It's hadly that, man; it's a damned sight better than that. It's hard-hitting analysis on stories that require it (usually the controversial ones where some company is trying it on) and some people whinge about it incessantly.
They should try shooting the company that's pulling this shit, not the messenger (me) that's just warned them about it! Also, you'll find that many news stories have a certain amount of commentary/analysis weaved into the story. The fact I word it more strongly seems to lift some people right out of their comfort zones.
You consider it "shit" at the moment and therefore it's important is the way it's handled. And it's not just wording it strongly: All the quotes below are taken from the Witcher 2
post:
Yes, really - 100% of those pesky "pirates" will be brought to book! The game's studio, CD Projekt RED (CDP Red) isn't letting on how it's doing so, either, claiming it's a "trade secret" and not giving out the name of the external company that's implementing the anti-piracy technology, claiming that to do so would damage their business. Seriously.
Right here you ridicule the entire idea of "pirates" and that "Seriously." short sentence is nothing but an aggrevator.
The problem with identifying a dodgy copy of something is that the main info they have to track them down, are the IP addresses of the suspect. This has been shown many times over now, not to be a reliable tracker of who's doing what. At the most, it will pinpoint the account holder that it relates to, in some cases. However, this outfit reckons they've nailed this dealbreaking problem once and for all - and without any evidence on how they go about it. Snake oil, perhaps?
The IP address thing is a very valid complaint, but then you ridicule the idea that they have discovered a new method for doing it.
Also notice how they covered themselves by saying "At least we have not received any information as of now which would indicate something like that." So, they could be targeting the innocent after all, they just haven't heard about it. Nice.
Again you are ridiculing the mere thought of them actually trying to be honest and only go after actual pirates. That too is actually a very valid concern, but by that little "Nice." at the end it seems like you're just amused by the thought.
1 There is no technology and this is just smoke and mirrors (with a dash of snake oil) designed to extort marks into coughing up money to make CD Projekt go away
A possibility but you word it in such a snarky way I just can't be bothered about it. This is how you want it to be, this is what you believe in, this is what shines through the entire piece.
2 They really do have some "tracking technology" in their games. Now, what could this be? Well, as they're not telling us, it's only right and proper to be highly suspicious of what it actually does and to put it in the same class as common criminal malware. This is because the only logical way that they can track the individual in any semi-reliable manner, is to lift personal information off their computer. Let's speculate on how this could be achieved. It would include stuff such as email logins, bank logins, Facebook logins, network traffic sniffing to read the contents of highly personal and confidential messages and any other login where personal information such as a name and address might be kept. You name it, they might be doing it. This kind of activity is of course highly illegal everywhere, so no wonder they'd want to keep quiet about it. It makes traditional draconian DRM schemes such as SecuROM and the like seem like a walk in the park by comparison, doesn't it?
They are not telling us, therefore we paint up the worst case scenario in which they actually do illegal things. And then you end it with a question comparing it to something else that was very controversial and says this is much much much worse, even though there is not a single fact that support anything you say in this paragraph.
So, do you really want to install software that does some or all of this on your computer, just to play a lousy video game? Obviously, that's a resounding NO!
"But do you
WANT the Nazi's to win?" Extreme comparasion, but pretty valid still. You are pretty much saying straight up it's all or nothing, with, again, no facts at all that say anything about it.
Regardless of how they track down suspects, this exercise is extortion with a legal veneer, pure and simple. This is because there haven't been any
independent studies showing that "piracy" reduces profits and makes companies go to the wall - they have all been big media industry sponsored. However, there are several independent studies that show it does nothing, or actually enhances sales by indirect means, such as reputation spread by word of mouth. Of course, the powerful media cartels based in America, are able to buy government reps all over the world to make them pass corrupt laws as if all this "piracy" really was hurting them – three strikes, PROTECT IP & SOPA are just three examples. Consider the blockbusting sales
here and
here of Modern Warfare 3 recently. This will be the most "pirated" game of all, yet it still outsold all of Hollywood put together...
Here we have conspiracies that the "media cartels" in the US buys out governments everywhere. A long and hard look on whether there are cartels in the US or not and what they do would be an interesting read, but you just assume that's the way it is. You might have read about it somewhere, but I have no means of saying anything about it as you don't provide sources for anything. Also you make fun of the idea that piracy hurts anyone and says it even is a benefit in some cases.
There is of course, one sure fire and
legal way to beat a company that tries such dirty tricks: the boycott. Don't buy their products and don't pirate them, then laugh as you watch them go under (all the while still blaming alleged "piracy", of course). I personally wholeheartedly recommend this course of action. Once again
www.techdirt.com is recommended as the site to go to, as they expose abuses like this daily.
And again with the ridicule. And a personal recommandation is always a nice touch. And an official recommendation that "expose" "abuses" daily. The entire paragraph pushes the idea that what you say is TRUE. And again, no facts about it, only a basic assumption and an idea you want to push for.
The entire article assumes that there are media cartels, that the idea that piracy hurts anyone is laughable (and that it even is good for companies!) and that CDP Red is one step away from commiting crimes that would be considered very serious in most governments. It's more than strong wording.
Fear, as you push the fearsome idea of them invading my Facebook and actually anything I can think of ("you name it, they might be doing it"). And I have a very vivid imagination.
Uncertainty, as you use the words "might" a lot. It's a good word. It saves your ass as you only imply things might happen but there is a chance it's happening
right now!
Doubt, goes hand in hand with "might".
IMO as always.
