Consumer Rights Wiki - User contributions [en]

Buy one, get one free

2025-08-24T08:54:04Z

MtPenguinMonster: Created page

A "'''[[wikipedia:Buy_one,_get_one_free|buy one, get one free]]'''" deal (abbreviated '''BOGO''') is a form of sales promotion wherein a second unit of a good is sold for free only if the first unit is bought at full price. This can be used as a deceptive means to encourage consumers to buy more goods than they otherwise would.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2018-12-20 |title=Why “Buy one, get one free” isn’t a great deal |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOK3bF3jhXU |website=Vox}}</ref>

==How it works==
In a BOGO deal, the consumer is able to buy a second unit of a good for free with the purchase of the first unit at full price. This practice is common for consumer goods such as food and clothing.

==Why it is a problem==

=== Overconsumption ===
BOGO deals can be deceptive because they can result in consumers buying more of a product than they need. For example, if there is a BOGO deal on perishable meat, the consumer is encouraged to buy twice as much meat. Since this is more than they originally intended, some of the meat may perish before it can be used, harming the consumer and contributing to food waste.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-04-06 |title=Buy-one-get-one-free offers 'should be scrapped to cut food waste' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/apr/06/buy-one-get-one-free-food-waste-supermarkets |access-date=2025-08-24 |website=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Piotrowski |first=Janis |date=2020-11-27 |title=Shop wisely: Better habits can prevent waste of precious resource |url=https://www.tallahassee.com/story/life/home-garden/2020/11/27/food-precious-resource-often-goes-waste/6406518002/ |access-date=2025-08-24 |website=Tallahassee Democrat}}</ref>

=== Interaction with discounts ===
In some cases, a BOGO deal may apply to an item which has a discount. Herein, the BOGO deal results in the consumer spending more money.<ref name=":0" />

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Common terms]]

Xlear

2025-08-16T05:31:38Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Consumer Impact Summary */ A start for CIS

{{stub}}{{CompanyCargo
| Founded = 2000
| Industry = Nasal sprays
| Type = Private
| Website = https://xlear.com
}}
'''Xlear''' is a Utah-based nasal spray company which [[False advertising|falsely advertised]] its nasal spray as a COVID-19 preventative and treatment. In 2021, the FTC sued Xlear for this false claim.<ref name=":02">{{cite web |last=Felner |first=Lauren |date=2025-06-25 |title=A nasal spray company wants to make it harder for the FTS to police health claims |url=https://www.theverge.com/policy/692327/xlear-ftc-lawsuit-covid-health-claims-consumer-protection |website=The Verge}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{cite web |date=2021-10-28 |title=FTC Sues Utah-based Company for Falsely Claiming Its Nasal Sprays Can Prevent and Treat COVID-19 |url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2021/10/ftc-sues-utah-based-company-falsely-claiming-its-nasal-sprays-can-prevent-treat-covid-19 |website=Federal Trade Commission}}</ref>

==Background==
Xlear was founded in 2000, and creates xylitol-based sinus and oral care products.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://xlearproactive.com/about-us/|title=About Xlear|website=Xlear}}</ref>

==Consumer Impact Summary==

In 2021, Xlear was sued by the FTC for false advertising. In 2025, Xlear filed a lawsuit against the FTC which would make it harder for the FTC to punish unsubstantiated health claims, thereby harming consumers of medical products.

==Incidents==

===False COVID-19 medical claims (October 28, 2021)===
On the 28th of October, 2021, the US Department of Justice filed a complaint against Xlear, Inc. on the behalf of the FTC for falsely marketing its nasal spray as an effective COVID-19 preventative, seeking to impose financial penalties on the company and to bar them from continuing to make unsubstantiated medical claims about their products.<ref name=":02" /><ref name=":12" />

According to the complaint, since at least March 2020, Xlear marketed their nasal sprays as an effective preventative and treatment against COVID-19, claiming that their nasal sprays provide up to 4 hours of protection against COVID-19. The FTC alleged that Xlear lacked a factual or scientific base to support their claims.<ref>https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/cases/filed_complaint_xlear_v_jones_v.1.pdf</ref>

The Trump Justice Department, on the behalf of the FTC, asked for the case to be dismissed with prejudice on the 10th of March, 2025, but did not explain its reasoning for the dismissal.<ref name=":02" /><ref>https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/2123045xleardismissstipulation.pdf</ref>

On the 18th of June, 2025, Xlear filed a lawsuit against the FTC in an attempt to make it harder for the FTC to go after health claims.<ref name=":2">https://www.allaboutadvertisinglaw.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2025/06/COMPLAINT-against-Andrew-N-Ferguson.pdf</ref> The company's central argument is that the FTC Act prohibits only false or deceptive statements – not unsubstantiated ones.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=27 Jun 2025 |title=Xlear v. FTC: Utah Company Files Challenge to Long-standing FTC Substantiation Requirements Post-Loper |url=https://www.allaboutadvertisinglaw.com/2025/06/xlear-v-ftc-utah-company-files-challenge-to-long-standing-ftc-substantiation-requirements-post-loper.html |website=Venable}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:False Advertising]]

Xlear

2025-08-16T05:28:32Z

MtPenguinMonster: Started background section

{{stub}}{{CompanyCargo
| Founded = 2000
| Industry = Nasal sprays
| Type = Private
| Website = https://xlear.com
}}
'''Xlear''' is a Utah-based nasal spray company which [[False advertising|falsely advertised]] its nasal spray as a COVID-19 preventative and treatment. In 2021, the FTC sued Xlear for this false claim.<ref name=":02">{{cite web |last=Felner |first=Lauren |date=2025-06-25 |title=A nasal spray company wants to make it harder for the FTS to police health claims |url=https://www.theverge.com/policy/692327/xlear-ftc-lawsuit-covid-health-claims-consumer-protection |website=The Verge}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{cite web |date=2021-10-28 |title=FTC Sues Utah-based Company for Falsely Claiming Its Nasal Sprays Can Prevent and Treat COVID-19 |url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2021/10/ftc-sues-utah-based-company-falsely-claiming-its-nasal-sprays-can-prevent-treat-covid-19 |website=Federal Trade Commission}}</ref>

==Background==
Xlear was founded in 2000, and creates xylitol-based sinus and oral care products.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://xlearproactive.com/about-us/|title=About Xlear|website=Xlear}}</ref>

==Consumer Impact Summary==
{{Ph-C-CIS}}

==Incidents==

===False COVID-19 medical claims (October 28, 2021)===
On the 28th of October, 2021, the US Department of Justice filed a complaint against Xlear, Inc. on the behalf of the FTC for falsely marketing its nasal spray as an effective COVID-19 preventative, seeking to impose financial penalties on the company and to bar them from continuing to make unsubstantiated medical claims about their products.<ref name=":02" /><ref name=":12" />

According to the complaint, since at least March 2020, Xlear marketed their nasal sprays as an effective preventative and treatment against COVID-19, claiming that their nasal sprays provide up to 4 hours of protection against COVID-19. The FTC alleged that Xlear lacked a factual or scientific base to support their claims.<ref>https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/cases/filed_complaint_xlear_v_jones_v.1.pdf</ref>

The Trump Justice Department, on the behalf of the FTC, asked for the case to be dismissed with prejudice on the 10th of March, 2025, but did not explain its reasoning for the dismissal.<ref name=":02" /><ref>https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/2123045xleardismissstipulation.pdf</ref>

On the 18th of June, 2025, Xlear filed a lawsuit against the FTC in an attempt to make it harder for the FTC to go after health claims.<ref name=":2">https://www.allaboutadvertisinglaw.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2025/06/COMPLAINT-against-Andrew-N-Ferguson.pdf</ref> The company's central argument is that the FTC Act prohibits only false or deceptive statements – not unsubstantiated ones.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=27 Jun 2025 |title=Xlear v. FTC: Utah Company Files Challenge to Long-standing FTC Substantiation Requirements Post-Loper |url=https://www.allaboutadvertisinglaw.com/2025/06/xlear-v-ftc-utah-company-files-challenge-to-long-standing-ftc-substantiation-requirements-post-loper.html |website=Venable}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:False Advertising]]

User:MtPenguinMonster

2025-08-14T12:33:52Z

MtPenguinMonster: Added links

I am Mt. Penguin Monster. I've decided to contribute to this wiki because I want corporations to be held accountable when they cause harm to consumers. Documenting this harm in the wiki is a good way of raising awareness of the harm, of highlighting its prevalence, and of making change more likely to happen.

== Links ==
* [[User talk:MtPenguinMonster|My talk page]]
* [[Special:Contributions/MtPenguinMonster|My contributions]]

Xlear

2025-08-14T12:20:44Z

MtPenguinMonster: Change infobox template

{{Stub}}
{{CompanyInfobox
|Company=Xlear
|Founded=2000
|Type=Private
|Industry=Nasal sprays
|Official Website=https://xlear.com/
}}

'''Xlear''' is a Utah-based nasal spray company which [[false advertising|falsely advertised]] its nasal spray as a COVID-19 preventative and treatment. In 2021, the FTC sued Xlear for this false claim.<ref>{{cite web|last=Felner|first=Lauren|url=https://www.theverge.com/policy/692327/xlear-ftc-lawsuit-covid-health-claims-consumer-protection|title=A nasal spray company wants to make it harder for the FTS to police health claims|website=The Verge|date=2025-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2021/10/ftc-sues-utah-based-company-falsely-claiming-its-nasal-sprays-can-prevent-treat-covid-19|title=FTC Sues Utah-based Company for Falsely Claiming Its Nasal Sprays Can Prevent and Treat COVID-19|website=Federal Trade Commission|date=2021-10-28}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:False Advertising]]

Xlear

2025-08-14T12:13:01Z

MtPenguinMonster: Added infobox

{{Stub}}
{{InfoboxCompany
|Company=Xlear
|Founded=2000
|Type=Private
|Industry=Nasal sprays
|Official Website=https://xlear.com/
}}

'''Xlear''' is a Utah-based nasal spray company which [[false advertising|falsely advertised]] its nasal spray as a COVID-19 preventative and treatment. In 2021, the FTC sued Xlear for this false claim.<ref>{{cite web|last=Felner|first=Lauren|url=https://www.theverge.com/policy/692327/xlear-ftc-lawsuit-covid-health-claims-consumer-protection|title=A nasal spray company wants to make it harder for the FTS to police health claims|website=The Verge|date=2025-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2021/10/ftc-sues-utah-based-company-falsely-claiming-its-nasal-sprays-can-prevent-treat-covid-19|title=FTC Sues Utah-based Company for Falsely Claiming Its Nasal Sprays Can Prevent and Treat COVID-19|website=Federal Trade Commission|date=2021-10-28}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:False Advertising]]

Games as a service

2025-08-14T12:07:41Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Issues */ Fixed citation

{{StubNotice}}

'''[[wikipedia:Games_as_a_service|Games as a service]]''' (also known as live-service games) is a business model designed to continuously monetize games after they are initially sold (or offered for free), typically through new updates, [[downloadable content]], and [[microtransaction]]s. A common practice in this model is allowing players to pre-purchase content with the promise that it will be released at a specified time, and will include all features advertised in the product's listing. Games as a service also typically has a premium currency, which players purchase with real-world currency to acquire in-game items.

==Issues==
While GaaS incentivizes developers to keep producing content for their game, the game often risks becoming completely unplayable once support is discontinued.<ref>{{cite web|author=Accursed Farms|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w70Xc9CStoE|title=The largest campaign ever to stop publishers destroying games|website=YouTube|access-date=2025-01-24}}</ref> There is very little legal recourse for the user to recoup the cost of purchasing the game or its in-game content. The [[End-user license agreement|End-User License Agreement (EULA)]] typically disclaims the publisher's obligation to refund or compensate users, as it clarifies that they are purchasing a license rather than actually owning the software.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kelleherbros.com/blog/2024/3/27/digital-ownership-2-the-eula-era|title=Precarious Digital Ownership: The EULA Era|website=kelleherbros.com|access-date=2025-01-28}}</ref>

Additionally in some scenarios, content offered and even sold on GaaS may also be discontinued or revoked from consumers while the service continues.<ref name=":1">{{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>

==Examples==

===Ubisoft===
{{Main|Ubisoft}}
XDefiant, developed by Ubisoft, is an example of a game as a service. On December 3rd, 2024, the game announced the shutdown of its servers on June 3rd, 2025.<ref name=":0">[https://archive.is/ueESQ "'XDEFIANT IS SUNSETTING' Tweet"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> 49 days before the shutdown announcement, executive producer of XDefiant, Mark Rubin<ref>[https://archive.is/nEche "Mark Rubin Profile"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> posted online that the game had no plans of shutting down after season 4, while the game was still in season 2, and they had recently discussed their plans internally for the second year of content.<ref>[https://archive.is/XmekP "Mark Rubin claims NO plans to shut down after season 4"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> The shutdown post announced that the last 30 days of purchases would be fully refunded.<ref name=":0" />

The shutdown of ''The Crew'' is one of the central issues of the [[Stop Killing Games]] campaign. Despite the game containing some code for an offline mode<ref>[https://steamcommunity.com/app/241560/discussions/0/3803901559414708777/ Offline Mode is in the game] steamcommunity.com - accessed 2025-02-06</ref> from the start, it was not made accessible to the user due to the game's [[Digital rights management|digital-rights-management]] (DRM),<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qKNY64-QSc The Crew Offline Mode - Setting The Record Straight] youtube.com - accessed 2025-01-28 </ref> leaving the game in a completely unplayable state.

===EA===
{{Main|Electronic Arts}}
In recent years, Electronic Arts (often shortened to '''EA''') has garnered a reputation for being a company involved in these sorts of practices, and has received criticism for over-reliance on micro-transactions and DLC.

===Bungie===
{{Main|Bungie}}
The [[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game_series)|Destiny]] franchise is Bungie's primary source of revenue, and its most recent title, Destiny 2, has had a significant amount of content offered in the game that has been forcibly vaulted by the company.<ref name=":1" /><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> Most notably, player-purchased content, including singleplayer content that shouldn't necessitate access to a server, has been removed from the game.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=The_Observer |date=Jun 18, 2021 |title=How could Bungie get away so easily with removing paid content from Destiny 2? |url=https://www.neogaf.com/threads/how-could-bungie-get-away-so-easily-with-removing-paid-content-from-destiny-2.1610927/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=NeoGAF}}</ref> In mid 2022, Bungie did promise to stop removing content from the game,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gach |first=Ethan |date=Aug 23, 2022 |title=Destiny 2 Promises No More Axing Old Parts Of Game, Something That Players Hated |url=https://kotaku.com/destiny-2-lightfall-vaulting-sunset-forsaken-expansion-1849446608 |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=Kotaku}}</ref> but not all legacy content has been reintroduced to the game.<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>

Bungie's previous GaaS title, Destiny, requires an always-online connection, and while the company has stated that they will maintain legacy support for both modern platforms,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bungie |title=Legacy Support for Destiny 1 Activities |url=https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049201951-Legacy-Support-for-Destiny-1-Activities |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Help}}</ref> and legacy console editions,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bungie |title=Destiny 1 on Legacy Consoles |url=https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049497531-Destiny-1-on-Legacy-Consoles |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Help}}</ref> it is plausible due to software degradation for the servers<ref>{{Cite news |last=MorphNeo |date=Jul 29, 2024 |title=Destiny 1 - Have they really SHUT IT DOWN? - Error: This version of Destiny is no longer available. |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfYzX58wMBs |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=YouTube}}</ref> though, that the title could eventually become unplayable for consumers, especially as error frequency grows more common over time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=javagat10 |date=Jan 29, 2023 |title=Destiny Server issue on Xbox 360. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/DestinyTheGame/comments/10o1t6l/destiny_server_issue_on_xbox_360/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=ICE BREAKER (Timelost) |date=Jul 19, 2025 |title=Is destiny1 servers shut down permanently? |url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/264186352?page=0 |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Forums}}</ref>

Bungie has also announced ''{{Wplink|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon_(upcoming_video_game)|Marathon}}'',<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bungie |date=May 24, 2023 |title=Bungie Announces Marathon; Nathan Fillion To Return to Destiny 2 for The Final Shape Expansion |url=https://press.bungie.com/Bungie-Announces-Marathon-Nathan-Fillion-To-Return-to-Destiny-2-for-Th |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=Bungie Press Room}}</ref> a reboot for their older franchise. This game has the plausibility to release as a live service title as well considering Bungie's recent history with their games.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[Category:Services]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]

Games as a service

2025-08-14T12:07:13Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Issues */ Citation formatting

{{StubNotice}}

'''[[wikipedia:Games_as_a_service|Games as a service]]''' (also known as live-service games) is a business model designed to continuously monetize games after they are initially sold (or offered for free), typically through new updates, [[downloadable content]], and [[microtransaction]]s. A common practice in this model is allowing players to pre-purchase content with the promise that it will be released at a specified time, and will include all features advertised in the product's listing. Games as a service also typically has a premium currency, which players purchase with real-world currency to acquire in-game items.

==Issues==
While GaaS incentivizes developers to keep producing content for their game, the game often risks becoming completely unplayable once support is discontinued.<ref>{{cite video|author=Accursed Farms|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w70Xc9CStoE|title=The largest campaign ever to stop publishers destroying games|website=YouTube|access-date=2025-01-24}}</ref> There is very little legal recourse for the user to recoup the cost of purchasing the game or its in-game content. The [[End-user license agreement|End-User License Agreement (EULA)]] typically disclaims the publisher's obligation to refund or compensate users, as it clarifies that they are purchasing a license rather than actually owning the software.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kelleherbros.com/blog/2024/3/27/digital-ownership-2-the-eula-era|title=Precarious Digital Ownership: The EULA Era|website=kelleherbros.com|access-date=2025-01-28}}</ref>

Additionally in some scenarios, content offered and even sold on GaaS may also be discontinued or revoked from consumers while the service continues.<ref name=":1">{{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>

==Examples==

===Ubisoft===
{{Main|Ubisoft}}
XDefiant, developed by Ubisoft, is an example of a game as a service. On December 3rd, 2024, the game announced the shutdown of its servers on June 3rd, 2025.<ref name=":0">[https://archive.is/ueESQ "'XDEFIANT IS SUNSETTING' Tweet"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> 49 days before the shutdown announcement, executive producer of XDefiant, Mark Rubin<ref>[https://archive.is/nEche "Mark Rubin Profile"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> posted online that the game had no plans of shutting down after season 4, while the game was still in season 2, and they had recently discussed their plans internally for the second year of content.<ref>[https://archive.is/XmekP "Mark Rubin claims NO plans to shut down after season 4"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> The shutdown post announced that the last 30 days of purchases would be fully refunded.<ref name=":0" />

The shutdown of ''The Crew'' is one of the central issues of the [[Stop Killing Games]] campaign. Despite the game containing some code for an offline mode<ref>[https://steamcommunity.com/app/241560/discussions/0/3803901559414708777/ Offline Mode is in the game] steamcommunity.com - accessed 2025-02-06</ref> from the start, it was not made accessible to the user due to the game's [[Digital rights management|digital-rights-management]] (DRM),<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qKNY64-QSc The Crew Offline Mode - Setting The Record Straight] youtube.com - accessed 2025-01-28 </ref> leaving the game in a completely unplayable state.

===EA===
{{Main|Electronic Arts}}
In recent years, Electronic Arts (often shortened to '''EA''') has garnered a reputation for being a company involved in these sorts of practices, and has received criticism for over-reliance on micro-transactions and DLC.

===Bungie===
{{Main|Bungie}}
The [[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game_series)|Destiny]] franchise is Bungie's primary source of revenue, and its most recent title, Destiny 2, has had a significant amount of content offered in the game that has been forcibly vaulted by the company.<ref name=":1" /><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> Most notably, player-purchased content, including singleplayer content that shouldn't necessitate access to a server, has been removed from the game.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=The_Observer |date=Jun 18, 2021 |title=How could Bungie get away so easily with removing paid content from Destiny 2? |url=https://www.neogaf.com/threads/how-could-bungie-get-away-so-easily-with-removing-paid-content-from-destiny-2.1610927/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=NeoGAF}}</ref> In mid 2022, Bungie did promise to stop removing content from the game,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gach |first=Ethan |date=Aug 23, 2022 |title=Destiny 2 Promises No More Axing Old Parts Of Game, Something That Players Hated |url=https://kotaku.com/destiny-2-lightfall-vaulting-sunset-forsaken-expansion-1849446608 |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=Kotaku}}</ref> but not all legacy content has been reintroduced to the game.<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>

Bungie's previous GaaS title, Destiny, requires an always-online connection, and while the company has stated that they will maintain legacy support for both modern platforms,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bungie |title=Legacy Support for Destiny 1 Activities |url=https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049201951-Legacy-Support-for-Destiny-1-Activities |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Help}}</ref> and legacy console editions,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bungie |title=Destiny 1 on Legacy Consoles |url=https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049497531-Destiny-1-on-Legacy-Consoles |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Help}}</ref> it is plausible due to software degradation for the servers<ref>{{Cite news |last=MorphNeo |date=Jul 29, 2024 |title=Destiny 1 - Have they really SHUT IT DOWN? - Error: This version of Destiny is no longer available. |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfYzX58wMBs |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=YouTube}}</ref> though, that the title could eventually become unplayable for consumers, especially as error frequency grows more common over time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=javagat10 |date=Jan 29, 2023 |title=Destiny Server issue on Xbox 360. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/DestinyTheGame/comments/10o1t6l/destiny_server_issue_on_xbox_360/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=ICE BREAKER (Timelost) |date=Jul 19, 2025 |title=Is destiny1 servers shut down permanently? |url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/264186352?page=0 |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Forums}}</ref>

Bungie has also announced ''{{Wplink|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon_(upcoming_video_game)|Marathon}}'',<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bungie |date=May 24, 2023 |title=Bungie Announces Marathon; Nathan Fillion To Return to Destiny 2 for The Final Shape Expansion |url=https://press.bungie.com/Bungie-Announces-Marathon-Nathan-Fillion-To-Return-to-Destiny-2-for-Th |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=Bungie Press Room}}</ref> a reboot for their older franchise. This game has the plausibility to release as a live service title as well considering Bungie's recent history with their games.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[Category:Services]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]

Games as a service

2025-08-14T12:04:43Z

MtPenguinMonster: Added links

{{StubNotice}}

'''[[wikipedia:Games_as_a_service|Games as a service]]''' (also known as live-service games) is a business model designed to continuously monetize games after they are initially sold (or offered for free), typically through new updates, [[downloadable content]], and [[microtransaction]]s. A common practice in this model is allowing players to pre-purchase content with the promise that it will be released at a specified time, and will include all features advertised in the product's listing. Games as a service also typically has a premium currency, which players purchase with real-world currency to acquire in-game items.

==Issues==
While GaaS incentivizes developers to keep producing content for their game, the game often risks becoming completely unplayable once support is discontinued.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w70Xc9CStoE "The largest campaign ever to stop publishers destroying games"] - youtube.com - accessed 2025-01-24</ref> There is very little legal recourse for the user to recoup the cost of purchasing the game or its in-game content. The [[End-user license agreement|End-User License Agreement (EULA)]] typically disclaims the publisher's obligation to refund or compensate users, as it clarifies that they are purchasing a license rather than actually owning the software.<ref>[https://www.kelleherbros.com/blog/2024/3/27/digital-ownership-2-the-eula-era Precarious Digital Ownership: The EULA Era] - kelleherbros.com - accessed 2025-01-28</ref>

Additionally in some scenarios, content offered and even sold on GaaS may also be discontinued or revoked from consumers while the service continues.<ref name=":1">{{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>

==Examples==

===Ubisoft===
{{Main|Ubisoft}}
XDefiant, developed by Ubisoft, is an example of a game as a service. On December 3rd, 2024, the game announced the shutdown of its servers on June 3rd, 2025.<ref name=":0">[https://archive.is/ueESQ "'XDEFIANT IS SUNSETTING' Tweet"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> 49 days before the shutdown announcement, executive producer of XDefiant, Mark Rubin<ref>[https://archive.is/nEche "Mark Rubin Profile"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> posted online that the game had no plans of shutting down after season 4, while the game was still in season 2, and they had recently discussed their plans internally for the second year of content.<ref>[https://archive.is/XmekP "Mark Rubin claims NO plans to shut down after season 4"] - archive.is - archived 2025-01-28</ref> The shutdown post announced that the last 30 days of purchases would be fully refunded.<ref name=":0" />

The shutdown of ''The Crew'' is one of the central issues of the [[Stop Killing Games]] campaign. Despite the game containing some code for an offline mode<ref>[https://steamcommunity.com/app/241560/discussions/0/3803901559414708777/ Offline Mode is in the game] steamcommunity.com - accessed 2025-02-06</ref> from the start, it was not made accessible to the user due to the game's [[Digital rights management|digital-rights-management]] (DRM),<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qKNY64-QSc The Crew Offline Mode - Setting The Record Straight] youtube.com - accessed 2025-01-28 </ref> leaving the game in a completely unplayable state.

===EA===
{{Main|Electronic Arts}}
In recent years, Electronic Arts (often shortened to '''EA''') has garnered a reputation for being a company involved in these sorts of practices, and has received criticism for over-reliance on micro-transactions and DLC.

===Bungie===
{{Main|Bungie}}
The [[wikipedia:Destiny_(video_game_series)|Destiny]] franchise is Bungie's primary source of revenue, and its most recent title, Destiny 2, has had a significant amount of content offered in the game that has been forcibly vaulted by the company.<ref name=":1" /><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> Most notably, player-purchased content, including singleplayer content that shouldn't necessitate access to a server, has been removed from the game.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=The_Observer |date=Jun 18, 2021 |title=How could Bungie get away so easily with removing paid content from Destiny 2? |url=https://www.neogaf.com/threads/how-could-bungie-get-away-so-easily-with-removing-paid-content-from-destiny-2.1610927/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=NeoGAF}}</ref> In mid 2022, Bungie did promise to stop removing content from the game,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gach |first=Ethan |date=Aug 23, 2022 |title=Destiny 2 Promises No More Axing Old Parts Of Game, Something That Players Hated |url=https://kotaku.com/destiny-2-lightfall-vaulting-sunset-forsaken-expansion-1849446608 |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=Kotaku}}</ref> but not all legacy content has been reintroduced to the game.<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>

Bungie's previous GaaS title, Destiny, requires an always-online connection, and while the company has stated that they will maintain legacy support for both modern platforms,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bungie |title=Legacy Support for Destiny 1 Activities |url=https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049201951-Legacy-Support-for-Destiny-1-Activities |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Help}}</ref> and legacy console editions,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bungie |title=Destiny 1 on Legacy Consoles |url=https://help.bungie.net/hc/en-us/articles/360049497531-Destiny-1-on-Legacy-Consoles |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Help}}</ref> it is plausible due to software degradation for the servers<ref>{{Cite news |last=MorphNeo |date=Jul 29, 2024 |title=Destiny 1 - Have they really SHUT IT DOWN? - Error: This version of Destiny is no longer available. |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfYzX58wMBs |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=YouTube}}</ref> though, that the title could eventually become unplayable for consumers, especially as error frequency grows more common over time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=javagat10 |date=Jan 29, 2023 |title=Destiny Server issue on Xbox 360. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/DestinyTheGame/comments/10o1t6l/destiny_server_issue_on_xbox_360/ |access-date=Mar 31, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=ICE BREAKER (Timelost) |date=Jul 19, 2025 |title=Is destiny1 servers shut down permanently? |url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/264186352?page=0 |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |website=Bungie Forums}}</ref>

Bungie has also announced ''{{Wplink|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon_(upcoming_video_game)|Marathon}}'',<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bungie |date=May 24, 2023 |title=Bungie Announces Marathon; Nathan Fillion To Return to Destiny 2 for The Final Shape Expansion |url=https://press.bungie.com/Bungie-Announces-Marathon-Nathan-Fillion-To-Return-to-Destiny-2-for-Th |access-date=Mar 31, 2025 |work=Bungie Press Room}}</ref> a reboot for their older franchise. This game has the plausibility to release as a live service title as well considering Bungie's recent history with their games.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
[[Category:Services]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]

False advertising

2025-08-13T11:48:42Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Poor moderation */ ce

{{StubNotice}}

False advertising is an illegal business strategy where a consumer is lied to with the intention of increasing the probably that they will purchase a product.

==Special cases==
These cases are special in that they feature false advertising and may be indicative of a greater systemic issue without necessarily being illegal.

===False advertising in sales===
False advertising is not necessarily a problem of the producer itself, a vast number of third-party sellers also handle the distribution and redistribution of products. Producers are only responsible for their own sales in regards to providing sufficient accurate product information. Focusing on the marketplaces themselves exposes significant problems with how marketplaces are moderated and how they adapt to changes in product information.

====Poor moderation====
Poor moderation means that the marketplace platform itself inadequately moderates its seller's content, resulting in potentially incorrect or inadequate presentation of a product's information. Sellers may provide inadequate information for buyers, without any malicious intent which results in harm to both parties. Marketplaces should have strong moderation practices to prevent false advertising from consumers who may simply be unaware of their mistake.

====Poor self-moderation====
Poor self moderation is the same as poor moderation except that the marketplace platform itself inadequately moderates its own content, resulting in potentially incorrect or inadequate presentation of a product's information. In this instance, all blame is placed on the marketplace itself for the oversight.

===='''Retroactive sale falsification'''====
Retroactive sale falsification occurs when a product listing suddenly contains misinformation due to changes in the product outside of the control of the seller. This can occur commonly with internet connected products, especially physical products dependent on remote servers, if a server goes offline it may cause features of the product to cease functioning. Retroactive sale falsification is special in that false advertising does occur but not due to the fault of the seller at least initially. It is arguable that blame can be put on the seller after significant time has passed and especially if there is evidence that they had become aware of changes

===='''A case of all three'''====

An interesting case of a potential sale falsification occurred with the [[Spotify Car Thing]] (SCT) on a site known as "[[StockX]]"<ref name=":0">[https://archive.is/50fMR "Spotify Car Thing YX5H6679"] - archive.is - accessed 2025-01-25</ref>. StockX creates a page for each product it receives in stock and allows anyone to sell the product anonymously by selling it to StockX, StockX then resells the product after confirming its functioning. As of January 25th, 2025 this site currently uses this description for the SCT:{{Quote|The Spotify Car Thing was made available in February 2022. The release includes updated software allowing customers to see incoming calls on their mobile devices immediately. The ability to exercise control over various media-playing applications is one of the most notable features offered by the Spotify Car Thing.

The Spotify Car Thing is comparable in size to some mobile devices. They refer to it as a "smart player" on their website. The device features voice control, a touchscreen, a selection knob, a large button labeled back, four preset buttons, and one button labeled settings and mute. It is attached to the HVAC vent, CD tray, and the sticker supplied in the package.

The Spotify Car Thing was made available on February 22, 2022, at a retail price of $80.}}Notably, the StockX page does not mention that the SCT had stopped working due to [[discontinuation bricking]], the product being discontinued or bricked is not mentioned once throughout the entire product page. Unfortunately CAT does not have the ability to confirm the exact moment the page was published but we do know this:

#The first sale of an SCT on StockX occurred [[:File:Spotify car thing stockx sales data backup.png|2024-09-09 at 5:54am]]: the Spotify car thing was quietly discontinued<ref>NOT YET CONFIRMED! This is according to google's AI which is historically inaccurate.

I'm not sure as to whether "quiet" is the right word to use here despite the title of the article.

https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/spotify-quietly-discontinues-car-thing-device-shortly-after-us-launch/

https://www.theverge.com/2022/7/27/23280357/spotify-stops-manufacturing-car-thing-q2-2022-earnings

https://s29.q4cdn.com/175625835/files/doc_presentation/Q2-2022-Shareholder-Deck-FINAL.pdf (Page 3 Executive Summary)</ref> 13 months before in August of 2023. At this point it is still acceptable for StockX to have misinformation as it is realistic they could be completely unaware.
#The first sale of an SCT on StockX after Spotify official announced the planned discontinuation bricking on May 5th 2024 was made [[:File:Spotify car thing stockx sales data backup2.png|2024-05-23 at 12:47pm]]. After this point StockX should have edited the product description to protect consumers.
#The first sale of an SCT on StockX after the discontinuation bricking incident truly occurred on was on [[:File:Spotify car thing stockx sales data backup2.png|2025-01-07 at 1:47am]]. At this point StockX has failed to protect the consumer.

=====How this case demonstrates all three cases=====
#'''Poor moderation''' - StockX demonstrated poor moderation by allowing bricked SCTs to be sold, had StockX thoroughly inspected the user delivered product themselves as they claim<ref name=":0" /> they would have discovered that it no longer functions; this in of itself justifies updating the product description.
#'''Poor self-moderation -''' StockX demonstrated poor self-moderation when they did not update the page after the planned discontinuation bricking was announced. It is possible that they had never learned of this, there is no
#'''Retroactive sale falsification -''' Spotify's decision to discontinue the product resulted in StockX's product information suddenly becoming incorrect, not by the fault of StockX.

The purpose of the StockX example is to demonstrate that false advertising does occur in marketplaces and that determining who is to blame can be difficult to establish. While it is undeniable that StockX did not update the page, it is difficult to determine how much of it was a moderation failure versus a genuine lack of knowledge caused by the sudden decision by Spotify.

==See Also==
* [[:Category:False Advertising]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Anti-Consumer_Practices]]
[[Category:Common terms]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]
[[Category:Articles requiring expansion]]

Xlear

2025-08-13T11:46:15Z

MtPenguinMonster:

{{Stub}}
'''Xlear''' is a Utah-based nasal spray company which [[false advertising|falsely advertised]] its nasal spray as a COVID-19 preventative and treatment. In 2021, the FTC sued Xlear for this false claim.<ref>{{cite web|last=Felner|first=Lauren|url=https://www.theverge.com/policy/692327/xlear-ftc-lawsuit-covid-health-claims-consumer-protection|title=A nasal spray company wants to make it harder for the FTS to police health claims|website=The Verge|date=2025-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2021/10/ftc-sues-utah-based-company-falsely-claiming-its-nasal-sprays-can-prevent-treat-covid-19|title=FTC Sues Utah-based Company for Falsely Claiming Its Nasal Sprays Can Prevent and Treat COVID-19|website=Federal Trade Commission|date=2021-10-28}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:False Advertising]]

Collective Shout

2025-08-13T11:45:30Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Incidents */ Added GTA V incident

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Collective Shout
| Type = Private
| Founded = 2009
| Industry = Lobbying, Activism
| Official Website = https://www.collectiveshout.org/
| Logo = Collective-shout-logo.png
}}

Collective Shout is an Australian activist group founded in 2009, claiming to be: "''a grassroots movement challenging the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising and popular culture''".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720102043/https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |work=Collective Shout}}</ref>

The activist group became prominent in 2025 after their pressure campaign against payment processors to cause [[Steam]] and [[Itch.io]] to delist hundreds of games, claiming that the games sexualise women.<ref>{{cite web|first=Josh|last=Taylor|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/29/mastercard-visa-backlash-adult-games-removed-online-stores-steam-itchio-ntwnfb|title=Mastercard and Visa face backlash after hundreds of adult games removed from online stores Steam and Itch.io|website=The Guardian|date=2025-07-28}}</ref>

==Incidents==

===Protest against ''Grand Theft Auto V''===

In 2014, the group protested the game ''Grand Theft Auto V'', claiming that the game encouraged players to murder women for entertainment.<ref name="RPSCS" /> The game was later banned from Australian stores that year.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-30328314|title='Sexually violent' GTA 5 banned from Australian stores|website=BBC|date=2014-12-04}}</ref>

===Pressure campaign against payment processors===
''Main artice: [[Valve allows ISPs and payment processors to censor content on Steam|Valve complying with ISPs and payment processors]]''

In July 2025, Collective Shout launched a public campaign "demanding credit card companies and PayPal block payments" for games on sites like Steam and Itch.io.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |last=Bita |first=Natasha |date=15 July 2025 |title=Child safety group finds 500 online 'games' role-playing rape and incest |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/education/child-safety-group-finds-500-online-games-roleplaying-rape-and-incest/news-story/b30c59f85ff22934844269cb3beff538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.ph/koDk8 |archive-date=18 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=The Australian}}</ref><ref name="RPSCS">{{Cite news |last=Evans-Thirlwell |first=Edwin |date=22 July 2025 |title=Anti-porn group who tried to ban GTA 5 claim credit for Steam's sex game crackdown |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/anti-porn-group-who-tried-to-ban-gta-5-claim-credit-for-steams-sex-game-crackdown |access-date=23 July 2025 |work=Rock Paper Shotgun}}</ref>

Itch.io responded by de-indexing NSFW content on July 24.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content|title=Update on NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-24}}</ref> Itch.io re-indexed free NSFW content on July 31.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/t/5149036/reindexing-adult-nsfw-content|title=Reindexing adult NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-31}}</ref>

They claim to have lobbied payment processors after sending 3,000 emails to Steam and receiving no response.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steam at Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720103220/https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=Collective Shout}}</ref><ref name="CBCCards">{{Cite news |last=Ore |first=Jonathan |date=31 July 2025 |title=How an anti-porn lobby on payment processors censored thousands of video games |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/steam-itch-takedowns-credit-cards-1.7597563 |access-date=1 August 2025 |work=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]]}}</ref>

Alongside NSFW content they also wanted to get games like 'Detroit Become Human' and 'Mouthwashing' gone from the gaming platforms. Mainly for 'violence against women', which in the case of 'Detroit Become Human' was to show how horrible domestic abuse actually is for the people in the situation and to bring awareness to that happening in our society.

==See also==

*[[Steam]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:Pro-consumer articles]]

Collective Shout

2025-08-13T11:32:45Z

MtPenguinMonster: Added to lead

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Collective Shout
| Type = Private
| Founded = 2009
| Industry = Lobbying, Activism
| Official Website = https://www.collectiveshout.org/
| Logo = Collective-shout-logo.png
}}

Collective Shout is an Australian activist group founded in 2009, claiming to be: "''a grassroots movement challenging the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising and popular culture''".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720102043/https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |work=Collective Shout}}</ref>

The activist group became prominent in 2025 after their pressure campaign against payment processors to cause [[Steam]] and [[Itch.io]] to delist hundreds of games, claiming that the games sexualise women.<ref>{{cite web|first=Josh|last=Taylor|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/29/mastercard-visa-backlash-adult-games-removed-online-stores-steam-itchio-ntwnfb|title=Mastercard and Visa face backlash after hundreds of adult games removed from online stores Steam and Itch.io|website=The Guardian|date=2025-07-28}}</ref>

==Incidents==

===Pressure campaign against payment processors===
''Main artice: [[Valve allows ISPs and payment processors to censor content on Steam|Valve complying with ISPs and payment processors]]''

In July 2025, Collective Shout launched a public campaign "demanding credit card companies and PayPal block payments" for games on sites like Steam and Itch.io.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |last=Bita |first=Natasha |date=15 July 2025 |title=Child safety group finds 500 online 'games' role-playing rape and incest |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/education/child-safety-group-finds-500-online-games-roleplaying-rape-and-incest/news-story/b30c59f85ff22934844269cb3beff538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.ph/koDk8 |archive-date=18 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=The Australian}}</ref><ref name="RPSCS">{{Cite news |last=Evans-Thirlwell |first=Edwin |date=22 July 2025 |title=Anti-porn group who tried to ban GTA 5 claim credit for Steam's sex game crackdown |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/anti-porn-group-who-tried-to-ban-gta-5-claim-credit-for-steams-sex-game-crackdown |access-date=23 July 2025 |work=Rock Paper Shotgun}}</ref>

Itch.io responded by de-indexing NSFW content on July 24.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content|title=Update on NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-24}}</ref> Itch.io re-indexed free NSFW content on July 31.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/t/5149036/reindexing-adult-nsfw-content|title=Reindexing adult NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-31}}</ref>

They claim to have lobbied payment processors after sending 3,000 emails to Steam and receiving no response.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steam at Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720103220/https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=Collective Shout}}</ref><ref name="CBCCards">{{Cite news |last=Ore |first=Jonathan |date=31 July 2025 |title=How an anti-porn lobby on payment processors censored thousands of video games |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/steam-itch-takedowns-credit-cards-1.7597563 |access-date=1 August 2025 |work=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]]}}</ref>

Alongside NSFW content they also wanted to get games like 'Detroit Become Human' and 'Mouthwashing' gone from the gaming platforms. Mainly for 'violence against women', which in the case of 'Detroit Become Human' was to show how horrible domestic abuse actually is for the people in the situation and to bring awareness to that happening in our society.

==See also==

*[[Steam]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:Pro-consumer articles]]

Category:False Advertising

2025-08-13T11:24:21Z

MtPenguinMonster:

''The main article for this category is [[False advertising]]''

Category:False Advertising

2025-08-13T11:24:09Z

MtPenguinMonster: Created page with "''The main article for this category is False Advertising''"

''The main article for this category is [[False Advertising]]''

False advertising

2025-08-13T11:23:28Z

MtPenguinMonster: Linked to category

{{StubNotice}}

False advertising is an illegal business strategy where a consumer is lied to with the intention of increasing the probably that they will purchase a product.

==Special cases==
These cases are special in that they feature false advertising and may be indicative of a greater systemic issue without necessarily being illegal.

===False advertising in sales===
False advertising is not necessarily a problem of the producer itself, a vast number of third-party sellers also handle the distribution and redistribution of products. Producers are only responsible for their own sales in regards to providing sufficient accurate product information. Focusing on the marketplaces themselves exposes significant problems with how marketplaces are moderated and how they adapt to changes in product information.

====Poor moderation====
Poor moderation that the marketplace platform itself inadequately moderates its seller's content, resulting in potentially incorrect or inadequate presentation of a product's information. Sellers may provide inadequate information for buyers, without any malicious intent which results in harm to both parties. Marketplaces should have strong moderation practices to prevent false advertising from consumers who may simply be unaware of their mistake.

====Poor self-moderation====
Poor self moderation is the same as poor moderation except that the marketplace platform itself inadequately moderates its own content, resulting in potentially incorrect or inadequate presentation of a product's information. In this instance, all blame is placed on the marketplace itself for the oversight.

===='''Retroactive sale falsification'''====
Retroactive sale falsification occurs when a product listing suddenly contains misinformation due to changes in the product outside of the control of the seller. This can occur commonly with internet connected products, especially physical products dependent on remote servers, if a server goes offline it may cause features of the product to cease functioning. Retroactive sale falsification is special in that false advertising does occur but not due to the fault of the seller at least initially. It is arguable that blame can be put on the seller after significant time has passed and especially if there is evidence that they had become aware of changes

===='''A case of all three'''====

An interesting case of a potential sale falsification occurred with the [[Spotify Car Thing]] (SCT) on a site known as "[[StockX]]"<ref name=":0">[https://archive.is/50fMR "Spotify Car Thing YX5H6679"] - archive.is - accessed 2025-01-25</ref>. StockX creates a page for each product it receives in stock and allows anyone to sell the product anonymously by selling it to StockX, StockX then resells the product after confirming its functioning. As of January 25th, 2025 this site currently uses this description for the SCT:{{Quote|The Spotify Car Thing was made available in February 2022. The release includes updated software allowing customers to see incoming calls on their mobile devices immediately. The ability to exercise control over various media-playing applications is one of the most notable features offered by the Spotify Car Thing.

The Spotify Car Thing is comparable in size to some mobile devices. They refer to it as a "smart player" on their website. The device features voice control, a touchscreen, a selection knob, a large button labeled back, four preset buttons, and one button labeled settings and mute. It is attached to the HVAC vent, CD tray, and the sticker supplied in the package.

The Spotify Car Thing was made available on February 22, 2022, at a retail price of $80.}}Notably, the StockX page does not mention that the SCT had stopped working due to [[discontinuation bricking]], the product being discontinued or bricked is not mentioned once throughout the entire product page. Unfortunately CAT does not have the ability to confirm the exact moment the page was published but we do know this:

#The first sale of an SCT on StockX occurred [[:File:Spotify car thing stockx sales data backup.png|2024-09-09 at 5:54am]]: the Spotify car thing was quietly discontinued<ref>NOT YET CONFIRMED! This is according to google's AI which is historically inaccurate.

I'm not sure as to whether "quiet" is the right word to use here despite the title of the article.

https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/spotify-quietly-discontinues-car-thing-device-shortly-after-us-launch/

https://www.theverge.com/2022/7/27/23280357/spotify-stops-manufacturing-car-thing-q2-2022-earnings

https://s29.q4cdn.com/175625835/files/doc_presentation/Q2-2022-Shareholder-Deck-FINAL.pdf (Page 3 Executive Summary)</ref> 13 months before in August of 2023. At this point it is still acceptable for StockX to have misinformation as it is realistic they could be completely unaware.
#The first sale of an SCT on StockX after Spotify official announced the planned discontinuation bricking on May 5th 2024 was made [[:File:Spotify car thing stockx sales data backup2.png|2024-05-23 at 12:47pm]]. After this point StockX should have edited the product description to protect consumers.
#The first sale of an SCT on StockX after the discontinuation bricking incident truly occurred on was on [[:File:Spotify car thing stockx sales data backup2.png|2025-01-07 at 1:47am]]. At this point StockX has failed to protect the consumer.

=====How this case demonstrates all three cases=====
#'''Poor moderation''' - StockX demonstrated poor moderation by allowing bricked SCTs to be sold, had StockX thoroughly inspected the user delivered product themselves as they claim<ref name=":0" /> they would have discovered that it no longer functions; this in of itself justifies updating the product description.
#'''Poor self-moderation -''' StockX demonstrated poor self-moderation when they did not update the page after the planned discontinuation bricking was announced. It is possible that they had never learned of this, there is no
#'''Retroactive sale falsification -''' Spotify's decision to discontinue the product resulted in StockX's product information suddenly becoming incorrect, not by the fault of StockX.

The purpose of the StockX example is to demonstrate that false advertising does occur in marketplaces and that determining who is to blame can be difficult to establish. While it is undeniable that StockX did not update the page, it is difficult to determine how much of it was a moderation failure versus a genuine lack of knowledge caused by the sudden decision by Spotify.

==See Also==
* [[:Category:False Advertising]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Anti-Consumer_Practices]]
[[Category:Common terms]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]
[[Category:Articles requiring expansion]]

Itch.io

2025-08-13T11:19:41Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Incidents */ Added mention of Oxenfree incident from suggestions

{{Delete|doesn’t follow company article outline, single sentence}}
{{ProductCargo
|Company=
|ReleaseYear=2013
|InProduction=Yes
|ArticleType=Service
|Category=Digital storefront, Video games
|Logo=Itch.io.png
|Website=https://itch.io
|Description=Online digital distributor mainly for games.
}}
[[wikipedia:Itch.io|itch.io]] is a website used to find and share video games made by independent developers online.

==Consumer impact summary==

{{Placeholder box|Overview of concerns that arise from the company's conduct regarding (if applicable):
* User Freedom
* User Privacy
* Business Model
* Market Control}}

*Business model: System relies on "open revenue sharing" which sends to itch.io a percentage of the transaction chosen accordingly by the creator (default 10%).<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 2013 |title=Introducing open revenue sharing |url=https://www.tumblr.com/itchio/112709605589/introducing-open-revenue-sharing |website=Tumblr}}</ref>

==Incidents==

===Oxenfree incident===
On September 9th, 2024, users who purchased Oxenfree on itch.io were warned that the game was going to be pulled from the platform on October 1st. Consumers would not be able to download the installers after this date, so they would lose access unless they had them backed up. Users speculated that [[Netflix]], the parent company of the development studio, had ordered the move; however, no response from Netflix or the developers was ever published. This is particularly notable because it violates itch.io's terms of service: "Users shall retain a license to this content even after the content is removed from the Service." <ref>{{Cite web |last=ShawnS |date=31 Jan 2025 |title=OXENFREE |url=https://delistedgames.com/oxenfree/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250321070400/https://delistedgames.com/oxenfree/ |archive-date=21 Mar 2025 |access-date=27 Jun 2025 |website=Delisted Games}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Colp |first=Tyler |date=9 Sep 2024 |title=Another reminder that your digital library isn't forever: Oxenfree will be completely removed from Itch.io next month |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/games/adventure/another-reminder-that-your-digital-library-isn-t-forever-oxenfree-will-be-completely-removed-from-itch-io-next-month/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250523111125/https://www.pcgamer.com/games/adventure/another-reminder-that-your-digital-library-isn-t-forever-oxenfree-will-be-completely-removed-from-itch-io-next-month/ |archive-date=23 May 2025 |access-date=27 Jun 2025 |website=PC Gamer}}</ref>

===De-indexing of adult games from campaign pressure===

:Main article: [[Valve allows ISPs and payment processors to censor content on Steam]]

On July 11, 2025, [[Collective Shout]] issued an open statement demanding credit card payments to immediately cease processing "payments on [[Steam]] and itch.io".<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |last=Bita |first=Natasha |date=15 July 2025 |title=Child safety group finds 500 online 'games' role-playing rape and incest |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/education/child-safety-group-finds-500-online-games-roleplaying-rape-and-incest/news-story/b30c59f85ff22934844269cb3beff538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.ph/koDk8 |archive-date=18 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=The Australian}}</ref><ref name="RPSCS">{{Cite news |last=Evans-Thirlwell |first=Edwin |date=22 July 2025 |title=Anti-porn group who tried to ban GTA 5 claim credit for Steam's sex game crackdown |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/anti-porn-group-who-tried-to-ban-gta-5-claim-credit-for-steams-sex-game-crackdown |access-date=23 July 2025 |work=Rock Paper Shotgun}}</ref> A few days later, itch.io responded by delisting adult content in search results.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content|title=Update on NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-24}}</ref> They re-indexed free "adult NSFW content" later on July 31 with new "content warnings" for such games.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/t/5149036/reindexing-adult-nsfw-content|title=Reindexing adult NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-31}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

User:MtPenguinMonster

2025-08-12T12:32:34Z

MtPenguinMonster: ce

Collective Shout

2025-08-12T12:12:37Z

MtPenguinMonster: Category

{{Irrelevant}}

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Collective Shout
| Type = Private
| Founded = 2009
| Industry = Lobbying, Activism
| Official Website = https://www.collectiveshout.org/
| Logo = Collective-shout-logo.png
}}Collective Shout is an Australian activist group founded in 2009, claiming to be: "''a grassroots movement challenging the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising and popular culture''".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720102043/https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |work=Collective Shout}}</ref>

==Incidents==

===Pressure campaign against payment processors===
''Main artice: [[Valve allows ISPs and payment processors to censor content on Steam|Valve complying with ISPs and payment processors]]''

In July 2025, Collective Shout launched a public campaign "demanding credit card companies and PayPal block payments" for games on sites like Steam and Itch.io.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |last=Bita |first=Natasha |date=15 July 2025 |title=Child safety group finds 500 online 'games' role-playing rape and incest |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/education/child-safety-group-finds-500-online-games-roleplaying-rape-and-incest/news-story/b30c59f85ff22934844269cb3beff538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.ph/koDk8 |archive-date=18 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=The Australian}}</ref><ref name="RPSCS">{{Cite news |last=Evans-Thirlwell |first=Edwin |date=22 July 2025 |title=Anti-porn group who tried to ban GTA 5 claim credit for Steam's sex game crackdown |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/anti-porn-group-who-tried-to-ban-gta-5-claim-credit-for-steams-sex-game-crackdown |access-date=23 July 2025 |work=Rock Paper Shotgun}}</ref>

Itch.io responded by de-indexing NSFW content on July 24.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content|title=Update on NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-24}}</ref> Itch.io re-indexed free NSFW content on July 31.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/t/5149036/reindexing-adult-nsfw-content|title=Reindexing adult NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-31}}</ref>

They claim to have lobbied payment processors after sending 3,000 emails to Steam and recieving no response.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steam at Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720103220/https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=Collective Shout}}</ref><ref name="CBCCards">{{Cite news |last=Ore |first=Jonathan |date=31 July 2025 |title=How an anti-porn lobby on payment processors censored thousands of video games |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/steam-itch-takedowns-credit-cards-1.7597563 |access-date=1 August 2025 |work=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]]}}</ref>

==See also==

*[[Steam]]

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Organizations]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Collective Shout

2025-08-12T12:06:14Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Incidents */ ce

Collective Shout

2025-08-12T12:05:54Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Incidents */ Closed ref tag

{{Irrelevant}}

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Collective Shout
| Type = Private
| Founded = 2009
| Industry = Lobbying, Activism
| Official Website = https://www.collectiveshout.org/
| Logo = Collective-shout-logo.png
}}Collective Shout is an Australian activist group founded in 2009, claiming to be: "''a grassroots movement challenging the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising and popular culture''".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720102043/https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |work=Collective Shout}}</ref>

==Incidents==

===Pressure campaign against payment processors===
''Main artice: [[Valve allows ISPs and payment processors to censor content on Steam|Valve complying with ISPs and payment processors]]''

In July 2025, Collective Shout launched a public campaign "demanding credit card companies and PayPal block payments" for games on sites like Steam and Itch.io.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |last=Bita |first=Natasha |date=15 July 2025 |title=Child safety group finds 500 online 'games' role-playing rape and incest |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/education/child-safety-group-finds-500-online-games-roleplaying-rape-and-incest/news-story/b30c59f85ff22934844269cb3beff538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.ph/koDk8 |archive-date=18 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=The Australian}}</ref><ref name="RPSCS">{{Cite news |last=Evans-Thirlwell |first=Edwin |date=22 July 2025 |title=Anti-porn group who tried to ban GTA 5 claim credit for Steam's sex game crackdown |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/anti-porn-group-who-tried-to-ban-gta-5-claim-credit-for-steams-sex-game-crackdown |access-date=23 July 2025 |work=Rock Paper Shotgun}}</ref>

Itch.io responded by de-indexing NSFW content on July 24.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content|title=Update on NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-24}}</ref> Itch.io re-indexed free NSFW content on July 31.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/t/5149036/reindexing-adult-nsfw-content|title=Reindexing adult NSFW content|date=2025-07-31}}</ref>

They claim to have lobbied payment processors after sending 3,000 emails to Steam and recieving no response.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steam at Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720103220/https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=Collective Shout}}</ref><ref name="CBCCards">{{Cite news |last=Ore |first=Jonathan |date=31 July 2025 |title=How an anti-porn lobby on payment processors censored thousands of video games |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/steam-itch-takedowns-credit-cards-1.7597563 |access-date=1 August 2025 |work=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]]}}</ref>

==See also==

*[[Steam]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Collective Shout

2025-08-12T12:04:40Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* Incidents */ Added detail on itch.io response

{{Irrelevant}}

{{InfoboxCompany
| Name = Collective Shout
| Type = Private
| Founded = 2009
| Industry = Lobbying, Activism
| Official Website = https://www.collectiveshout.org/
| Logo = Collective-shout-logo.png
}}Collective Shout is an Australian activist group founded in 2009, claiming to be: "''a grassroots movement challenging the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls in media, advertising and popular culture''".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720102043/https://www.collectiveshout.org/faq |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |work=Collective Shout}}</ref>

==Incidents==

===Pressure campaign against payment processors===
''Main artice: [[Valve allows ISPs and payment processors to censor content on Steam|Valve complying with ISPs and payment processors]]''

In July 2025, Collective Shout launched a public campaign "demanding credit card companies and PayPal block payments" for games on sites like Steam and Itch.io.<ref name=":02">{{Cite news |last=Bita |first=Natasha |date=15 July 2025 |title=Child safety group finds 500 online 'games' role-playing rape and incest |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/education/child-safety-group-finds-500-online-games-roleplaying-rape-and-incest/news-story/b30c59f85ff22934844269cb3beff538 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.ph/koDk8 |archive-date=18 July 2025 |access-date=18 July 2025 |work=The Australian}}</ref><ref name="RPSCS">{{Cite news |last=Evans-Thirlwell |first=Edwin |date=22 July 2025 |title=Anti-porn group who tried to ban GTA 5 claim credit for Steam's sex game crackdown |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/anti-porn-group-who-tried-to-ban-gta-5-claim-credit-for-steams-sex-game-crackdown |access-date=23 July 2025 |work=Rock Paper Shotgun}}</ref>

Itch.io responded by de-indexing NSFW content on July 24.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/updates/update-on-nsfw-content|title=Update on NSFW content|website=Itch.io|date=2025-07-24}}</ref> Itch.io re-indexed free NSFW content on July 31.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://itch.io/t/5149036/reindexing-adult-nsfw-content|title=Reindexing adult NSFW content|date=2025-07-31}}

They claim to have lobbied payment processors after sending 3,000 emails to Steam and recieving no response.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Steam at Collective Shout |url=https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250720103220/https://www.collectiveshout.org/tags/steam |archive-date=2025-07-20 |access-date=2025-08-07 |website=Collective Shout}}</ref><ref name="CBCCards">{{Cite news |last=Ore |first=Jonathan |date=31 July 2025 |title=How an anti-porn lobby on payment processors censored thousands of video games |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/steam-itch-takedowns-credit-cards-1.7597563 |access-date=1 August 2025 |work=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]]}}</ref>

==See also==

*[[Steam]]

==References==
<references />
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Xlear

2025-08-12T11:46:44Z

MtPenguinMonster: Category

'''Xlear''' is a Utah-based nasal spray company which falsely advertised its nasal spray as a COVID-19 preventative and treatment. In 2021, the FTC sued Xlear for this false claim.<ref>{{cite web|last=Felner|first=Lauren|url=https://www.theverge.com/policy/692327/xlear-ftc-lawsuit-covid-health-claims-consumer-protection|title=A nasal spray company wants to make it harder for the FTS to police health claims|website=The Verge|date=2025-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2021/10/ftc-sues-utah-based-company-falsely-claiming-its-nasal-sprays-can-prevent-treat-covid-19|title=FTC Sues Utah-based Company for Falsely Claiming Its Nasal Sprays Can Prevent and Treat COVID-19|website=Federal Trade Commission|date=2021-10-28}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Organizations]]

Article suggestions

2025-08-12T11:37:49Z

MtPenguinMonster: /* List of incidents not yet covered */ Xlear now covered

This page is dedicated towards providing a communal list for users to submit potential articles to feature on the wiki, and to give editors inspiration on what pages they might want to add to the wiki. If you create an article based on an entry from this list, or see that someone else has done so, please make sure to delete the row from this page in order to prevent confusion.

Sources should be inserted within the 'refs' section of the table. If using the visual editor, take advantage of '<nowiki/>'''insert reference'''<nowiki/>' via ''''ctrl + shift + k'''<nowiki/>' so that the sources are quick to add to future articles. If you are using the source editor, feel free to copy and paste the formatting from other correctly formatted references on the page. The more sources you include with an article idea, the more likely it is that others will pick the article idea up and run with it, so please attempt to include a good variety of descriptive sources!

Please take note of the wiki's [[Consumer Rights Wiki:Inclusion guidelines|Inclusion criteria]] when submitting article suggestions. If you see article suggestions here which do not fit the Wiki, feel free to remove them, leaving your reasoning in an edit note.

If you are an editor looking for further inspiration to write an article, you can also check out the [[Louis Rossmann - Video Directory|Louis Rossmann video directory]] for a good collection of potential articles.

==Example==
Below is an example of what an entry should appear as:
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Company
!Summary of Incident
!Refs
|-
|[[Nintendo]]
|In 2025, the company Nintendo stripped Switch 2 consoles that used the MIG switch cartridge of all online functionality
|<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Scattered Brain |date=Jun 16, 2025 |title=Soo... Nintendo banned my Switch 2 (Don't try the MIG Switch!) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExgYTA18_vo&t=656s |access-date=Jun 18, 2025 |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Orland |first=Kyle |date=Jun 17, 2025 |title=Switch 2 users report online console bans after running personal game “backups” |url=https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2025/06/playing-personal-game-backups-could-get-your-switch-2-banned-by-nintendo/ |access-date=Jun 19, 2025 |work=Ars Technica}}</ref>
|}

==List of incidents not yet covered==
{| class="wikitable"
!Company
!Summary of Incident
!Refs
|-
|[[Microsoft]]
|Anticompetitive behavior contributing to the damaging of the security of customer devices.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Triplette |first=Ryan |date=Nov 15, 2024 |title=Microsoft’s anticompetitive behavior weakens its customers’ cybersecurity |url=https://federalnewsnetwork.com/commentary/2024/11/microsofts-anticompetitive-behavior-weakens-its-customers-cybersecurity/?readmore=1 |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Federal News Network}}</ref>
|-
|[[Intuit]]
|Responsible for bribing the government for the purposes of making doing taxes more difficult, thus making the company more money via [[TurboTax]] payments, TT turned into tiered subscriptions to force users into paying extra for vital tools. Hid the free version from consumers.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=CinemaGuess |date=Jun 10, 2025 |title=How The Scammy Model of TurboTax Finally Died |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K951JU8WbEY&t=315s |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Samsung]], [[Glance]]
|Using the faces of its devices' users for the purposes of generating ads with AI to display on the lock screen
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Whitwam |first=Ryan |date=Jun 4, 2025 |title=Samsung teams up with Glance to use your face in AI-generated lock screen ads |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/06/samsung-teams-up-with-glance-to-use-your-face-in-ai-generated-lock-screen-ads/ |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Ars Technica}}</ref>
|-
|[[Facebook]], [[Yandex]]
|De-anonymizing web browsing identifiers
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wildeboer |first=Jan |date=Jun 03, 2025 |title=Wildeboer post from Jan Wildeboer |url=https://social.wildeboer.net/@jwildeboer/114620123151656825 |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=social.wildeboer.net}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodin |first=Dan |date=Jun 3, 2025 |title=Meta and Yandex are de-anonymizing Android users’ web browsing identifiers |url=https://arstechnica.com/security/2025/06/meta-and-yandex-are-de-anonymizing-android-users-web-browsing-identifiers/ |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Ars Technica}}</ref>
|-
|[[TikTok]]
|Integrated AI tools to track user behaviors even more for the purposes of selling to advertisers
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sato |first=Mia |date=Jun 3, 2025 |title=TikTok will give advertisers even more data on trends and users |url=https://www.theverge.com/news/678255/tiktok-advertiser-summit-ai-targeting-data-seo |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=The Verge}}</ref>
|-
|[[k.chicntech]]
|Selling fraudulent products on its platform
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Harding |first=Scharon |date=Jun 3, 2025 |title=Shopper denied $51 refund for 20TB HDD that’s mostly a weighted plastic box |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/06/man-buys-20tb-portable-hdd-for-51-son-breaks-the-news-that-its-a-fake/ |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Ars Technica}}</ref>
|-
|[[T-Mobile]]
|Secretly recording the screens of users via T-Life app
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=u/Appropriate_Rain_770 |date=May 27, 2025 |title=T-Life App Under Fire as Users Spot Hidden Screen Recording |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/tmobile/comments/1kwmglg/tlife_app_under_fire_as_users_spot_hidden_screen/ |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lee |first=Tyler |date=May 27, 2025 |title=T-Life App Under Fire as Users Spot Hidden Screen Recording |url=https://www.androidheadlines.com/2025/05/t-life-app-under-fire-as-users-spot-hidden-screen-recording.html |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Android Headlines}}</ref>
|-
|[[Ubisoft]]
|Forced online in single-player games for the purposes of data collection; violation of GDPR.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Phillips |first=Tom |date=Apr 29, 2025 |title=Privacy firm files Ubisoft legal complaint over data collection, forced online in single-player games |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/privacy-firm-files-ubisoft-legal-complaint-over-data-collection-forced-online-in-single-player-games |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Eurogamer}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=April 24, 2025 |title=Like to play alone? Ubisoft is still watching you! |url=https://noyb.eu/en/play-alone-ubisoft-still-watching-you |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=noyb}}</ref>
|-
|[[Facebook]], [[Yandex]]
|Automatic opt-in of user-generated content being used for the purposes of training AI.
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Borgesius |first=Frederik |date=Apr 24, 2025 |title=Post on akademienl.social |url=https://akademienl.social/@Frederik_Borgesius/114392662340468118 |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |website=akademienl.social}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=Apr 24, 2025 |title=AP: kom nu in actie als je niet wil dat Meta AI traint met jouw data |url=https://autoriteitpersoonsgegevens.nl/actueel/ap-kom-nu-in-actie-als-je-niet-wil-dat-meta-ai-traint-met-jouw-data |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=autoriteitpersoonsgegevens.nl}}</ref>
|-
|[[Star Force]]
|DRM; History of damaging the devices of honest consumers
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Modern Vintage Gamer |date=Mar 30, 2020 |title=StarForce - The PC CD-ROM DRM that broke your Computer {{!}} MVG |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-wyIalhdPU |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Google]]
|Terms enacted in April reserve it the right to analyze sensitive call data
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Saam |first=Conrad |date=Apr 24, 2025 |title=Google asserts ownership of all advertiser assets in Local Services Ads |url=https://searchengineland.com/google-asset-ownership-local-services-ads-454561 |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=Search Engine Land}}</ref>
|-
|[[VidIQ]]
|Scraping user generated content so poorly that it puts users at risk of violating copyright law
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=CutCafe |date=Jan 24, 2025 |title=This AI tool is EXPLOITING small content creators (So I exposed it) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gg8JZozCa0c |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Waymo]]
|Using interior camera to train GenAI models; automatic opt-in
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bellan |first=Rebecca |date=Apr 8, 2025 |title=Waymo may use interior camera data to train generative AI models, but riders will be able to opt out |url=https://techcrunch.com/2025/04/08/waymo-may-use-interior-camera-data-to-train-generative-ai-models-sell-ads/ |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=TechCrunch}}</ref>
|-
|[[Dymo]]
|550 and newer models have DRM in the printer paper; older model printers bricked via a driver update.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Malawey |first=David |date=Apr 3, 2025 |title=discard junkware and the extract pure value of Dymo |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hlhPRlxA9s |access-date=Jun 25, 2025 |work=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Google]]
|Numerous incidents listed under Wikipedia's [[wikipedia:Google_litigation|Google Litigation]] page
|N/A
|-
|[[UPS]]
|Charges excessively high brokerage fees disguised as "customs fees" that exceed shipping costs when mailing a product from the US to Canada; sent person in source a $42.60 bill AFTER delivering the package, without the person being informed of the shipper being UPS.
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Runkle Of The Bailey |date=Nov 14, 2024 |title=I Fought UPS' Bogus Brokerage Fees, And Won |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKju9a4lA5I |access-date=Jun 26, 2025 |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Liberty Safe]]
|At the point of sale (POS) of the safe, the consumer was not informed that the manufacturer has a backdoor for the safe. In this specific incident, this backdoor was used to bypass the security for the purposes of the FBI
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Runkle Of The Bailey |date=Sep 6, 2023 |title=Liberty Safe Has Secret Backdoors -- And They Gave It To the FBI |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeCwrX2gcXM |access-date=Jun 26, 2025 |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Yubo]]
|Only in-scope elements of the provided source should focus on "age estimation" and "facial recognition", despite the ethical dubiousness of the platform for minors.
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=CinemaGuess |date=Jun 25, 2025 |title=Yubo; The Most Dangerous Snapchat Clone Ever Made |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKm5gkG9yMw |access-date=Jun 26, 2025 |website=[[YouTube]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[itch.io]], [[Night School Studios]], [[Netflix]]
|In September 2024, users who purchased Oxenfree on itch.io were warned that the game was going to be pulled from the platform on October 1st. Consumers would not be able to download the installers after this date, so they would lose access unless they had them backed up. Users speculated that Netflix, the parent company of the development studio, had ordered the move; however, no response from Netflix or the developers was ever published. This is particularly notable because it is against itch.io's terms of service: "Users shall retain a license to this content even after the content is removed from the Service."
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=itch corp |date=15 Apr 2023 |title=itch.io Terms of Service |url=https://itch.io/docs/legal/terms |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907004719/https://itch.io/docs/legal/terms |archive-date=7 Sep 2024 |access-date=27 Jun 2025 |website=itch.io}}</ref> <ref>{{Cite web |last=ShawnS |date=31 Jan 2025 |title=OXENFREE |url=https://delistedgames.com/oxenfree/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250321070400/https://delistedgames.com/oxenfree/ |archive-date=21 Mar 2025 |access-date=27 Jun 2025 |website=Delisted Games}}</ref> <ref>{{Cite web |last=Colp |first=Tyler |date=9 Sep 2024 |title=Another reminder that your digital library isn't forever: Oxenfree will be completely removed from Itch.io next month |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/games/adventure/another-reminder-that-your-digital-library-isn-t-forever-oxenfree-will-be-completely-removed-from-itch-io-next-month/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250523111125/https://www.pcgamer.com/games/adventure/another-reminder-that-your-digital-library-isn-t-forever-oxenfree-will-be-completely-removed-from-itch-io-next-month/ |archive-date=23 May 2025 |access-date=27 Jun 2025 |website=PC Gamer}}</ref>
|-
|[https://consumerrights.wiki/index.php?title=SourceForge.net_forces_users_to_inconditionally_accept_terms_of_use_with_no_alternative_before_logging_in&veaction=edit&section=2 Sourceforge.net]
|Sourceforge forces users to accept terms and conditions before they can even log in, denying their right to refuse or disagree.
|
|-
|[[Electronic Arts]]
|The video game [[Anthem]] was announced to have its servers shut down, leading to all licenses for the title becoming bricked.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hore |first=Jamie |date=Jul 3, 2025 |title=Anthem will soon die for good, as Bioware confirms a full server shut down |url=https://www.pcgamesn.com/anthem/servers-shutting-down-bioware |access-date=Jul 4, 2025 |work=Ars Technica}}</ref>
|-
|[https://drivesaversdatarecovery.com/partner-programs/ DriveSavers]
|Through DriveSavers' partner program, independent or otherwise affiliated shops receive an approximately 10% commission for referring customers to the service (typical service being approximately $3,000.00, resulting in $300.00 of commission for partners). On top of this, partnered shops also receive DriveSavers branded merchandise (pens, antistatic mats and similar shop equipment, etc). Has relevance as this may result in partners having heavy incentives to refer customers to a service they may not need.
|
|-
|[https://www.skystone.games/ Skystone Games]
|Boundary, a multiplayer online-only first-person shooter, got shut down just a year after its release by Skystone games, and its publishing rights relinquished, citing "ongoing delays and a lack of updates from the developer". Studio Surgical Scalpels (the developer) stated that the publisher decissions were "extremely sudden and unreasonable", and attempted to "regain the rights to boundary". The game has been offline for more than a year at the time of writing, and no refunds or communications to the userbase has been made by Skystone Games.
|<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-19 |title=Boundary - End of service notice |url=https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1364020/view/4209257868262605607?l=english |url-status=live |access-date=2025-07-07 |website=Steam}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-30 |title=Boundary Shut Down: Who's to Blame? |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr8IhV1fovE |url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|[[Automatic Content Recognition (ACR)]]
|Smart TVs of multiple brands have a feature called Automatic Content Recognition, which sends several screenshots per minute of whatever plays on the device to the manufacturer for analysis. This includes content from external inputs and thus could include private photos and videos of the user, as well as third parties who never agreed to anything of that nature. This is required to be opt-in in the US, but most people inadvertently agree to it with the EULA of the device.
|<ref>{{Cite web |first=Rachel Cericola, Jon Chase and Lee Neikirk |date=2025-06-25 |title=Yes, Your TV Is Probably Spying on You. Your Fridge, Too. Here’s What They Know. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/advice-smart-devices-data-tracking/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |website=The New York Times - Wirecutter}}</ref>
|-
|[[Nintendo]]
|USB-C port restrictions in order to halt 3rd-party competition with docks and other accessories. These restrictions are caused by encrypted communications between the official dock and the console, as 3rd-party devices use a universal standard that Nintendo refuses to use.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Khullar |first=Kunal |date=Jul 3, 2025 |title=Nintendo is restricting the Switch 2's USB-C port — most third-party docks and accessories won't work thanks to proprietary protocols |url=https://www.tomshardware.com/video-games/nintendo/nintendo-is-restricting-the-switch-2s-usb-c-port-most-third-party-docks-and-accessories-wont-work-thanks-to-proprietary-protocols |access-date=Jul 9, 2025 |work=Tom's Hardware}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Corsetti |first=Adam |date=Jul 3, 2025 |title=USB-C port testing explains why a third-party Nintendo Switch 2 dock won't work with console |url=https://www.notebookcheck.net/USB-C-port-testing-explains-why-a-third-party-Nintendo-Switch-2-dock-won-t-work-with-console.1049869.0.html |access-date=Jul 9, 2025 |work=Notebook Check}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hollister |first=Sean |date=Jul 3, 2025 |title=How Nintendo locked down the Switch 2’s USB-C port and broke third-party docking |url=https://www.theverge.com/report/695915/switch-2-usb-c-third-party-docks-dont-work-authentication-encryption |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250708174112/https://www.theverge.com/report/695915/switch-2-usb-c-third-party-docks-dont-work-authentication-encryption |archive-date=Jul 8, 2025 |access-date=Jul 9, 2025 |work=The Verge}}</ref>
|-
|Not applicable/[[Device bricking]]
|There have been repeated incidents of various companies [[Device bricking|bricking devices]] owned by consumers. This requires a theme article to be finally made. May be ideal to have a sibling article titled [[Software bricking]].
|
|-
|Not applicable
|Factory reset and deconfiguration guides for removing personal/sensitive data from devices before change of ownership to avoid that data being used for identity theft, spear phishing and scams.
|<ref>{{cite web|title=ACCC Report Revelations Of Scams And Cyber Crime Not Surprising |website=Tech Business News |url=https://www.techbusinessnews.com.au/news/accc-report-revelations-of-scams-and-cyber-crime-not-surprising/ |publication-date=29 April 2024 |access-date=20 July 2025 |quote="Whilst there exists the Protective Security Policy Framework (PSPF) and the Information Security Manual (ISM) which direct government and critical industry to use NAID AAA certified recyclers to destroy and sanitise data at end of life, there remains confusion over ownership of accountability."}}</ref>
|-
|Not applicable
|Users are being forced by law to violate their privacy to access adult websites, when numerous sites that won't follow the law exist and are unsafe.
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ortutay |first=Barbara |date=27 Jun 2025 |title=What to know about online age verification laws {{!}} AP News |url=https://apnews.com/article/internet-age-verification-supreme-court-def346d7bf299566a3687d8c4f224fec |url-status=live |access-date=19 Jul 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=28 Jun 2025 |title=The Scam of Age Verification {{!}} PORNBIZ.COM |url=https://pornbiz.com/post/17/the_scam_of_age_verification/en#5 |url-status=live |access-date=19 Jul 2025}}</ref>
|-
|[[Microsoft]]
|Microsoft uses software engineers based in China to work on US Defense Department systems with laughably ineffective precautions. I think this is relevant in the context of Microsoft's attitude towards cloud security. In the past, master keys have been stolen by Chinese hackers and from my understanding, it's not even clear to what extent those groups still have access to Microsoft's internal systems, and by extension, Microsoft customers'. This needs more research though.
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dudley |first=Renee |date=2025-07-15 |title=A Little-Known Microsoft Program Could Expose the Defense Department to Chinese Hackers |url=https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-digital-escorts-pentagon-defense-department-china-hackers |website=ProRepublica}}</ref>
|-
|Not applicable
|[[Malicious Compliance]]
Companies like Apple comply with regulations such as those imposed by the EU by trying to follow the wording, but not the spirit of the legislation. For instance, there were early reports that Apple would support USB-C, but only with Apple certified devices and cables, allowing them to continue the lucrative "Made for iPhone" certification programme. They only backtracked when the EU indicated this would not be considered compliant with the USB-C mandate.
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Malicious Compliance |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malicious_compliance |website=Wikipedia}}</ref>
|-
|Not applicable
|[[Financial Censorship]]
This came up in the recent Valve controversies about removing Games because of pressure from payment providers. It is the concept that US payment providers have pretty much a monopoly world-wide and can thus control which content websites can publish and what goods they can sell because they can threaten to revoke their access to payments.
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=https://www.eff.org/issues/financial-censorship |url= |website=EFF}}</ref>
|-
|[[QIDI]]
|3D printer causes disastrous fire; subreddit staff attempts to cover up incident.
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=u/ProgressLocal1511 |date=Mar 30, 2025 |title=R/QidiTech3d Permanently banned me for warning people after my family lost everything from a fire! |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/1jnuju1/rqiditech3d_permanently_banned_me_for_warning/ |access-date=Jul 23, 2025 |website=[[Reddit]]}}</ref>
|-
|[[Microsoft]]
|Potentially related to: [[Microsoft's anticompetitive practices]]
Mysteriously banned the developer of LibreOffice from his Hotmail Account; Automated systems handled the appeal process and refused to restore access to his account, potentially harming LibreOffice's development.
|<ref>{{Cite news |last=Simms |first=Daniel |date=Jul 30, 2025 |title=Microsoft suddenly bans LibreOffice developer's email account, blocks appeal |url=https://www.techspot.com/news/108878-microsoft-suddenly-bans-libreoffice-developer-email-account-blocks.html |access-date=Aug 4, 2025 |work=TechSpot}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Beri |first=Devesh |date=Aug 1, 2025 |title=Microsoft Bans Profile Belonging to Developer Behind Free Microsoft Office Alternative |url=https://tech.yahoo.com/business/articles/microsoft-bans-profile-belonging-developer-204536148.html |access-date=Aug 4, 2025 |work=ExtremeTech}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kumar |first=Rohit |date=Aug 3, 2025 |title=LibreOffice Developer Says Microsoft Blocked His Email Account Without Warning |url=https://www.alltechnerd.com/libreoffice-developer-says-microsoft-blocked-his-email-account-without-warning/ |access-date=Aug 4, 2025 |work=All Tech Nerd}}</ref>
|}

==See Also==

*[[Louis Rossmann - Video Directory]]

==Reference List==
<references />
[[Category:Sources]]

User:MtPenguinMonster

2025-08-12T11:34:18Z

MtPenguinMonster: Created page

I am Mt. Penguin Monster. I've decided to contribute to this wiki because I want corporations to be held accountable when they cause harm to consumers.

Xlear

2025-08-12T11:31:22Z

MtPenguinMonster: Created article