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EFF Takes Bnetd Case

Posted by michael on from the pinch-hitter dept.

An anonymous reader sent in: "As reported three previous times, Blizzard is attempting to squash the Battle.net emulator and open source bnetd project. The EFF has taken the case. Read the press release. LawMeme also has a satiric fable."

6 of 348 comments (clear)

  1. Missing the Point by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    bnetd isn't about logging onto Battle.net with unauthorized clients. It's about running a server separate from Battle.net which the authorized clients (Diablo, Warcraft, etc.) can use in place of Battle.net to manage Internet play.

  2. The reasons is ... by TheViffer · · Score: 2, Informative

    Without checking CD-Keys, one copy of Diablo II could virtually service 10,000 people by just swapping the program around.

    Currently as it goes, if you want to play with others online using a Blizzard product, you are almost force to buy a legal copy. The introduction of emulators will by-pass that.

    Blizzard has a legal beef here.

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    -- Knowing too much can get you killed, but knowing who knows too much can make you rich.
  3. Actually Contributing by erasmus_ · · Score: 5, Informative

    Payment Information

    A payment has been sent to bnetd-defense@bnetd.org.
    You will receive an email receipt for this transaction shortly.
    For details on your transaction, please contact bnetd-defense@bnetd.org.

    Item Name: Bnetd Project Defense Fund
    Item Number: Defense Fund

    Rather than just talk about it, I have put my money where my mouth is on this issue, by donating to the cause. I encourage everyone else to do the same at this link.

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  4. Wasn't this already solved in the Sony case? by Frobnicator · · Score: 2, Informative
    To suggest that Bnetd is illegal due to copyright is insane. The product is not a duplicate of the original, it is a service provided by a second company developed from their own source code.

    Whether it violates the DMCA is another issue. The courts ruled recently against Sony where developers reverse engineered portions of the Playstation to get access to underlying protocols so that developers could create an emulator for the PC. Even though the reverse engineering violated some terms of the DMCA, there were two important facts facts: (1) the new product was legal, and (2) they attempted to obtain the information from Sony, but they refused to offer it.

    It appears that this case is the same. The defendant was unsatisfied with a product. The producer was unable or unwilling to provide the desired product. The defendant was forced to reverse engineer that product in order to offer the desired services. The only remaining question is whether Blizzard applied for a patant for their network protocols. (unlikely.) If they did not, they do not own the IP of the protocol (since the protocol is a method and must be patented, not copyrighted) and therefore Bnetd is fully within their rights to publish it.

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  5. Sign the petition by drivers · · Score: 3, Informative

    Please sign and spread the word about the Blizzard/DMCA petition.
    http://www.petitiononline.com/blizdmca/

  6. Re:Servers are the key to growth by fireduck · · Score: 2, Informative

    currently (5 pm EST), there are 133771 users on battle.net. on gamespy there are 101650. Blizzard's 6 games draw more online users than all of the FPS games offered by gamespy. I think Blizzard clearly understands how to make demand for their products skyrocket. Besides, EVERY Blizzard title released sets sales records. Diablo 2 set the record for most units initially shipped, at around 4 million (?).

    maybe home-grown servers foster a better community, but they definitely don't beat the demand for Blizzard games (and remember, the majority of Blizzard gamers don't even play online).