Minecraft post-purchase ownership rights changes: Difference between revisions
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}}[[wikipedia:Minecraft#:~:text=The%20first%20public%20alpha%20build|Minecraft Alpha]] was published and sold by a small developer, advocating for consumer ownership, promising [[Digital Rights Management(DRM)|Digital Rights Management (DRM)]]-free software<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2011-09-23 |title=Minecraft - About the game |url=http://www.minecraft.net/store/game |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923112156/http://www.minecraft.net/store/game |archive-date=2011-09-23 |website=www.minecraft.net}}</ref>, free optional updates, and a free copy of the fully released version for every earlier buyer.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2011-09-23 |title=Minecraft Terms of Use |url=http://www.minecraft.net/terms |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923135753/http://www.minecraft.net/terms |archive-date=2011-09-23 |website=www.minecraft.net}}</ref> | }}[[wikipedia:Minecraft#:~:text=The%20first%20public%20alpha%20build|Minecraft Alpha]] was published and sold by a small developer, advocating for consumer ownership, promising [[Digital Rights Management(DRM)|Digital Rights Management (DRM)]]-free software<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2011-09-23 |title=Minecraft - About the game |url=http://www.minecraft.net/store/game |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923112156/http://www.minecraft.net/store/game |archive-date=2011-09-23 |website=www.minecraft.net}}</ref>, free optional updates, and a free copy of the fully released version for every earlier buyer.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2011-09-23 |title=Minecraft Terms of Use |url=http://www.minecraft.net/terms |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923135753/http://www.minecraft.net/terms |archive-date=2011-09-23 |website=www.minecraft.net}}</ref> | ||
After years of changes in the title and content of the terms of use, all the previous buyers who failed to stop accepting updates in time, had to choose between forfeiting the ownership or losing the option to use the software offline.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-18 |title=Minecraft account migration |url=https://consumerrights.wiki/Minecraft_account_migration |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-18 |website=Consumer Rights Wiki}}</ref> The product became a license with DRM that can be terminated at anytime by a tech-giant.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-30 |title=Microsoft Services Agreement |url=https://www.microsoft.com/servicesagreement |url-status=live |website=microsoft.com}}</ref> | After years of changes in the title and content of the terms of use, all the previous buyers who failed to stop accepting updates in time, had to choose between forfeiting the ownership or losing the option to use the software offline.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-18 |title=Minecraft account migration |url=https://consumerrights.wiki/Minecraft_account_migration |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-18 |website=Consumer Rights Wiki}}</ref> The product became a license with DRM that can be terminated at anytime by a tech-giant.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-30 |title=Microsoft Services Agreement |url=https://www.microsoft.com/servicesagreement |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-18 |website=microsoft.com}}</ref> | ||
The user side of legal contract to use Minecraft at the 2011 full release is called ''“Terms of use” (TOU)''<ref name=":0" /> ,later ''“End-user license agreement” (EULA)''<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2025-08-18 |title=Minecraft EULA |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/eula |url-status=live |website=minecraft.net}}</ref>, and the changes it went through since 2011, can imply most of the existing [[:Category:Anti-Consumer Practices|anti-consumer practices]], not just consumer ownership rights erosion. | The user side of legal contract to use Minecraft at the 2011 full release is called ''“Terms of use” (TOU)''<ref name=":0" /> ,later ''“End-user license agreement” (EULA)''<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2025-08-18 |title=Minecraft EULA |url=https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/eula |url-status=live |website=minecraft.net}}</ref>, and the changes it went through since 2011, can imply most of the existing [[:Category:Anti-Consumer Practices|anti-consumer practices]], not just consumer ownership rights erosion. | ||
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Minecraft as a multi-platform game is the best-selling video game of all time, with over 350 million copies sold (as of 2025) and 140 million monthly active players (as of 2021)<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-18 |title=Wikipedia - Minecraft |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minecraft |url-status=live |website=Wikipedia}}</ref></blockquote> | Minecraft as a multi-platform game is the best-selling video game of all time, with over 350 million copies sold (as of 2025) and 140 million monthly active players (as of 2021)<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-18 |title=Wikipedia - Minecraft |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minecraft |url-status=live |website=Wikipedia}}</ref></blockquote> | ||
=== Source clarification:<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-01-13 |title=Mojang Terms and Conditions |url=https://account.mojang.com/terms |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827123036/https://account.mojang.com/terms#eula |archive-date=2013-08-27 |website=mojang.com}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2010-12-20 |title=copyright.jsp |url=http://www.minecraft.net/copyright.jsp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101221093644/http://www.minecraft.net:80/copyright.jsp |archive-date=2010-12-21 |website=minecraft.net}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=support.jsp |url=http://www.minecraft.net/support.js |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725180118/http://www.minecraft.net/support.jsp |archive-date=2010-07-25 |website=minecraft.net}}</ref> === | ===Source clarification:<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-01-13 |title=Mojang Terms and Conditions |url=https://account.mojang.com/terms |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827123036/https://account.mojang.com/terms#eula |archive-date=2013-08-27 |website=mojang.com}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2010-12-20 |title=copyright.jsp |url=http://www.minecraft.net/copyright.jsp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101221093644/http://www.minecraft.net:80/copyright.jsp |archive-date=2010-12-21 |website=minecraft.net}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=support.jsp |url=http://www.minecraft.net/support.js |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725180118/http://www.minecraft.net/support.jsp |archive-date=2010-07-25 |website=minecraft.net}}</ref>=== | ||
*Minecraft’s TOU/EULA was published as a page on the publisher’s game store site and as a .txt file in the game directory. | *Minecraft’s TOU/EULA was published as a page on the publisher’s game store site and as a .txt file in the game directory. | ||
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===2011-09-23 Ownership terms in full release of Minecraft 1.0.0=== | ===2011-09-23 Ownership terms in full release of Minecraft 1.0.0=== | ||
==== Online store product page information about the software before TOU agreement 2011-09-13 - 2012-08-18:<ref name=":2" /> ==== | ====Online store product page information about the software before TOU agreement 2011-09-13 - 2012-08-18:<ref name=":2" />==== | ||
<blockquote>Purchase Minecraft | <blockquote>Purchase Minecraft | ||
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Once you've bought the game, it's yours. No DRM.</blockquote> | Once you've bought the game, it's yours. No DRM.</blockquote> | ||
==== TOU in Minecraft 1.0.0<ref name=":0" /> ==== | ====TOU in Minecraft 1.0.0<ref name=":0" />==== | ||
The game is in development, but the developer promises free copy of the full game - only before 2013-12<blockquote>What You Get For Purchasing When you purchase Minecraft you do so as is, be it in the early stages of development or already fully released. Subsequent updates are only an added bonus and not a guarantee, as icing on a cake. Purchases during the development of the game are discounted and include the full game upon release.</blockquote>The buyer of the software can use the software<blockquote>USING OUR GAME | The game is in development, but the developer promises free copy of the full game - only before 2013-12<blockquote>What You Get For Purchasing When you purchase Minecraft you do so as is, be it in the early stages of development or already fully released. Subsequent updates are only an added bonus and not a guarantee, as icing on a cake. Purchases during the development of the game are discounted and include the full game upon release.</blockquote>The buyer of the software can use the software<blockquote>USING OUR GAME | ||