A full story from PC Mag says report claims adult content still viewable by children, despite precautions. Notably, “It is far too easy for children and young teens to access explicit content in some of these virtual worlds,” FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said in a statement. ”

One short thing to note in the virtual worlds’ defense, in the reports’ Footnote 26: “In visiting each online virtual world studied, the Commission’s researchers did not put themselves in 45. the place of an average virtual world user. Instead, the researchers were specifically instructed to search for as many different types of explicit content as possible in the time allotted, performing key word searches using explicit terms, looking for explicitly-themed discussion forums and chat rooms, and observing explicit avatar chat.” I only have an opinion as an attorney, not a researcher, but that kind of testing would seem much beyond the pale of unbiased researcher and would go towards “ghost hunting”(i.e. if you go looking for ghosts you’re going to find them).

From Ypulse, a Website focused on youth worlds, “The FTC report brings to light the challenges facing companies trying to cash in on the virtual world phenomenon.Unlike traditional pre-packaged products, online virtual worlds are driven partially (and sometimes primarily) by user-generated content.”

A family-friendly Website, Netfamily news says “This is a great start. As purely user-driven media, virtual worlds are a frontier for research on online behavior.”

A social games Website article notes “Given important First Amendment considerations, the Commission supports virtual world operators’ self-regulatory efforts to implement these recommendations.”

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Here is a representative sample of the many Websites attacking the content or methodology of the Study.

Ars Technicais critical of the FTC study. It says “That’s on top of the fact that the biggest threat to kids online is… other kids. According to a 2009 report by Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, the percentage of children being sexually targeted by adults online is very low compared to kids targeting other kids

Massively (features on Massive Multiplayer Online games) reported the results were to be expected. They pointed out ” some elements of the study’s methodology are a bit questionable, especially as their list of explicit material included words common to anyone with a history of playing video games. (Or cable television.)”

PlayNoEvil, predomimnatly a developer and security Website, talks about the difficulty of the type of age verification proposed in the government report. ” One suggestion that is solid is to use an “Age Neutral” request for a new user’s age – e.g. “Enter your birthdate” rather than “Are you under 13″.The other is to tag a computer as being used by a minor if they try to login again with a different age.”

A difficulty that’s not discussed is online access through simple devices, Nintendo DSi, Iphones, and other platforms that aren’t really computers but allow net acess. I would predict that to be a “hot point” of the next government report following up on this report.

Last note: one recommendation by the report would seem to be unanimous to both sides of the argument. “The report recommends that parents and children become better educated about online virtual worlds, and affirms the FTC’s commitment to ensuring that parents have the informationthey need to make informed choices. A consumer alert, Virtual Worlds and Kids: Mapping the Risks, is available at www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt038.shtm.

As always; a couple of intellectual discussions which further the brief discussion above, for those wishing to inform themselves:

Protecting Children in Virtual Worlds, cited as Protecting Children in Virtual Worlds Without Undermining Their Economic, Educational and Social Benefits, Benjamin Duranske, Pillsbury Winthrop LLP, Robert J. Bloomfield, Cornell University – Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management, October 13, 2009
Washington and Lee Law Review, Vol. 66, 2009

Social Networking and Age Verification, cite as Thierer, Adam D., Social Networking and Age Verification: Many Hard Questions; No Easy Solutions (March 21, 2007). Progress & Freedom Foundation Progress on Point Paper No. 14.5. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=976936

A related but interestingly similar argument: a Supreme Court case related to delivery of another contraband, tobacco products, to a minor, and the expectation that online delivery measure up to the standards of actual in-person delivery of product.

I encourage comments upon this topic, pro or con, as I consider this one of the most important issues facing online games.

Jay Moffitt is a Tennessee attorney. This blog is for entertainment and educational purposes only and does not consitute legal advice or create an attorney/client relationship. Jay Moffitt is not certified as a specialist in this area by Tennessee and Tennessee does not certify specialists in this practice area. All comments will be answered promptly and courteously as long as they are germane to the discussion and do not contain specific game names or incidents.

Difference between a cheater and a spoilsport, towards the end of the lecture. The rest is a nice discussion of the roles of role-playing and the importance of narrative.. as well as games’ limitations.

Incredible lecture. Talks about the difference between one trying to belong (by winning) and one trying to defile (by destroying the environment or the gameplay mechanic). To a developer it may seem the same result; but different types of personalities which require different sorts of safeguards.

Related article discussing “griefers” (those who dissent/protest within a virtual world). My favorite quote is “The larger point however is that when designing any MMO, you either live in fear of your players, or you embrace and guide them.”

Distribution issues discussed by a developer. Good breakdown of the percentages of distributors, and a frank dialogue about the pros and cons for an independent studio.

Great collection of articles by a game attorney who pioneered the idea of a game attorney. Don’t know him personally, but he seems like the kind of attorney interesting enough he’d never have to pay for his own lunch. A very comprehensive bit of work, and has a gravitas that all IP/game/contract lawyers need to aspire towards.

Raph Koster talking about game mechanics. Nothing to do with law; today is just a great excuse to get in a great game mind like Raph Koster in my blog.

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Once again, below the fold, some intellectual egg-head discussions (which I admire).

How War has influenced Game Design

Are Virtual Worlds Waiting in the Wings?

From SSRN: login required “Politicization of the Online World”, paper by Olivier Mauco.

Jay Moffitt is a Tennessee attorney. This blog is for entertainment and educational purposes only and does not consitute legal advice or create an attorney/client relationship. Jay Moffitt is not certified as a specialist in this area by Tennessee and Tennessee does not certify specialists in this practice area. All comments will be answered promptly and courteously as long as they are germane to the discussion and do not contain specific game names or incidents.

From Pixels and Policy, a great article about the attractiveness of avatars, and how it influences your popularity in virtual worlds.

From a site focusing on gender, gender equality, and other issues, a great article entitled “Real World Beauty Pressures in Second Life.”

A great article on body-concept in Second Life, with a long string of comments.

And another worry (or perhaps laugh?), Virtual Worlds Forum reports that gender swaps are common for online gaming. A tongue-in-cheek article in the Guardian claims to have a reasoning as to why men play as a female avatar in online games. As a related worrying development, it is rumored some games may have gender self-identification systems in the game, article at Destructoid; warning, probably NSFW.

Now I will probably cover these topics a little more as cases are filed, but for now it is probably someone will at some point declare that this would be none of the game publisher’s business, or some player might declare that this is “shocking, just shocking.”

Jay Moffitt is a Tennessee attorney. This blog is for entertainment and educational purposes only and does not consitute legal advice or create an attorney/client relationship. Jay Moffitt is not certified as a specialist in this area by Tennessee and Tennessee does not certify specialists in this practice area. All comments will be answered promptly and courteously as long as they are germane to the discussion and do not contain specific game names or incidents.

There are few reported court decisions of a player appealing an in-game ban. One of those rare cases was mentioned on Techdirt, when a Federal Judge upheld a gamer ban(Case variously cited as C-09-03007 RMW; SD Cal Estavillo v. Sony Computer Entm’t Am. Inc., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86821). The player’s complaint protested against his ban from a Sony site. An intelligent and thorough discussion of the case may be found at this site, and another more approving tone from this site, which approves the idea of increased responsibility for a company as a “virtual company town”. I rather side more with the latter point of view, as the resources of a multinational corporation running a multimillion-dollar business rather make them more of a landlord than as a poor helpless forum-owner.

A very well-informed viewpoint is espoused at “Law of the Level“. It’s pointed out that an in-game monitoring system could make the publisher/administrator liable, by giving them certain “red-flag” knowledge. I’d advise a close reading of the well-written article, especially if you’re building or supervising a chat room associated with a game.

The second common reason to get banned in-game is conduct; usually for using bots or scripts to improve your online performance, or for “spamming” fellow players with offers to sell gold or places where they can buy gold. The current most discussed game is Aion, which is having spam troubles even before being totally out of beta stage. Basically the game is being beseiged to such an extent by “gold spammers” that it is hurting the initial launch of the game, at least in the public perception.

The important lesson to be gotten from these public conflicts is what can be done to eliminate them at an early point. Blizzard (Now Activision/Blizzard) has taken an aggressive stand against any users they feel in violation of their Terms of Service, which has led to some hard feelings. Another company to “celebrate” their hardline stance is Silk Road Online.

Here is a short collection of links as to other articles concerning gold spam and “illegal bots”
Epic Toon Blog
Massively article on how spam “drains” MMOs
Twinking(sending gold to another character whom you own) is another form of cheating
A good first place to look for MMO banning concerns

So, what to do? Throw up our hands? There’s a couple of good common-sense ideas being tossed around; first for the developers/publishers. Stroppsworld talks about three simple ways to fight gold spam. These are (1) Reduce the need for gold (2) Remove mechanisms that facilitate the gold trade (3) Provide players with moderation tools. Another novel way is discussed by Sony Creative Director Laralynn Williams at the GDC conference in Austin. The banning issue is mentioned two-thirds into the discussion under “Solutions Lead to New Problems”. To the question “How do you deal with hackers when everyone can create a free account? Player char dressed as referee. All our C/S agents wear this outfit when are in game – only our GMs can wear these”

Finally, for the gamer, remember who the gold farmers are, and whether it’s worth all the risks. After all, an MMO downloads a client on your computer, a bot to bypass that client does so as well, we’re reminded by a blog named playbbg. That script downloads directly into your operating system and the blog points out those hidden dangers. And also, the common-sense realization should be that in participating in gold-purchasing that is clearly outside the game’s terms of service, that you have no one to complain to or get enforcement from if the offer terms out to be fraudulent or not executed properly.

Jay Moffitt is a TN attorney. The statements here are not legal advice, and no attorney/client relationship is created. Jay Moffitt claims no certification in this specialty, and TN does not offer a certification in this area of law. Copyright, Jay Moffitt, 2009. Comments are welcomed and will be answered promptly and courteously.

A critical blogger has been sued by the maker of Evony, an online free-to-play browser game.
The sued party has listed each and every page of the complaint, pages 2, 3, 4, and 5 here.

The Guardian (UK) is also being sued, unclear whether it is part of that lawsuit or a separate suit.

Most people feel the predominant role of a lawyer is to sue, most lawyers recognize many times the role of a lawyer is to simply say, “take a step back”. The lawsuit involves a game critic, who runs his own Website, that I frankly have never heard of though following the industry pretty closely. The other party is an online game which has rather memorable, and numerous, banner ads.

I would advise you go to The Escapist Magazine for their detailed analysis of the intricacies of the lawsuit. They do an excellent job with a very convoluted lawsuit timeline so hit that first to understand some of the basic lessons a lawyer, blogger, or game company might learn from this. Once you read that you will understand the common sense of what I will say next.

First, the short point I want to make is about “civility” in our litigious society. If you’re a law firm representing a game company, don’t make your first communication to a “blogger” a standard “cease-and-desist” letter. Chances are they’ve seen one before, and will do nothing more with it than post it to their Website, further ridicule your company, and basically say “bring it on”.

(Practice note: It is impossible to tell from the limited information…. the lawyer for the game company could have attempted to reason with the game blogger on one or multiple occasions. Large, income-producing corporations are not in the business to explain their reasoning to a blogger, or editor of an online gaming magazine, or anyone for that matter. And they certainly don’t have time to delve into the psyche of a blogger (pretty much any blogger) who puts their words out there for the sheer joy of expressing their opinion or exercising the first amendment rights. But if you’re a lawyer in a similar situation, it might be a good practice to “make a paper trail” showing all manner of reasonable constructive attempts to defuse a situation rather than inflaming the situation. )

Second, if you’re a blogger, look at your game plan. If you’re wanting to blow up the internet with your controversy and see your name at the top of Digg or Technorati or gamers’ forum, maybe this is a way to accomplish that. ( Practice note: most attorneys, and probably yours as well, will point out that sometimes you do not need to take “to the full extent” your freedom of speech. In a newspaper, or magazine, if there is an article about a subject, there usually is some indication in the article of the search for an opposite viewpoint, a balance, a regard for fairness and equity. And if dealing with lawyers, litigious subjects, and suits that would and could seem never-ending do not appeal to you, perhaps an attempt at reaching a “middle-ground” could be good for your own long-term wellness, too.)

Third, if you’re a reader, you certainly realize there is a middle ground. There are many sites Gawker , GameSetWatch, CostumeCraze heroically supporting the blogger that is sued, and one or two, PixelsandPolicy that support the game company being sued, but amazingly none seem to take the middle ground. The internet is all about having a viewpoint, but CMON let’s just all grow up just a bit and realize that probably both sides have some merit.

It’s my hope that, as an end result, a blogger that a great many people seem to read, and a game that a great number of people play and seem to enjoy, can reach a resolution that will preserve the pride and continued success of both, and allow each of them to emerge a little smarter and a lot more wary. This lawsuit covers so many aspects of jurisdictional law, freedom of speech rights, and libel law, that I am certain it will provide much entertainment for months and months to come.

DISCLAIMER: Jay Moffitt is a Tennessee attorney. The statements do not constitute legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is created. Jay Moffitt claims no certification in the subject matter and TN does not certify attorneys in this subject area. The blog post is copyrighted September 18, 2009.