Slashdot Mirror
Blizzard Rains on Bnetd Project
Sir Homer writes: "Blizzard Entertainment has shut down the bnetd project using the DMCA, as declared in their site. The bnetd project is a battle.net server emulator licenced under the GNU/GPL originally for Linux and also works on most Unix variants. Project details can be found on this freshmeat.net page." As I understood it, bnetd was a complete re-implementation of battle.net, so it isn't clear what copyright violation Blizzard alleges occurred. Note to bnetd: under the DMCA, you can file a counter-notice with the hosting provider asserting that Blizzard was wrong.
"They're using their 'piracy' e-mail address to handle this...probably to scare the host."
Nope it's because they really are dealing with a service that facilitates piracy, even if it was not their goal. Here's how it works.
Say you get a copy of Diablo II and want to play it on the net. Well if Blizzard is your only option you need the CD Key that comes with the game and is unique to your copy. The battle.net service checks the cd key and if one is already online it nukes the key on the premise that it is pirated. That's how Blizzard and id software (the quake guys) amoung others do it.
Well if you don't need battle.net then you don't get cd key checking. So bottom line, Blizzard did the right thing here, it's a clear cut case of circumvention that facilitates piracy of Blizzard software.
If the authors of said program don't like it, then they can try to work with Blizzard to offer a compliant product. If Blizzard says no, then attack them via antitrust. The Diablo series and expansion packs have sold over 7 million copies and so it could be construed as a monopoly in the online PC games arena and if they do not play ball, they could be seen as leveraging that monopoly.
Sure I'm not a lawyer but knee jerk Blizzard is bad crap is being moderated to the moon at the moment.
Did anyone happen to notice the source is still available on sourceforge. Go get it while you can ;)
Your ad here ask me how!
The faq on their former page said that it was needed because battle.net was down, slow, hard to find friends, etc, yet, they must have never actually played on battle.net! Before I got dsl, i used to play games of Starcraft on there without any lag with 3 other modemers. Now, I hardly experience any lag. As for it being hard to find friends, all you have to do is tell them "meet in chatroom BLANK" and then all you're friends are there, you can make a game taht has a password, and wha-la, you're playin with friends. I think the slashdot crowd as a whole over-reacts to this. Bnetd is shut down? Just get on Battle.net! Also, as an afterthought, Blizzard checks cd-keys upon connecting you to battle.net, so as to make sure two people with the same cd-keys aren't on, decreasing the ability to pirate the game, so, since bnetd doesn't check multiple cd-keys, then it is possible for a group of friends to be playing an online game with the same cd key, which, to me, sounds like a copyright problem. Oh well. Mention someone using DMCA, and /. will immediately say its an uncalled for attack. What can ya do...
I think my principles are reachin' an all time low
As I see it (and I may be completely wrong) the reason behind the bnetd-shutdown is that the imitation-Battle.Net created by bnetd does not check for invalid/duplicate CD keys, and thus enables warez kiddies to obtain the full benefit of a legitimate game from a warez version.
If this is the case, the action seems perfectly reasonable to me.
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PGP Key ID 0xCB8FF658
Here is what was posted:
Blizzard Takes Action to Protect Its Intellectual Property - 2/21/2002
Certain programs have been developed that allow users to bypass Battle.net's CD-key-authentication process. Although these programs might have been made with good intentions, they directly promote software piracy by allowing users who have illegitimately obtained our games to play them as if they'd been legitimately purchased. Furthermore, because these programs allow access without a CD key, they render malicious users unaccountable, thereby eliminating Blizzard's ability to protect legitimate consumers. Therefore, Blizzard has taken an aggressive stance opposing the use of these programs.
Please take a moment to read through our FAQ regarding these issues if you have any questions or concerns about Blizzard's stance on software piracy.
FAQ:
Why is Blizzard trying to shut down servers that emulate Battle.net?
Servers that emulate Battle.net facilitate software piracy of Blizzard products by circumventing Blizzard's authentication code. Blizzard products are intellectual property, and we are well within our legal rights to protect our products from software piracy.
How do CD keys help reduce piracy?
Blizzard uses two main methods to combat piracy: disc-based copy protection and CD keys. As part of the login process, Battle.net authenticates the user's CD key and prevents people from logging in with the same key or an invalid key.
Why doesn't Blizzard provide facilities that enable these emulators to authenticate CD keys through Battle.net?
In order for us to keep our proprietary CD-key algorithms secure, we cannot allow outside servers to query for the validity of CD keys.
What about software that hasn't been released yet? Wouldn't it be better to have as many people testing the beta version of Warcraft III as possible, even if they are playing on non-Battle.net servers?
The primary purposes of the Warcraft III Beta are to get play-balance feedback and to test our Battle.net servers. Our servers aren't tested if people are playing the Beta on rogue servers. Additionally, the Warcraft III Beta is not intended to be a product demo; when testing ends, we need the ability to terminate the Beta's functionality. Rogue servers eliminate our ability to expire beta versions of our products.
What about the hobbyists who are not pirating your software but just want to use these servers as an alternative to Battle.net?
Unfortunately, software pirates have spoiled this situation for hobbyists. We are constantly working to improve Battle.net, and we sincerely hope that one day, no one will see any reason to seek alternatives to Battle.net for playing Blizzard games.
Your games sell millions of copies. Why do you care if a few people pirate your software?
The sales success of a product should not exclude it from laws intended to protect intellectual property. Software piracy needs to be combated at all levels, and at Blizzard we intend to do our part to fight illegal distribution of copyrighted media.
It's the CD-KEY issue they are keying on.