Sony & Federal Trade Commission [message #79308] |
Wed, 31 January 2007 08:50 |
Neil
Messages: 1645 Registered: April 2006
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Senior Member |
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Sony settles with FTC
The Federal Trade Commission says Sony BMG went too far with anti-piracy
and other measure that "...limited the devices on which the music could be
played, restricted the number of copies that could be made, and contained
technology that monitored their listening habits to send them marketing messages."
It also made customer computers susceptible to hackers. All of this should
have been made clear to customers beforehand, says the FTC. Once on a customer's
computer, the software was said to be difficult to remove, and this led to
a requirement that the company reimburse customers up to 150 dollars for
damage done to their computer while attempting to do so. Customers also have
until 6/31/07 to exchange the CDs. "Installations of secret software that
create security risks are intrusive and unlawful," said FTC Chairman Deborah
Platt Majoras. "Consumers' computers belong to them, and companies must ade!
quately disclose unexpected limitations on the customary use of their products
so consumers can make informed decisions regarding whether to purchase and
install that content."
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