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EA Blocks 'Origin' Access In Six Countries, Citing US Embargoes (pcgamer.com)
An anonymous reader writes: "In compliance with US embargoes and sanctions laws, Origin is not available in Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Sudan, Syria, and Ukraine (Crimea region)," a community manager from EA posted in September. Engadget calls it "a reminder of the risks you take when buying copy-protected game downloads... Even if you started your account elsewhere, you aren't allowed to either visit the Origin store or use any of your purchased games."
Sunday an employee at EA's Origin game store commented "This isn't an EA-specific issue -- it's an issue that impacts all companies offering services that are covered by trade embargoes." But since the U.S. lifted sanctions on Myanmar in September, EA "is internally reviewing the situation... It's unclear to me whether we can do anything for residents of other countries that are still similarly embargoed, but I'll bring the topic up for discussion internally."
Sunday an employee at EA's Origin game store commented "This isn't an EA-specific issue -- it's an issue that impacts all companies offering services that are covered by trade embargoes." But since the U.S. lifted sanctions on Myanmar in September, EA "is internally reviewing the situation... It's unclear to me whether we can do anything for residents of other countries that are still similarly embargoed, but I'll bring the topic up for discussion internally."
What's the status of the Cuban embargo? I know you can get Cuban rum in the US now, and there are travel commercials heavily promoting flights from Fort Lauderdale to Cuba on Radionomy internet stations (like almost every commercial break).
EA's game servers were down several hours yesterday, affecting dozens of games (I play Simpsons Tapped Out lol). I wonder if this was a DDOS response attack against EA, or if they totally screwed up their access block and ended up blocking everyone?
https://twitter.com/AskEASuppo...
Better known as 318230.
If you're not in a first world country. Pirate all your games just in case.
Actually that's true for first world countries too. Never know when ea will fuck you.
EA GAMES - we fuckup everything
EA has always had DRM/copy protection as far back as Starflight and the infamous code-wheel.
Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
Last year, UMass had suddenly cited compliance to refuse graduate students form Iran. http://college.usatoday.com/20... It's bizarre when civic and corporate entities enforce laws that even the government doesn't ask them too
US law says they shouldn't have SOLD them a copy of the game in the first place. Taking their money is not legal. Cutting them off (especially when sanctions and embargos have been lifted against some countries on the list) doubly so.
Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
A sad reminder of how the first sale doctrine is now a long forgotten memory.
Are users even getting a refund?
.. with foreign elections, ..
Whatever one has a problem with that is up to each and everyone I guess. I have absolutely nothing against American citizens or the American life-style but it's food for thought it the situation was the other way around:
* Sanctions against the USA.
* Pakistan and Afghans drones which bombed in the other direction (you see, I can't even write the sentence as it should be written because if I did I'm sure some US filter would catch that and flag me as suspicious and super-dangerous.)
* Got invaded to have the ruling government replaced by something else, possibly nothing.
* Other nations trying to influence the election outcome (we really have a bit of that with Russia and Trump, how much does Russia care beyond just being somewhat amused? I don't know!
Is the purpose that the citizens in those nations will wake up and riot and demand a change of their leaders? How likely is that result? Has it been the result anywhere so far?
Of course here in Sweden I would just be happy if someone helped us remove our ruling elite but in most scenarios I can understand if people get pissed.
You are amusing that the game was purchased in the country with the embargo.
Here is a little clue ... people travel and buy stuff all over the world .
EA took these people's money. When they did that EA violated the US embargo. So that ship has sailed. EA broke US sanctions.
Now EA has removed access to the games people in these countries bought and won't refund them. That doesn't undo EA's sanction breaking, it just heaps upon it the act of fleecing the customers from these countries who paid money for the games in good faith. EA is punishing innocent people for an illegal act by EA.
EA needs to refund these people's money and talk to the US government about what fines EA will have to pay for THEIR misdeeds.
Corporation, n. An ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility. - Ambrose Bierce
Not Ukraine. Historically it was never part of Ukraine.
Except for the fact that Russia gave it to Ukraine.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
https://www.wilsoncenter.org/p...
Historically it wasn't part of Russia until the last time they aggressively took it over. It was also made part of Ukraine (by the Soviets) before most people in Crimea were born because "the commonality of the economy, the proximity, and close economic and cultural relations between the Crimean region and the Ukrainian SSR".
1954:
"Decree of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet transferring the Crimea Province from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR.
Taking into account the integral character of the economy, the territorial proximity and the close economic and cultural ties between the Crimea Province and the Ukrainian SSR, the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet decrees:
To approve the joint presentation of the Presidium of the Russian SFSR Supreme Soviet and the Presidium of the Ukrainian SSR Supreme Soviet on the transfer of the Crimea Province from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR."
Better known as 318230.
Here's a clue, EA Origin is a digital purchase platform.
Not quite - historically the entire area was almost in confederation with Polish-Lithuania against Russia.
Fuck off with that. You fancy Russian rule?
Sovereign nations and peoples isn't a choice?
It's one super-power/bully or the other?
Do you really think Afghanistan wouldn't have been happier if the Russian occupation in the early 80s had been unopposed by the USA and had successfully prevented their government from collapsing?
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Fuck off with that. You fancy Russian rule?
Our ass-hole of unelected primary minister here in Sweden can't even say that Saudi-Arabia is an undemocratic unequal inhumane non-free terrorist-supporting unprogressive barbaric hell-hole of a dictatorship, or even just ONE of those words because he's so afraid to stuck a label onto someone else at-least as long as they are Muslim because this i Sweden of political correctness and Marxist extremism including feminism and anti-white anti-racism, if it were Russia, Poland, Hungary, Austria, GB or Denmark and occasionally the US if we don't have a desperate need to lick ass it could had happen but of course not the conservatist non-free hell-holes in the middle-east or Africa because calling them out for it would almost be like doing what Hitler did!!
Of course Saudi-Arabia is pretty equal to us! Just different! Though of course soon enough we will be more equal with all the fucking Muslims they bring here and with that Islam, Islamization and Muslim harassment of everything non-Islamic and non-Muslim.
Yeah. Try to tell a woman she can't be hired for a job as a taxi driver in Sweden and see how that work politically ...
Or that no Mosques and Muslim propaganda should be allowed.
Or that homosexuals should be killed or whatever. See how far that gets you here!
But I guess the ideological values are just national? As the little authoritarian socialist national fascist dictator (Stefan Löfven) wants it? Can't really have values and believe in them just as is without a nation? Saudi-Arabia should have theirs whatever it is and all Swedes should have his whatever that is because he's the ruler of the nation after all?! It's such a fucking joke. Traitors of the people should be dealt with - capital punishment is fine in Saudi-Arabia you say?
Crimea democratically voted to cede back to "Mother Russia"
For anybody who believes that, I've got some prime beachfront property in Izhevsk you might be interested in...
Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
All true with the exception of the cultural relations, Crimea even when part of Ukraine was still more culturally associated with Russia. My Wife used to live in Crimea for a couple of years in the mid 2000's and even then it seemed pretty bizarre that it was part of the Ukraine instead of Russia as most people their saw themselves culturally as Russians.
Who wants to purchase DRMd spyware shit from EA in the first place? Give them your money only to be treated like shit? This makes no sense.
If it isn't on GOG or available directly without DRM strings it might as well not exist.
So can you tell us what happened in Crimea? Because I live in Canada and although my good government insists that Russia "invaded" Crimea, that's not what I saw in the news. The news reported a referendum and the referendum was won overwhelmingly by the people who wanted to leave Ukraine. I know the Western narrative is that the referendum was a fraud, but considering there was no revolt or even any significant protest in Crimea after that referendum, it seems obvious to me this Western narrative is false.
And you know what? If a referendum was also held in the Eastern Ukraine part controlled by the rebels, I'm pretty sure the result would also be to join Russia.
Of course you have the right to believe the Western propaganda, but then I've got some prime beachfront property you might be interested in...
Eventually all DRM servers on the net will go down, and your wonderful collection of games will not be accessible any longer.
Not that I'm actually motivated enough to check on this...but I'm willing to bet that Steam blocks these same countries. I don't mind giving EA flack where flack is due, but the law is the law. This has nothing to do with EA and more to do with the US government. If Valve isn't adhering to the law, they are at risk of being sanctioned, just like EA would be with origin. That being said, EA is still a sack of shit.
Izhevsk has a nice pond with some quite beautiful beachfront locations. Disclaimer: I actually lived there.
This implies that DRM and "software as a service" can be used for political ends. Sure it'll give instant results but it will deter people from buying those products and services, and encourage home-grown solutions. Not a good move for the US but maybe good for diversity.
The news reported a referendum and the referendum was won overwhelmingly by the people who wanted to leave Ukraine.
Under the watchful eye of Russian troops who conveniently forgot their proper uniforms, yes.
Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
Not quite - historically the entire area was almost in confederation with Polish-Lithuania against Russia.
The name "Polish-Lithuania" is wrong, the country was named "Rzeczypospolita Obojga Narodów" ("The Republic/Commonweath of Both Nations"), which consisted of two parts in an union: "Lithuania" (hardly any connection with present-day "Lithuania" that's Samogitia with a sliver of old Lithuania's territory (which was mostly Belarus) and speaks renamed Samogitian instead of old Lithuanian) and "Korona" which the "Russian" voivodship (aka Ukraine -- barbarians from the east later stolen even the name) was in the middle of. Poland geographically was only a small part of Korona (albeit economically dominant).
The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
They licensed it, Crimea is just like software. I'm guessing that Ukraine didn't read even read the EULA.
Next time they should just pirate a region.
* Sanctions against the USA.
So... no more H1-Bs, outsourcing and the price of oil would increase? DO WANT!
* Pakistan and Afghans drones which bombed in the other direction
I hope they would go after the evil execs of companies or maybe the KKK. Getting it wrong sucks but thems the breaks.
* Got invaded to have the ruling government replaced by something else, possibly nothing.
Sounds like that would finally be enough to get people to fight for their rights instead of accepting the status quo!
* Other nations trying to influence the election outcome
So far all they have done is exposed wrongdoing within our government. That's something I like!
I gotta say, it seems like it could be worse.
Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
Indeed. Thing is...EA made it look like it was purchased.
The comment about "embargoed" from EA is specious. I initially "rented" elsewhere- and you assured me I'd have access to it.
Now...I can't have access to it because I'm off in the Ukraine? Riiight.
So... no more H1-Bs, outsourcing and the price of oil would increase? DO WANT!
Not being allowed to export or import goods kinda suck. Though it's less of a problem for the US since it's so large and in the front-end right now you can be very self-reliable.
I guess eventually you'd lose your edge if you didn't have access to the global market though. And for something like North Korea which doesn't have shit or even Iran considering how little those nations produce beyond pumping up the oil ..
I hope they would go after the evil execs of companies or maybe the KKK. Getting it wrong sucks but thems the breaks.
KKK is just fine but I get your point, getting rid of trash may be nice. Out in reality chances are their families and friends and so on risk being bombed too I guess. Fair?
Sounds like that would finally be enough to get people to fight for their rights instead of accepting the status quo!
I don't know which of the rights you're talking about, maybe it's both positive and negative freedoms, and yeah, you need to preserve your negative freedoms, you're one of the very few nations which actually kinda have them :), "right to live of others" I don't really see as a positive, we already have that together with pretty open access for anyone who want to take some of it and it suck. Sure it make society more equal but don't do it as a national project where anyone on the planet is invited.
it's less of a problem for the US since it's so large and in the front-end right now you can be very self-reliable.
that's something i would like to see and would pay for instead of global exploitation and unnecessary dependency that props up nations like syria.
KKK is just fine
i'm certain that people from pakistan and afghanistan would disagree.
I get your point, getting rid of trash may be nice. Out in reality chances are their families and friends and so on risk being bombed too I guess. Fair?
absolutely. there should be a price to associate with evil and some people might actually start shunning these bastards like they should have been doing already.
you need to preserve your negative freedoms, you're one of the very few nations which actually kinda have them
and here i thought you didn't like us. ;)
Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
Well they are certainly welcome to try but I imagine we both know how well such a course of action would go for anyone attempting it. Economic sanctions against the US would honestly be harder on the rest of the world that it would for us. It would trigger a massive global economic crisis.
As for any sort of military action against us, especially from nations like Pakistan and Afghanistan, well good luck with that. Not like we have responded with massive amounts of force or anything in the past, to such attacks.
I browse on +1 so AC's need not respond, I won't see it.
that's something i would like to see and would pay for instead of global exploitation and unnecessary dependency that props up nations like Syria.
Personally I think that it make sense to make things where's it's most efficient and from those who are best at it. Swedish trucks for Spanish tomatoes, or would you had wanted it the other way around? =P. ..
It's very unlikely that I'll be able to get a Swedish-made processor and even if I did
Also it brings the world closer which is retarded when people like our prime-minister have to keep a good relation with Saudi-Arabia even though the rule there is terrible simply because he likely don't want to ruin export opportunities and what not but having a standard and stand-point comes with a price - but maybe it's worth it? Anyway trade brings the world closer and make us more dependent on each other which also may force us to accept and understand the others.
Why is Syria and Iran worse than Iraq and Saudi-Arabia? Isn't it simply because they aren't US allies strategically?
How would our own leaders deal with it if we tried to force them out?
Not that I know all that much about the politics and actions in those nations so I really shouldn't speak all too much about it. Like I don't know how evil Ghadaffi was vs say Saddam when he was US ally or the Saud, I know he was for some sort of socialism, direct-democracy and an African and Arab union and I'm from a nation where I'm pretty used to the former, direct-democracy sounds great and if the people of Africa want to unite and work together politically for instance then I'm not here to stop them.
i'm certain that people from pakistan and afghanistan would disagree.
There are no KKK in Pakistan or Afghanistan though are there? The US is a special case I guess since it's a colony by itself on stolen land from the Indians and Mexicans and with black guys brought over against their will from Africa and it's not all that far to hate at-least those Indians, Africans and Mexicans and maybe Mexicans should have as much right to the land at-least as Europeans.
I don't really see how moving some other people in when it's trash is a good thing though. I've got full understanding for if the Indians and people of Mexico didn't liked the Europeans. I wouldn't be against them arguing the European colonization of their land even if it would be "hate-speech" - it's rather understandable and something which need to be ventilated. As for attacks .. Well.. In the US you own your land and property and have the right to defend it right? What's different with a nation you own together?
Can you own land? Definitely. .. :D. It's so fucking stupid. It could be done globally but then again how fair would it be? Why do the one who don't work deserve things from the one who does? You're free to argue about banks and those who don't work for your money but at-least keep the result of LABOUR out of it. Why should someone be the slave of someone else? As for equal salary for all work it has enormous efficiency issues, but yeah, maybe with enough resources and automation we could allow for that to happen, and morally the resources of the planet should belong to all of us and at-least automation isn't slavery of living individuals (including animals, let them be FFS.)
Does nations exist? Definitely.
Does citizens of a nation exist? Definitely.
Someone are free to argue that shouldn't be the case and that we're all humans of the planet and should be able to roam it freely and I'm actually totally fine with that but if so don't make a national tax-driven welfare system for anyone in your nation because guess what will happen?
absolutely. there should be a price to associate with evil and some people might actually start shunning these bastards like they should have been doing already.
I don't think so and who are there to decide who's e
Personally I think that it make sense to make things where's it's most efficient and from those who are best at it.
It does but I also think all nations should strive to be self-sustaining.
Why is Syria and Iran worse than Iraq and Saudi-Arabia? Isn't it simply because they aren't US allies strategically?
oh this is embarrassing, I wrote Syria when I means Saudi-Arabia. Anyway, I think any nation that's being propped up by simply extracting oil should be cut off because they aren't doing the world any favors by extracting it at all! We need to move to electric cars charged using solar/wind/nuclear/etc and use bioplastics instead of garbage plastic that cakes our oceans.
How would our own leaders deal with it if we tried to force them out?
by "them" do you mean our own leader? we try to force them out on every election but if you mean a violent revolution, it would be lots of cops and the army if needed.
There are no KKK in Pakistan or Afghanistan though are there?
that's besides the point! this was a hypothetical situation to start with and i'm choosing their hypothetical targets. :P
I'm just born here and forced into the system by birth. What kind of shitty contract is that? I want out of it.
The grass is always greener on the other side. ;)
Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
Looking at the countries in the list just makes me laugh.
Cuba & Iran: Didn't the recent moved by Obama really make this outdated? The Iran deal has been signed, and so has the Cuban embargo been lifted. So what stops EA from selling in these 2 countries?
Sudan - haven't they let non-Muslim South Sudan secede, and hasn't the war on Darfur ended?
North Korea & Syria - the only ones in this list that make sense
Crimea - how does this even make sense? Either they sanction Russia (in which case, prepare to write off that market), or they do nothing. Mentioning Ukraine in the sanctions makes it look like it's the government in Kiev that's at fault
Good that they are reviewing Myanmar, but they might want to take another look at all of the others, except North Korea and Syria
They would have been happier had they been conquered in the 19th century, like their Turkic neighbors north of them - Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, et al. Then their people today would have been similarly de-Islamized, and living a standard of life similar to them. Too bad the evil Brits got in the way
Except that Russia hasn't been commie for now 25 years
Uh, if by Russia, you mean the RSFSR, then no, it wasn't them who made that decision. From the article you cited:
On 19 February 1954 the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union issued a decree transferring the Crimean Oblast from the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic to the Ukrainian SSR. According to the Soviet Constitution (article 18), the borders of a republic within the Soviet Union could not be re-drawn without the agreement of the republic in question. The transfer was approved by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union; however, according to article 33 of the constitution, the Presidium did not have the authority to do so. The constitutional change (articles 22 and 23) to accommodate the transfer was made several days after the decree issued by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
Translation of the above article: The Soviet Union took Crimea out of Russia (without the consent of the latter) and gave it to Ukraine. Of course, since it was part of one part of the USSR going to another, it made for no international controversy.
However, after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, there were a lot of Soviet citizens who were natives of one country but found themselves stuck in another. Like Kazakhstan was something like 47% Russian. Since then, though, a lot of them have returned to their native countries: Kazakhstan is today only 23% Russian, as opposed to 47% then.
Crimea was a unique case where the peninsula was territorially a part of Ukraine after the 1991 disintegration of the Soviet Union, but populated by Russians. There was a territorial dispute b/w Moscow and Kiev, but that's been there b/w quite a number of ex Soviet Republics e.g. Uzbekistan and Tajikistan over the possession of the historic Muslim cities of Samarqand and Buqhara. But what brought this to a head was Ukraine's decision to go from a bilingual setup, where Russian would be a recognized official language alongside Ukrainian - to one where it would just be Ukrainian. That's what brought things to a head b/w Moscow and Kiev, and what got Russian troops rolling into Crimea, as well as the Donbass. Otherwise, those 2 countries could have negotiated a settlement where the linguistic rights of Russians would have been respected - at least in Crimea and Donbass, if not in Kiev
Historically it wasn't part of Russia until the last time they aggressively took it over. It was also made part of Ukraine (by the Soviets) before most people in Crimea were born because "the commonality of the economy, the proximity, and close economic and cultural relations between the Crimean region and the Ukrainian SSR".
The Crimean Tatars, who were the target of the Russians, were not a peaceful people just wanting to live in their own country. They ran their own slave trade of Russians and other Slavic slaves, and on one occasion, burnt down Moscow. So they were a real threat to Russia, even aside from the fact that they were vassals of the Ottoman Turks. So Russia conquered their territory (which incidentally, wasn't just the Crimean peninsula, but the entire Russian/Ukrainian Black Sea coast) and resettled it w/ Cossacks and the like. The Tatars got what they bargained for - both under the Tsars, as well as under Stalin.
Krushchyev, who was Ukrainian, wanted to give his home republic a gift, and gave them Crimea totally bypassing the RSFSR, which was Soviet Russia at the time. The above quotation of the Supreme Soviet is nothing more than presidium-speak for his pet cause that day
Ukraine as a country did not exist before the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, that ended Russia's participation in WWI. But that being said, both Ukraine and Belarus have minor linguistic differences w/ Russia: there are those terms Great Russia (= the Russians), White Russia (= Belarus) and Little Russia (= Ukraine). I mean, wouldn't the Kievian Rus, which was one of the originating tribes of Russia, be considered the foundation of Ukraine as well?
I'm not denying the capability of the USA. :)
The question is just whatever it should be done
"With great power comes great responsibility"? ;D
It does but I also think all nations should strive to be self-sustaining.
It's of course safer that way.
Then again just one more reason the globalists wouldn't want to have that =P
oh this is embarrassing, I wrote Syria when I means Saudi-Arabia. Anyway, I think any nation that's being propped up by simply extracting oil should be cut off because they aren't doing the world any favors by extracting it at all! We need to move to electric cars charged using solar/wind/nuclear/etc and use bioplastics instead of garbage plastic that cakes our oceans.
True true. I said I liked / loved Americans and your society and that's one thing I don't like about it though. The kinda disrespectful behavior against the environment. People just shooting bullet after bullet into something, blowing things up, shooting things into pieces, less recycling, land-fills, oil fracking, .. Sweden is likely more messy now than it used to be, or at-least than what it could had been with just natives living here. Like 20-30 years ago you'd see these stickers saying "Hå Sverige rent" as in "Keep Sweden clean" and they they had this image:
http://kunskapsfestivalen.se/w...
which speaks volumes.
Recycling and sorting garbage is large here and and rest garbage are usually burned (and then used to heat homes) which of course isn't completely out of environmental impact that either, plus sadly the import garbage from other nations and burn it which likely pollute Sweden so that's shit. Before about half of our electricity came from hydro-power and the other half from nuclear so IMHO much cleaner energy. Though anti-nuclear power was a thing here too and still is and of course hydro-power is harmful for fishes and destroy nature somewhat too.
I just think the "I can do whatever I want so I will" attitude is harmful for the environment =P, a clean and undestroyed environment has its value after all.
Iran at-least have some form of "democracy" I think? Though with religious rule and picks too .. So .. not really all that much. But Saudi-Arabia of course definitely isn't one. Saudi-Arabia is like one of the places in the world where I would be least interested to live because it's less free. Syria has had the same leaders for long too but what's the difference between the two really? That Syria is/was more socialist? Ally to Russia? But from a freedom / rule perspective? Of course lately they have attacked their own citizens but I assume Saudi-Arabia would try to too if someone tried to remove their royal family.
by "them" do you mean our own leader? we try to force them out on every election but if you mean a violent revolution, it would be lots of cops and the army if needed.
Yeah, or ours.
And yes that's how I assume it would had been and as such I don't find it weird or any difference that that is what is also happening in Syria. Of course the people in charge wouldn't give it away without a fight.
Here in Sweden we have a bunch of parties in the government and usually we've been ruled by a social-democratic (mostly) majority government possibly with support by someone else but 2006-2014 the ruling government what that made up of an alliance of four center-right (economical) parties. In the last election the Sweden democrats had 13% of the votes meaning that neither block could gain majority rule and the Sweden democrats said they would vote on the budget form the right which would either force the left which could form a larger government to rule on a right budget or just handle over rule to the right government. Neither of those sides want the Sweden democrats to get any power though because they hate Swedes and they like power so they made an agreement that instead of voting on their own budget they wouldn't vote at all if the other side was larger this election period and t
It's like trimming your nails with a chain saw. Can it be done? Sure, but it's probably going to cause you more problems than it's worth to try.
I browse on +1 so AC's need not respond, I won't see it.
I think Stargate Command blocked it.