It turns out that shiny new mandatory Xbox 360 update was something of a Trojan Horse that allows Microsoft to twist gamers’ arms and make them agree never to sue the company. [More]
terms of use
Google+ Shifts Policy To Give Terms Violators Time To Comply
By 8.15.11
Perhaps realizing it was a bit overzealous in enforcing its mandate that Google+ users affix their real names to accounts, the social network altered its policy of account suspension for violators. Instead of giving suspected fake-name users an immediate heave-ho, Google+ will now give them four days to comply with the policy. [More]
College Libraries Save Money By Ignoring Netflix Terms Of Use
By 9.22.10
Plenty of Americans have cut their household entertainment budgets by subscribing to Netflix instead of seeing movies in theaters or purchasing DVDs. Now, some college libraries are doing the same thing, sort of. They’re using rented DVDs or streaming video instead of purchasing the movies that professors assign. Is this a violation of Netflix’s terms of use? Yes. But the librarians don’t particularly care, and Netflix doesn’t seem to, either. Yet. As a Netflix spokesman said, “We just don’t want to be pursuing libraries.” [More]
By 7.10.09
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Usually, to follow someone on Twitter, you click “Follow.” So why does Walmart have a 3,379-word terms of use specifically for their Twitter accounts posted on the company Web site? Seriously, we’re asking, because no one has any idea. [BoingBoing]
This Is How All User Agreements Should Be Displayed
By 3.16.09
Aviary is a suite of web-based graphics programs, both free and subscription-based. What’s awesome about Aviary from the Consumerist perspective, though, is their Terms of Use, which offers a plain English summary in bullet points alongside the legalese. It’s brilliant, it’s simple, it doesn’t reduce the power of their legal agreement, and it helps users make informed decisions. Everyone should do this.
ISPs Are Maniacal Stalkers Who Read Your Email And Watch You Surf The Web
By 4.6.08
Internet service providers are actively tracking 100,000 users, reading every email they send and every website they visit, according to the Washington Post. The report coincides with a damning Associated Press investigation of ISP contracts which finds that they reserve broad rights to read essentially anything you view on the internet without any intervening supervision or regulation.
