Discord: Difference between revisions
Added Fluxer and Zulip as consumer friendly alternatives. Removed Root as a consumer friendly alternative, it's closed source. This is a decent source for comparisons of Discord alternatives: https://github.com/DukePantarei/discord-alternatives-wishlist/blob/main/COMPARISON.md |
move forced arbitration (its been included since release and such isnt an incident), add date source |
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===Freedom=== | ===Freedom=== | ||
In order to use Discord, users must agree to the '''Discord ToS<ref name="terms-of-service3" />''' and '''Privacy Policy''', which includes agreeing to:<ref name="privacy-policy3" /> | In order to use Discord, users must agree to the '''Discord ToS<ref name="terms-of-service3" />''' and '''Privacy Policy''', which includes agreeing to:<ref name="privacy-policy3" /> | ||
*Granting a perpetual, transferable license to user content | *Granting a perpetual, transferable license to user content | ||
*Broad terms of service, which allow for unilateral changes | *Broad terms of service, which allow for unilateral changes | ||
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Additionally, server owners have limited recourse if their servers are banned, and users are required to use Discord's payment processing for all monetary transactions.<!-- "Limited recourse" is quite vague. It would be helpful to outline what recourse is possible and why this is insufficient. --> | Additionally, server owners have limited recourse if their servers are banned, and users are required to use Discord's payment processing for all monetary transactions.<!-- "Limited recourse" is quite vague. It would be helpful to outline what recourse is possible and why this is insufficient. --> | ||
===Transparency=== | === Forced arbitration === | ||
Since release<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 Sep 2015 |title=Discord - Terms of Service |url=https://discordapp.com |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170521173532/https://discordapp.com/terms#:~:text=ARBITRATION |archive-date=21 May 2017 |access-date= |website=Discord}}</ref>, Discord's [[Terms of Service|terms of service]] have mandated [[Forced arbitration|binding arbitration]] with {{Wplink|class action}} waiver for U.S. users. Users can opt out by sending an 'opt-out notice' to [email protected] within 90 days of registering their first account.'''<ref name="terms-of-service3" />''' | |||
=== Transparency === | |||
Discord's terms of service are lengthy and complex. In October 2025, the base terms are 29 pages long, with a reading level of 14th grade (equivalent to two years of tertiary education) and an estimated reading time of 42 minutes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Calculated using readabilitychecker.com based on current discord TOS. discord.com/terms |url=https://readabilitychecker.com/url |access-date=9 Oct 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260210185029/https://readabilitychecker.com/url |archive-date=10 Feb 2026}}</ref> The 2021 version of Discord's ToS would take an estimated 275+ hours to read.<ref>{{Cite web |title=EULA of despair |url=https://www.pilotlab.org/eulas-of-despair |access-date=9 Oct 2025 |website=Penn State University Pilot Lab |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260216034102/https://www.pilotlab.org/eulas-of-despair |archive-date=16 Feb 2026}}</ref> | Discord's terms of service are lengthy and complex. In October 2025, the base terms are 29 pages long, with a reading level of 14th grade (equivalent to two years of tertiary education) and an estimated reading time of 42 minutes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Calculated using readabilitychecker.com based on current discord TOS. discord.com/terms |url=https://readabilitychecker.com/url |access-date=9 Oct 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260210185029/https://readabilitychecker.com/url |archive-date=10 Feb 2026}}</ref> The 2021 version of Discord's ToS would take an estimated 275+ hours to read.<ref>{{Cite web |title=EULA of despair |url=https://www.pilotlab.org/eulas-of-despair |access-date=9 Oct 2025 |website=Penn State University Pilot Lab |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260216034102/https://www.pilotlab.org/eulas-of-despair |archive-date=16 Feb 2026}}</ref> | ||
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==Incidents== | ==Incidents== | ||
===Child safety concerns (''2023'')=== | ===Child safety concerns (''2023'')=== | ||
An [[wikipedia:NBC News|NBC News]] investigation in June 2023 uncovered widespread child safety issues on Discord, revealing systemic problems with the platform's user protection measures. | An [[wikipedia:NBC News|NBC News]] investigation in June 2023 uncovered widespread child safety issues on Discord, revealing systemic problems with the platform's user protection measures. | ||
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==Consumer friendly alternatives== | ==Consumer friendly alternatives== | ||
* [ | *[https://fluxer.app/ Fluxer] [https://github.com/fluxerapp/fluxer Fluxer's GitHub] | ||
* [ | *[https://zulip.com/ Zulip][https://github.com/zulip/zulip/ Zulip's GitHub] | ||
*[https://stoat.chat/ Stoat] [https://github.com/stoatchat Stoat's GitHub] | *[https://stoat.chat/ Stoat] [https://github.com/stoatchat Stoat's GitHub] | ||
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{{Reflist}} | {{Reflist}} | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]] | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Messaging clients]] | ||
[[Category:Social media companies]] | |||
[[Category:Companies using forced arbitration clauses]] | |||