Just Cause 3 security leads pirates to say ' No free games within two years'

Anti tamper security on Just Cause 3 supplied by Denuvo Software has lead Chinese pirates to release a statement saying within two years the will be unable to crack and pirate games...

It all started with Dragon Age: Inquisition game, it took the hackers a month before they released a pirate version. This game was also protected but Denuvo anti pirate software. The Chinese group 3DM eventually broke the game.

Handheld game-copying is worse than on PC Ready at Dawn: PSP piracy "hurts a lot of developers"

God of War: Ghost Of Sparta developer Ready At Dawn claim their PSP development is being endangered by piracy on Sony's portable console. "If you're a developer right now and you're owned by a publisher it's hard enough, so imagine what it's like if you're an independent covering all your costs yourself. I don't think it gets easier at any time, but the last two years have been particularly hard."

Microsoft kicks 1 million gamers from Xbox Live over piracy claims

Microsoft have booted as many as 1 million players from its Xbox LIVE due to their belief that they modified their consoles to play illegally downloaded games.

"All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and that modifying their Xbox 360 console to play pirated discs violates the Xbox Live terms of use, will void their warranty, and result in a ban from Xbox Live," Microsoft said in a statement.

ESA top five P2P game piracy countries - Italy, Spain, France, Germany and Poland - 45 milllion notices issued

The Entertainment Software Association has released this year's fiscal report, putting out their numbers to level the finger at new targets.

Following up on last year's published report, this one has a whole bunch of new numbers to ponder.

The top five P2P game piracy countries this year are: Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Poland. The ESA's anti-piracy program notes, 'Chief among this year's actions were five separate law enforcement raids against game pirates in California, resulting in the seizure of several thousand games and dozens of modded consoles, and the arrests of five individuals.'

But don't worry, they've expanded to other countries. 'The ESA sent takedown notices to ISPs covering more than 45 million instances of infringement of member company games in more than 100 countries worldwide.'

Source: Slashdot - read full post here...

Over 100,000 pirate users cripple Demigod video game service

Real-time strategy title Demigod has been crippled by over 100,000 pirates flooding the online game and overwhelming the support network, according to Brad Wardell, CEO of Stardock, who complained of "near MMO user connections".

According to Wardell, 120,000 connections have taken place for Demigod, with only 18,000 coming from legitimate users who actually purchased the game. This "sheer number of people" has caused "horrific results" that the company was unprepared for.

"Sadly, most of the 120,000 connections are not customers but via warez," he wrote in his blog. "About 18,000 are legitimate… We spent a lot of time today trying to isolate out the warez users from the legitimate users."

Users found themselves unable to logon to the online service or the Demigod forums, and even running the game became a challenge as online checks for updated versions would result in a blank screen - Wardell described this as the "stuff of nightmares".

Wardell concluded: "As annoying as this issue is, it's not something that's going to be an ongoing issue, it's something that is likely to be taken care of in the next day or two. So this time next week, players will be happily playing."

Source: GamesIndustry

New Anti Piracy features coming to Games for Windows

At the annual Game Developers Conference Microsoft announced new features coming to the Games for Windows – LIVE online gaming service and community:

· Anti-piracy Solution: Zero-day piracy protection and server-side authentication help prevent game piracy before street date, and protect publishers and consumers by requiring authentication for online play

· In-game Marketplace: New Marketplace APIs let developers create unique in-game store fronts and experiences surrounding the sale of additional content, providing developers and publishers with new revenue streams, and consumers with a seamless gaming experience

· Roaming: PC gamers can now save their personal settings back to their Games for Windows – LIVE account in the cloud, providing access to their settings on any compatible and connected Windows PC

“This update and other features currently in development represent a tipping point in the evolution of Games for Windows – LIVE as a leading online PC gaming network,” said Ron Pessner, general manager of Games for Windows – LIVE. “In the coming months, we will continue to deliver on our promise to provide gamers and publishers with the industry’s best connected gaming experiences through the LIVE service.”

In the last six months, the Games for Windows – LIVE community has seen staggering growth thanks in part to the launch of a more PC-friendly interface last November, and the addition of some of the year’s biggest and best Windows games, including #1 best-sellers “Grand Theft Auto IV,” “Fallout 3” and “Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II.”

“As a publisher, no one is more excited to see the continued growth and evolution of Games for Windows – LIVE than Microsoft Game Studios,” said Dave Luehmann, general manager of Window games for Microsoft Game Studios. “We have several projects underway which will incorporate the LIVE service, and we’re continuing to build new developer relationships here at GDC to bring the best in the industry to Games for Windows – LIVE.”

Encryption Chip Will End Piracy, Says Atari Founder

At yesterday's Wedbush Morgan Securities conference, Atari founder Nolan Bushnell claimed that a stealth encryption chip will "absolutely stop piracy of [PC] gameplay."There is a stealth encryption chip called a TPM that is going on the motherboards of most of the computers that are coming out now,"

read more | digg story

Another Shot Across Bows For Piracy As Market Trader Jailed

Eight months imprisonment given to rogue trader

A market trader who made a living selling illegally copied games worth thousands of pounds at a Wolverhampton market has been jailed for eight months.

Christopher Charles Jones, 40, of Century Court, Edlington, Doncaster was sentenced on Friday 30th November at Wolverhampton Magistrates Court to eight months imprisonment for having sold illegally copied games – most notably single discs containing 400 games for Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) console, among others. The combined value of each individual PSP game on the disc has been estimated to be “in the thousands”, but Jones was selling each one for just £5.

Mr Jones was initially arrested following a raid executed by West Midlands Police and Wolverhapton City Council Trading Standards on 11th April 2006. He had been under surveillance for some time by ELSPA (the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association) investigators, who had been secretly filming his criminal activity and making test purchases.

During his first court appearance on Tuesday 27th November, Jones admitted 21 charges relating to copyright breaches after the raid at the North Computer market at Wolverhampton’s Dunstall Racecourse, before being charged and jailed for eight months on 30th November before a bench of three magistrates.

Peter Calvert, Wolverhampton City Council Trading Standards Manager, said: “This prosecution underlines the City Council’s commitment to fighting the scourge of counterfeiting. Selling fake items is designed to dupe innocent consumers, harm the livelihoods of honest businesses and line the pockets of the greedy. The City Council will continue to deal robustly with those involved in this trade in Wolverhampton.”

Michael Rawlinson, managing director of ELSPA commented: “It’s clear from the recent successes in bringing to justice those who think they can get away with illegally copying games and profiting from their sale that piracy and counterfeiting doesn’t pay. This case only goes to prove that through patience and diligence Trading Standards, local police and the anti-piracy investigators are making it harder than ever for criminals to operate.”

Hong Kong Raid Nets 10,000 Products Used To Play Pirated Nintendo Software

Illegal WiiKey
At Nintendo's request, the Hong Kong High Court has intervened to help stop a global distribution operation involving game copying devices and modification chips ("mod chips") that violate its copyrights and trademarks in the Nintendo DS and Wii systems.

On Oct. 8th, the court ordered the raid of Supreme Factory Limited facilities. During a three-day period, Nintendo representatives seized more than 10,000 game copying devices and mod chips. The game copying devices connect to the Nintendo DS and are used to copy and play game files offered unlawfully via the Internet. The mod chips allow the play of pirated Wii discs or illegal copies of Nintendo games downloaded from the Internet.

The search also turned up volumes of documents reflecting the scope of the operation. The Supreme Factory Limited has ties to a French company, Divineo SARL, and its principal, Max Louarn, who are also named in the legal action initiated by Nintendo. The High Court prohibited the companies from further distribution of the devices and from disposing a portion of their assets worldwide, and ordered that such assets be frozen pending outcome of the legal proceedings.

"Piracy affects the entire video game industry, from large companies to independent developers," says Jodi Daugherty, Nintendo of America's senior director for anti-piracy. "It can destroy years of hard work by a team of very talented software developers, who strive to create games consumers enjoy playing. Copying the developers' work and spreading the game files globally is blatant stealing."

Piracy not only affects Nintendo, but also more than 100 companies that independently create, license, market and sell Nintendo video game products. Nintendo and these companies lost an estimated $762 million in sales due to counterfeits in 2006.

This action is one of several that Nintendo has initiated over the years against game copiers and mod chips. In 2005, Nintendo was awarded more than $5 million in damages from the Hong Kong High Court against Lik Sang, a company responsible for the widespread distribution of game copying devices. In another case, a U.S. judge ordered Bung Enterprises to pay Nintendo $7 million in damages in connection with its involvement in manufacturing and distribution of such products.