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RIP Xbox Fitness: Users Will Soon Lose Access To Workout Videos They Bought (arstechnica.com)
insitus quotes a report from Ars Technica: Xbox users who purchased training videos through the Xbox Fitness app probably thought they were buying a workout program they'd be able to use regularly for the life of the Xbox One, at the very least. Instead, those videos will soon be completely unavailable to those who paid for them up front, according to a "sunset" plan announced by Microsoft yesterday evening. Xbox Fitness first launched in late 2013 with the console, offering a Kinect-powered health app that uses the 3D camera to evaluate users' form as they perform the exercises demoed by on-screen video trainers. The app, which provided 30 basic routines for free with an Xbox Live Gold account, will be coming to an end on December 15. The paid content associated with the app will also no longer be available for purchase, and those who purchased it previously will be able to use it for over one more year before the app becomes completely unavailable to download or use on July 1, 2017. What some have found especially upsetting with the news is that Microsoft has yet to announce any plans to compensate users who have paid for content or to provide downloadable versions of paid workouts that can be used after the phase-out date. Thus, many upset users have taken to the sunset announcement post and various other outlets to speak their mind on the situation. "I bought 140$+ worth of content just this year... I don't want a refund, I want to be able to continue to use what I PAID for !!!!!!!!!!!" Xbox Live user QuickSilver wrote.
Fuck you. Die of cancer in a fire.
That is all.
We told you so.
This is just Microsoft once again making certain your bought and paid for content Plays For Sure! (tm)
Learning HOW to think is more important than learning WHAT to think.
...die by the cloud.
They bought a license to let them use it. This is why I don't buy anything in the cloud, if I don't have the physical media then the thing I "bought" can go away at any time.
When I buy a game and "they" take down the multi-player servers, I get it. I can still play the single player game, but can no longer shoot n00bs. In this case, I can no longer sit on the couch eating ice cream while watching Jillian Michaels's ass. They took away my single player game which, had the game been designed correctly, would put exactly 0.0% load on anybody's servers. Of course, the game was poorly designed such that they wanted telemetry on who watched her ass when, hence the game you bought has to go away.
And yeah, I know single player games are going to this model. Wanna guess how many games I've bought that use this model? If you guessed 0.0% then you get a prize.
Stay away from Microsoft digital media purchases! This should absolutely send people running from the Microsoft Windows Store. Whoever thought that this was a good or even plausible idea must be brain-dead. It's the best advertisement for Google Play that I've seen yet!
665: The mark on the forehead of Satan's slightly less evil brother, Stan.
This is far from the first time that Microsoft have totally cut off users from DRM'd content that they have already bought. Its already very well-known that Microsoft clearly feel free to fuck their own customers over anytime they please.
When will people finally get it? If you don't want the risk of your media/games/apps library just disappearing one day, STOP BUYING FROM MICROSOFT. That includes buying any platform (e.g. XBox, Microsoft phones, tablets) that lock you into only buying from the Microsoft Store.
I feel like MS has missed the fact that there are a lot of Xbox users out there that bought the machine specifically for the Kinect and associated content. If I wanted an ultimate gaming platform I would have bought a PC. I bought the Xbox because the Kinect is fun and gets you off the couch. Just because non-gamers don't rant and rave on the internet about Xbox vs PS4 specs doesn't mean they shouldn't have some say about how the platform develops.
For decades we've been seeing that if you buy DRMed shit, you can and will lose access to it at any time, either temporarily (such as DRMed games with activation servers taken offline) or permanently (Walmart DRMed music). These events have been the primary headline on CNN, BBC, and other major news outlets.
By now, if you are still buying DRMed things - either software or hardware - tough shit when you lose access to them. You gave someone else control, so suck it up, bubs. You want a world where that doesn't happen? Buy non-DRMed stuff. There isn't "enough" of it, you say? (1) bullshit, there's more high quality stuff than you'll ever consume in a single human lifetime, and (2) there will be more once it becomes clear to companies that DRM = death in the marketplace. But the message you are sending now is DRM = wild success, so you can't then turn around and bitch that there isn't enough.
You want me to feel sorry you lost access to some DRMed thing you "bought"? Here's the world's smallest violin, playing just for you.
Software companies show us exactly WHY users want physical versions of software, why they want DRM removed.
The fact the console companies have the audacity to charge more for the download versions only makes things worse.
I find it interesting that the Microsoft announcement says "This includes content youâ(TM)ve purchased." Not "subscribed to", "purchased". I wonder where else they used the word "purchased". I'm sure they have some BS in the tiny print, but if the bold print says "purchase" in multiple places ...
It's even more interesting when you contrast it with the way the media conflate copyright infringement with stealing. When someone makes a bootleg copy of a movie, the original is still accessible. When someone steals something from you, you lose access to what has been stolen.
So, when will we read the news "Microsoft will steal workout videos from consumers"?
`echo $[0x853204FA81]|tr 0-9 ionbsdeaml`@gmail.com
Maybe someday they will understand what we "techies" have been complaining about for years. Hackers and gamers don't elicit much sympathy; housewives following workout videos might get a different reaction.
Windows 95 had Rolling Stones "Start Me Up" as their anthem when they launched.
Windows 10 Anthem - by the Police:
Every breath you take
Every move you make
Every bond you break
Every step you take
I'll be watching you.
Every single day
Every word you say
Every game you play
Every night you stay
I'll be watching you.
Oh can't you see .....
You belong to me?
(Every Breath You Take)
I have not much more to say, have trouble believing that Microsoft couldn't secure the rights for 30-something videos or perhaps it's planned both on the short term and steady income.
Also, by using torrent-like downloads on such 'EOL' content, being mild on users with low upload there would be a trade off users could accept (or don't suffer much if they don't know what upload is and have the hard disk space). But maybe they insist all the way on an "app" that streams so that there's no hard disk space consumed, instant access and work on so called "universal" devices.
The Microsoft solutions comes as playing nice to lawyers and accoutants first, the "technical purity" of their platform second perhaps and dead last your customers.
It's very silly, please at least pretend you care. You've even turned off customers with a big, well lit and aerated living room and $90 or something to blow on what you call "universal" content. You might as well still candy and ice cream from children in an early summer afternoon in the park. Invite the local journals and radio stations to come over.
The Act is enforced by the Commerce Commission (a Government body). The Commission can take traders to court if it thinks they have breached the Act. (And it does)
And no, MS can't say that the governing law is Washington state, USA. Well, they can, but it has no effect (see above), and doing so is itself an offence under the act.
That is, if a consumer might reasonably expect that this constituted a sale (and legal precedent in NZ under the CGA has established that means an average, not very well informed consumer), then it's a sale. And Microsoft has a presence in New Zealand and can certainly be fined. The fines are substantial and per incident, so as to discourage writing them off as a cost of doing business.
Disclaimer: I have no idea if this service was even sold in New Zealand. And if it was, it is important to know who sold it. If it was the local games retailer, then they are liable. If it was through Microsoft's on-line store, then they bear responsibility.
A lot of people actually do put up with this crap and will continue to do so, because they think (or actually - they're being told) they need this shit that is being shoved down their throats and up their asses.
Make up your own damn mind. Trust nobody.
... that folks pirate stuff? I have no personal interest in x-box or any apps that run on them (don't own one and have no desire to), but when you treat your customers like shit, then you can't really complain when they treat your product as a freely available commodity. Suck it up MS, you will reap what you sow for previously loyal x-box users.