
| Founded = 1923
| Industry = Media
| Official Website = https://disney.com/
| Logo = Disney.png
}}
'''[[Wikipedia:Disney|The Walt Disney Company]]''', founded in 1923 by Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney, is one of the most recognizable entertainment companies globally. Known for its movies, theme parks, and television networks, Disney has become a dominant player in the entertainment industry. In 2019, Disney launched the [[Disney+]] streaming service, which makes most of their content library available to viewers as a monthly subscription.

==Consumer impact summary==
Disney on multiple accounts has violated the freedom and privacy of consumers by baking [[Forced Arbitration|forced arbitration]] into their [[end user license agreement]] (EULA), which users must agree to in order to use their products and services. Disney has continued to employ such tactics with little remorse for their actions.{{Placeholder box|Overview of concerns that arise from the company's conduct regarding (if applicable):
* User Freedom
* User Privacy
* Business Model
* Market Control}}

==Incidents== 
This is a list of all consumer protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:Disney|Disney]] category.

*[[Disney+ Ad Policy Change]] (2025): In January 2025, Disney+ updated its Subscriber Agreement to include provisions allowing advertisements in content across all subscription tiers, including those marketed as "no ads" or "ad free."

*[[Disney Wrongful Death Lawsuit|Forced arbitration of a wrongful death lawsuit]] (2023): In October 2023, Kanokporn Tangsuan, after dining at the Raglan Road Irish Pub in Disney Springs, died as a result of an allergic reaction.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 Sep 2024 |title=Woman Dies from Eating at Disney Amusement Park Pub Despite Amusement Park Wait Staff Assurances of “Allergen-Free” Food; Disney Attempts to Bar Wrongful Death Lawsuit Due to Disney+ Subscription Arbitration Agreement |url=https://www.foxandfarleylaw.com/woman-dies-from-eating-at-disney-amusement-park-pub-despite-amusement-park-wait-staff-assurances-of-allergen-free-food-disney-attempts-to-bar-wrongful-death-lawsuit-due-to-disney-s/ |url-status=live |access-date=18 Mar 2025 |website=Fox, Farley, Willis & Burnette}}</ref> When her husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, sued Walt Disney Parks & Resorts (WDPR) and Great Irish Pubs Florida, Inc, Disney attempted to have the case dismissed and sent to arbitration citing terms from a trial subscription to Disney+.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lewis |first=Cora |last2=Murphy |first2=Sean |date=16 Sep 2024 |title=Wrongful death suit against Disney serves as a warning to consumers when clicking ‘I agree’ |url=https://apnews.com/article/disney-allergy-death-lawsuit-nyu-doctor-florida-8a6256b58311a01226d167fa80d37aad |url-status=live |access-date=18 Mar 2025 |website=[[APNews]]}}</ref> The public outcry following this attempt prompted Disney to rescind their request for dismissal.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Masunaga |first=Samantha |date=20 Aug 2024 |title=Disney reverses course on wrongful-death lawsuit, agrees to let case proceed in court |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2024-08-20/disney-reverses-course-on-wrongful-death-lawsuit-agrees-let-case-proceed-court |url-status=live |access-date=18 Mar 2025 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> The case is still ongoing.
*Privacy violations at Disney Hotels: An article series from 2024 by privacy blogger Mike Kuketz traces violations of European privacy laws and illicit data collection:
**Part I ( [https://www.kuketz-blog.de/disneys-datenmacht-teil-i/ German original] |[https://www-kuketz--blog-de.translate.goog/disneys-datenmacht-teil-i/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp English via Google Translate] )
**Part II ( [https://www.kuketz-blog.de/disneys-datenmacht-teil-ii/ German Original] | [https://www-kuketz--blog-de.translate.goog/disneys-datenmacht-teil-ii/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp English via Google Translate] )
**Part III ( [https://www.kuketz-blog.de/disneys-datenmacht-die-antwort-der-franzoesischen-datenschutzbehoerde-teil-iii/ German Original] | [https://www-kuketz--blog-de.translate.goog/disneys-datenmacht-die-antwort-der-franzoesischen-datenschutzbehoerde-teil-iii/?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp English via Google Translate] )

==Anti-consumer practices==

===Disney Vault===

==Products==
{{Placeholder box|This is a list of the company's product lines '''with articles on this wiki'''.
* [[Example product line one]] (release date): Short summary of the product's incidents.
* [[Example product line two]] (release date):}}

*Disney+ (2019): Streaming service

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Disney]]

Bungie

2025-08-15T10:49:05Z

Elxroid: /* Controversial Practices */ sunset content subheadding creation

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Bungie
| Type = Subsidiary
| Founded = 1990
| Industry = Entertainment Software
| Official Website = https://Bungie.com
| Logo = Bungie Logo - Official.png
}}Founded in 1990 by ''[[wikipedia:Alex_Seropian|Alex Seropian]]'', '''[[wikipedia:Bungie|''Bungie'']]''' is a game development studio that has been known to develop games for their popular franchises, such as ''[[wikipedia:Marathon_(video_game)|Marathon]]'', ''[[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game)|Destiny]]'', and initially ''[[wikipedia:Halo_(franchise)|Halo]]''. Originally, the company exclusively developed for ''[[wikipedia:MacOS|MacOS]]'' platform, but after being acquired by ''[[Microsoft]]'', ''Bungie'' was seen developing instead for the ''[[Xbox]]'' platform (and 3rd parties such as ''[[wikipedia:Gearbox_Software|Gearbox Software]]'' handling ports to ''[[wikipedia:Microsoft_Windows|Windows]]''), until its departure shortly after [[wikipedia:Halo:_Reach|''Halo'' ''Reach'']]'s release. In January of 2022, the company was yet again bought out, this time by ''[[Sony]] Interactive Entertainment''.<ref>Dring, Christopher (January 31, 2022). "[https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-01-31-playstation-bungie-will-considerably-accelerate-our-journey-with-multiplatform-live-service-games PlayStation: Bungie deal is about multiplatform, live-service games]". ''Gamesindustry.biz''. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220131184555/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-01-31-playstation-bungie-will-considerably-accelerate-our-journey-with-multiplatform-live-service-games Archived] from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2025</ref>

==Consumer-impact summary==

*User Freedom: Historically would revoke content consumers paid for.<ref name=":12">{{Cite news |last=Savage |first=Phil |date=Aug 23, 2020 |title=Here's everything being removed from Destiny 2 at the end of this season—it's a lot |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/heres-everything-being-removed-from-destiny-2-at-the-end-of-this-seasonits-a-lot/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=PC Gamer}}</ref>
*User Privacy: Unknown
*Business Model: Software sales, [[microtransactions]]
*Market Competition: ''[[Microsoft]] (Xbox), [[Nintendo]], [[Valve]]'', indie studios

==Controversial Practices==
This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:Bungie|''Bungie'' category]].

===Sunsetting paid content===
Near the release of the Destiny 2 expansion "Beyond Light" (November 2020) ''Bungie'' announced the sun-setting of paid content. This meant that said content for the game was going to be removed and made inaccessible. This included storylines, playable activities and locations that players were required to pay to access. This also affected equipable items to a different extent as they would no longer drop in the game limiting you to only being able to use weaker versions of that gear. Sunset content includes but is not limited to:
* The red war campaign (Base game story)
* The curse of osiris expansion (Paid DLC 1)
* The warmind expansion (Paid DLC 2)
* The forsaken expansion (Paid DLC 3)
* Seasonal content (Paid battle passes that came with story & gameplay content, was sunset on a yearly rotation where each year 4 battle passes would be released which could be paid for as a bundle or separately)

Since sunsetting was annouced, some content was un-sunset, this would commonly occur when paying for seasonal content but would sometimes also be available to players that didn't pay.

===Concerning legal agreements===
Inside the ''Bungie'' "''Limited Software License Agreement''" (LSLA)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bungie LSLA |url=https://www.bungie.net/7/en/Legal/sla |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=Bungie}}</ref> since at least August 17, 2021, there is [[Forced arbitration|binding arbitration]], which takes effect the moment any user has run any ''Bungie'' software since the introduction of this term.

Additionally, Bungie can, and has taken advantage of a stipulation<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=xXLjordSireXx |date=Jun 21, 2023 |title=Comment from xXLjordSireXx |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/destiny2/comments/14evilb/comment/joxpajc/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref> within their forums which states:<blockquote>"By using the form, you are submitting content to Bungie. When you submit content to Bungie, you agree to the Bungie Services Terms of Use, which also means you're promising us that you have the right to upload that content, that we can freely use it without condition, and that you agree that your submission follows our Code of Conduct."</blockquote>A highlight from this agreement<blockquote>"...that we can freely use it without condition..."</blockquote>has been cited by consumers<ref name=":3" /> as a reason why a piece of user-generated content<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ikari |first=Shinji |title=The Veil of Darkness |url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Community/Detail?itemId=257325114 |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=Bungie Forums}}</ref> was used commercially within ''[[wikipedia:Destiny_2|Destiny 2]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kinduhgood |date=Jun 20, 2023 |title=Bungie stole someone's art for the new cutscene. His art was made over 2 years ago |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/destiny2/comments/14evilb/bungie_stole_someones_art_for_the_new_cutscene/ |access-date=May 19, 2025 |website=[[Reddit]] - r/Destiny2}}</ref>

==Products==

===Software===

*''[[wikipedia:Marathon_(video_game)|Marathon]]'' series
*''[[wikipedia:Halo_(franchise)|Halo]]'' series (formerly)
*''[[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game)|Destiny]]'' series

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Bungie]]