Microsoft bans 600K Xbox Live Accounts, More to Follow

Saaking - 22 days 17 hours ago

so 1 million+ banned when it's all said and done? That's way too much. No wonder piracy is rampant on the 360. And that's just in NA.

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ambientFLIER - 22 days 17 hours ago

1 million banned out of 20+ million live users would be 5%, which sounds about right, is not "rampant", and what everyone expected. How about you stfu and go do what you do best, trolling the open zone?

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Sarcasm - 22 days 17 hours ago

"1 million banned out of 20+ million live users would be 5%"

Last I checked, 1 million is still 1 million. That's a very large number of people.

Even if it's 1 million out of 100 million, it's still ONE FRIGGIN MILLION!!!

Granted we're still at 600,000. But if it does hit 1 million, please don't spin like that's not a huge number. Because if 1 million pirates don't buy 10 games each, that's over 10,000,000 copies pirated.

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ambientFLIER - 22 days 16 hours ago

What do I have to be butthurt about? Nothing...

Btw, a number on its own sounds huge, but when you use percentages to put it into perspective, it's a bit different. 5% is nothing compared to how many people pirate PC games, it's probably more like 25% and 25 million people, yet I don't see you talking about them...

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Shepherd 214 - 22 days 16 hours ago

yea its alot. Serves the bastards right.

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Timesplitter14 - 22 days 16 hours ago

That's a lot of delicious pirate tears.

Enough to sink their boat.

DOHOHOHO

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beardpapa - 22 days 15 hours ago

Pretty much ... ban all those guys so there's 600k+ sales of 360s to show for December. Since ... from what I read, a banned account also links to the system, so the system isn't even able to download updates, XBLA, demos, install games to the harddrive, windows media center, and other features relevant to silver and gold members.

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RememberThe357 - 22 days 15 hours ago

Aren't they banning cheaters? I hate cheaters, ban all those assholes. I'm not even on Live anymore and I'm glad to see this.

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freeblue - 22 days 15 hours ago

someone in MS needs to move a little bit more consoles i guess. numbers are slowdown a bit.

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rob6021 - 22 days 15 hours ago

Well Most people who mod their console wouldn't be stupid enough to plug it into the internet so Microsoft can detect their console, so I'm sure your 5% is much higher.

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ABizzel1 - 22 days 15 hours ago

This is a good step towards getting the people pirating games on the 360, yet you people are acting as if MS's banning is wrong. 1,00,000 IS A LOT, that's $60,000,000 dollars per game that developers are missing out on, because people are stealing games. They are hurting developers of good games, because the funds they're losing from pirates could be used to make better games down the line.

The thing is this banning won't stop gamers unless they just have to play online, since they can still play the pirated games offline (unless MS has a super ban). MS should RROPD (Red Ring of Pirate Death) the 360's playing pirated games.

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Soda Popinsky - 22 days 14 hours ago

MS are doing the developers a favor with this. They are the ones gaining the most out of it. MS loses Live customers by banning. But go on, spin into "teh M$ is evilest" as you always do :)

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topdawg122 - 22 days 13 hours ago

This is a good move in the long run, good job MS. Stop them Buttpirates

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Why o why - 22 days 13 hours ago

for the devs as soda said, for current xbl users as there will be less traffic and for ms for those who may feel the need to buy another 360. This really isnt a bad thing

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vhero - 22 days 11 hours ago

thats gotta be more than 5% try about 30% there's no way 20million+ subscribers actually PAY for gold. The rest will be silver and you gotta remember only a small percentage of pirates got banned trust me so if 600k got banned.... Makes you wonder how big piracy is on the 360? Them numbers are really gonna worry 3rd party devs.

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SL1M DADDY - 22 days 10 hours ago

It's a shame that both platforms have not made BD their primary format of choice to help combat the piracy issues. It's a known fact that BD is not a target for rampant piracy yet and has a couple more years left in it.

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kikicub - 22 days 7 hours ago

600,000 new Xbox 360s sold to go around the ban. Way to inflate your numbers, MS!

Now, I do believe they should ban the users, not the consoles. Piracy blows big time.

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tordavis - 22 days 6 hours ago

If they ban the user, they can just make a new Live account. That's why you ban the CONSOLE!

Hurry for Microsoft! I'm enjoying this. I hate piracy.

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BrianC6234 - 22 days 6 hours ago

"1 million banned out of 20+ million live users would be 5%, which sounds about right, is not "rampant","

That sounds rampant to me. So 600,000 modified 360s isn't a lot? Stop with the 5% nonsense. That's a lot of pirates. Why would anyone need to modify their console? The only reason is to play pirated copies of games. The reason PC gaming is dying is a lot of PC gamers don't buy games, they pirate them. Pirating hurts everyone eventually if it isn't dealt with.

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Elven6 - 22 days 6 hours ago

I find it funny how people here try to defend the pirates or claim this is a Microsoft scam.

If you guys like playing with hackers, pirates, etc then by all means go ahead. But Xbox Live is a PAID service and has to guarantee SOME level of quality which can be achieved by banning those who don't play nice.

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PinkUni - 22 days 5 hours ago

microsoft probably makes the system so its available to piracy

they probably let a huge number of people pirate so they could ban them and force them to buy new 360

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frostypants - 22 days 3 hours ago

I fully support Microsoft on this one. This all reminds me of that one exchange in "Liar, Liar":

Greta: "Boss, it's Skull. He knocked over another ATM. This time at knife point. He needs your legal advice."
Fletcher: [picking up phone and shouting] "Stop breaking the law, a**hole!"

I mean these dumbasses commit theft, and they complain when they get called out for it? Gimme a break. They're lucky Microsoft doesn't destroy them financially.

When you're so addicted to gaming that you will resort to theft to play them rather than paying like everyone else, it's time to re-evaluate your life.

@1.2: They should ban both the console AND the user AND the user's registered credit card if applicable.

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mfwahwah - 22 days 2 hours ago

@1.5

"Btw, a number on its own sounds huge, but when you use percentages to put it into perspective, it's a bit different."

News: In local news, 10,000 people are left dead after a local bombing (...)

Me: Oh my God that's terrible :o

News: (...)But the other 90,000 people who were at the scene were left unharmed.

Me: Oh in THAT case **** those 10k that's nothing.

Doesn't make much sense to me to think that way but ooooookay.

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corneliuscrust - 22 days 1 hour ago

with this site?

MS BANS pirates and they're getting slammed because the pirates were there in the first place?

"rampant" or "not rampant" MS is doing the right thing here

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gaffyh - 22 days 1 hour ago

600k less XBL subscriptions, 600k less game sales, but these guys are so stupid, they'll buy another console, pirate games again, and pay for XBL again.

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Elaine Benes - 22 days 1 hour ago

....im usually the first person to drop f bombs in any given scenario.

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IdleLeeSiuLung - 22 days ago

There is nothing wrong with this site, it just happens to attract a lot of fanboys. Since there are far more Sony fanboys then there are MS, you see the state here.

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glennc - 22 days ago

i love how a ps3 fanboy can spin this to MS wantng more console sales.

classic n4g

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f789790 - 21 days 21 hours ago

I love modding. Not because of pirating but because it opens up so many options.

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sikbeta - 21 days 18 hours ago

Maybe It has to do with MW2 in some way, kodick advice them to hunt gaming Pirates to not see teh salez affected in any way, but they aren't f*cking people that bought MW2 before release date right?

Well at least we have real confirmation about piracy in the xbox, zealots deny it al the time

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indysurfn - 21 days 17 hours ago

I have a friend that has had his modded from early summer, and he said his machine is disabled for online, but not his GOLD account. That jives with another story that said they where going to ban machines. I think they are trying to allow people that get banned to get legit machines. But allow them to stay live customers.

My friend is PISSED! I tried to warn him. Anyway he is the only person I know that DID get their machine modded. I know another that WAS planning, and seeking a modder. Not anymore!

This is kinda funny that they waited until JUST before modern warfare came out! People that thought they where going to play it free on live got a rude awakening. Now they will have to buy the game AND a machine. If they want to play it online. Strangely the gold account is just fine!

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The Creep - 22 days 17 hours ago

once your banned you have to get a whole new 360 altogether

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Godmars290 - 22 days 16 hours ago

At least until pirates figure out a a way to change a 360's ID. If the ever.

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edwineverready - 22 days 16 hours ago

Well they just sold another 600.000 Xbox360. They just saved the holidays.

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qface64 - 22 days 15 hours ago

really?
wow i thought you just had to pay like for another XBL account or something
that is much worse

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vhero - 22 days 11 hours ago

Thats the whole point they always do the banning sprees before the holidays to boost console sales nothing more. It will backfire this year though thanks to the lower price PS3 it will drive consumers away as most them people will trade in their 360's.

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corneliuscrust - 22 days 1 hour ago

with a modded console know playing online is playing with fire...just a matter of time

I'm willing to bet most of them will just keep right on pirating and playing offline.

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kingnick - 21 days 19 hours ago

Look at it logically, they (pirates) got the 360 is the first place so they could pirate games, why are they now going to buy a PS3 and games (which are generally more expensive and harder to trade-in, at least in Aus).

The way some people spin news around here you'd think they work for Microsoft/Nintendo/Sony.

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sikbeta - 21 days 18 hours ago

Yeah, but they might think to pay to play online and with the PS3 you don't have a fee to pay like that so they can consider it, piracy is getting more and more harder to do, by the next gen a single firmware will f*ck (ban) a modded console and there goes your piracy b*tch lol

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kingnick - 21 days 18 hours ago

If anything they will get another 360 and use that for legit, online gaming.

There are people who will buy two of a console and pirate all the games they're not interested in playing online for one and keep the other for legit online gaming because it is still cheaper then buying dozens of games.

Only consoles I've got modded were PS1 & 2 to import games such as Final Fantasy X International that were never released in Australia.

Being in the PAL region isn't that much of an issue this gen for the PS3 and Xbox360. No mods overcome the region locking on 360 making them of 0% interest to me.

I would buy more games if the Xbox360 was region free but because it isn't I'm just more selective when deciding what games to buy.

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Hisiru - 22 days 17 hours ago

I think it's the console. They will have to buy another console if they want to play online.

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itchy18 - 22 days 16 hours ago

wtf man? why would they ban your console when you payed for it? my god. that's horrible man. so what did you do? buy another one?

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iHEARTboobs - 22 days 16 hours ago

..since that's what is modded. But you can still play pirated games on it, just not on LIVE. You'd have to get a new console to play online.

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AverageBOT - 22 days 17 hours ago

Well duh, its almost christmas and all the little kids are gonna have to have mommy and daddy buy them another one for christmas because they cant use their old one...its how MS gets all its sales, well that and all the RRoD consoles.

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WenisWagon - 22 days 15 hours ago

That's more than the total number of accounts on the playstation network. Just goes to show how popular Xbox Live really is.

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Pirateogta - 22 days 14 hours ago

Then you're not a true gamer.

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topdawg122 - 22 days 13 hours ago

Support those that make these games for you, freakin buttpirate. Good move by MS

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4point7BillionLoss - 22 days 10 hours ago

Think piracy is a good thing....

no wonder Sony lost $4.7 Billion ..... idiots

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Lykon - 22 days 4 hours ago

pirateogta .... depends on yr definition of a "true gamer" . i don't mod hardware and don't use pirate software but in this case i have sympathy for the 360 modders , i've observed how M$ opertate tho from licensing thier pc software on a yearly basis to selling consoles that break, they dominate and control as much as possible, am so grateful for the quality alternative, which i support fully and honestly.

top dawg ... you homophobic moron, i can see xbox live is the right place for you, stay there.

4 piont ... im not saying that piracy is good , but in this case i think the greater wrong has been done by M$.

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AngryTypingGuy - 21 days 18 hours ago

Lykon, you are a retard. Not just a retard, but one of the most retarded among the retarded.

How can you say a company disgusts you for penalizing people who pirate their software? You later say that you don't like how they license their PC software...but that is their prerogative and it doesn't change the fact that people are stealing. If you like Sony better, that's cool...but to support those that are modding consoles and stealing games is just dumb.

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Lykon - 20 days 5 hours ago

"Lykon, you are a retard. Not just a retard, but one of the most retarded among the retarded."

angrytypingguy LMAO ,,, funny . oh come on man were in the open zone, let your inner 14 yr old out. I hate M$ , they are banning 1,000,000 of thier own live subscribers . That is funny sh1t, thats one point to sony. and i just seen some other news about sony being arrogant. Come on xbots , own the truth....the 360 break, M$ have been on the wrong side of the law so many times with illegal marketing practices etc , thier software fails and thier employees are pig dog ugerly overeating stressed execs with no mind of thier own. come on. I know the japs bombed pearl harbour and all that but hey they make the best console (as well as the worst ie the wii) GET REAL.

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Ninji - 22 days 16 hours ago

Tell your friend of a friend of a sister of a friend of a friend congrats on their pilot's license.

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MrAnonymous - 22 days 11 hours ago

making them buy another one? you mean ms has someone with a gun to every pirates heads forcing them to buy another xbox? wow thats news to me

modders knew what they were doing was illegal and anyone that says otherwise is pretty idiotic in my eyes...and obviously punishment follows when criminal is caught

if they buy another xbox then so be it...but this could also mean that ps3 gets some former xbox-only console owners especially with its current price

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4point7BillionLoss - 22 days 10 hours ago

how can oh boy you can speak you can

Sony Fail Droid alert ...

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tawak - 22 days 4 hours ago

now you get it,people who buys another doesn't know this

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tojfrd7931z - 22 days 5 hours ago

And get banned again!

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