EA Downplays Spore’s DRM Triggered Piracy Record
Written by Ben Jones on October 01, 2008Spore, love it or loathe it, Will Wright’s new game has stayed in the news in the way his previous games have never managed. The game could also bring about big changes in both DRM and copyright law, as the debate heats up over it’s DRM. While EA puts a brave face on things, as a class action suit is filed.
When last we reported on Spore (a little more than two weeks ago), it had been at the top of the Pirate Bay’s download list for a week. Even now it is still in the top 15 (14th at time of writing). According to our most recent statistics, it would be fair estimation to say that probably close to 1 million copies have been downloaded on BitTorrent now.
EA has downplayed this, naturally. In comments to video game developer site Gamasutra, EA’s Mariam Sughayer said “Stepping aside from the whole issue of DRM, people need to recognize that every BitTorrent download doesn’t represent a successful copy of a game, let alone a lost sale. We’ve talked to people that made several unsuccessful attempts to download the game and ended up with incomplete, slow, buggy or unusable code. In one case, a file identified as Spore contained a virus. To say that every download represents a successful copy of the game –- or that there’s been more than 500K copies downloaded — that’s just not true.”
Of course, it should be pointed out that when TorrentFreak computed the download figures previously, the basis was only a few torrents, all known to be working and virus free, and similarly with figure earlier. TorrentFreak is not new at this, and we know how to tell the difference between an incomplete, a virused, buggy, or even encrypted with a password, and one that would work if downloaded. To attempt to spin it otherwise is rude and condescending, and shows how hard EA is attempting to salvage the reputation of itself, and Spore.
When we suggested a few weeks ago that the DRM was the cause of the high rate of downloads, we said it only hurt legitimate purchasers (and those that steal it) and we are not alone. A class action lawsuit was filed in northern California on September 22nd, targeting EA for the use of SecuROM. The lawsuit asks for damages based on the secret installation of a program, which can adversely affect your system, without telling you. It’s basically the Sony Rootkit debate again.
The lawyer that filed this case, Alan Himmelfarb, told TorrentFreak “People have an absolute right to control what does and what does not get put onto their computers. When companies resort to secret, undisclosed installations – for whatever purpose – they cross a line. Our lawsuit is the result in this case. First there was Sony with its Rootkit. Then there was Ubisoft with Starforce. Now we have EA with SecuROM. In each case, corporate executives failed to see anything wrong with installing a secret, uninstallable, administrative level program directly into the heart of the command center of the computer, so that they could control how you use your computer. So that they could decide what programs you could run, and what hardware you could have installed. All without asking. All without any attempt to obtain your consent. It is simply wrong, and we will continue to bring similar actions against any company that acts as if they obtain ownership rights to a consumer’s computer simply because someone plays their game or listens to their music.”
Thanks to DRM, Spore may well be the most downloaded game of all time, if not now, then in the next month. However, EA sees the facts a bit differently. On their support page dealing with DRM and Spore, they describe why they went with SecuROM
Q: Why are Maxis and EA implementing this new authentication process?
A: This solution serves to protect our software from piracy.
Yeah, it’s worked REALLY well.
Previously: Sony Urges ISPs to Cooperate Against Piracy
Next: Slacker Uprising BitTorrent Takedown Sent to DNS Provider
74 Responses
Every download doesn’t represent a lost sale? Isn’t that what they will usually have us believe?
Yeah. When it’s convenient for the company, every pirated copy represents a lost sale. Everyone knows that’s bull, and most pirates would not or could not spend money on the things they pirate, either because of lack of interest to spend the asked price, or lack of budget to allow purchase of the content. EA has shown their ignorance of the situation, and willingness to go to shameful lengths with their PR.
some people like to try before they buy, not bought any ea game since they dumped earth n beyond. might take a look at spore and if the game is as good as some people reckon it is, then might well buy it. Downside is the 3 or 5 lifetime installs allowed, as people never ever have a broken motherboard or want to upgrade their cpu, which often needs a new mobo and god forbid a hdd failure…
EA’s reaction is interesting. Rare to see a company downplay piracy, and say it doesn’t actually represent lost sales.
So strange. After all, they usually say that piracy is really hurting them.
I think that, if anyone here has bought a copy of Spore, and can’t return it, then they should publicly burn it.
Roze
http://www.28chan.org/fs/
“Every download doesn’t represent a lost sale? Isn’t that what they will usually have us believe?”
Only when it suits them and they need to say that to get maximum damages in court. Now its not in their best interests to admit the DRM caused all these lost sales so they deny it.
Hypocrites of the highest order.
X is the ratio of downloads to lost sales.
X * 10,000,000 > X * 2,000,000
Spore is still the most pirated game with the most lost sales, specifically because of DRM.
@7
That comes out to be:
5x>x
4x>0
x>0
I don’t get it.
Perhaps you meant this?
x*10,000,000 > 2,000,000
?
Spore was going to be the first game I was going to buy since 2006… but after I read about the DRM, I was reminded why I pirate upon the seas of the interweb.
The download did not lead to a lost sale - the lost sale lead to a download.
If it looks like a nigger and talks like one, chances are it is one.
Theres no DRM on child porn and look at how well that does. Comon EA!
@ 8
You have a slight problem:
5x>x 0 1 <— x/x = 1
Five times as many lost sales.
Q.E.D. bitches ;-)
Why play spore when you can get some and grow your own little creatures that will entertain you for hours!
Those there is a restriction on how many times you can play in a week…
When pressed to explain why they’re hurting their customers, they state it’s to ensure they even have a company to serve their customers.
That’s all predicated on the notion you have customers to be around to be served…
Alan Himmelfarb is a f*cking god..
Well they’ve lost me for life. Never buying another EA game again. They know that the would have sold 2 million copies had it not been for their stupid installation and SecuROM DRM. They’re just stupid.
Props to Alan Himmelfarb for making a stand against invasive DRM and for promising to keep fighting it in the future!
Looking forward to seeing EA’s statement on “not all lost sales” being rolled out in future court cases too…
Download spore on pirate bay,play it and working fine.I don’t want to buy a drm game,sorry EA.
@18
Perhaps also hold public burnings of spore labels?
Every download doesn’t represent a lost sale!! sure when we say it it is simply not true.. but when they say it it’s NEWS!!!
Who advises these companies?
Sorry EA im another lost customer. Your malicious invasive software will never see its way onto my computer. Btw i was looking forward to buying crysis warhead… heard about the drm and theres another lost sale to Ubisoft. Wake up you condescending folk at the entertainment software association who actually believe invasive DRM will continue turning profits.
Yarrr I’ll keep sailin at the bay as long as DRM is still on the shelves and accompanied with legal downloads.
@20
Don’t you think it’s time for people to take action already? Don’t listen to those people who say that’s a small issue and that it would be ridiculous - it isn’t small, it isn’t ridiculous to take action. It is high time we did something already.
Roze
http://www.28chan.org/fs/ - a discussion board for file-sharing.
“BitTorrent download doesn’t represent a successful copy of a game, let alone a lost sale.”
So why the fuck do company exec’s bitch about losing money from BitTorrent?
Why is Spore so fun anyways? I played it for like a minute and I was thinking, this game is pointless shit.
it’s a f*cking collection of five little minigames, other companies give such shit away for free, but ea makes you pay 50 USD for it ;o)
Lol @ EA
Sorry Will but you fucked up. Nothing new in this game. Could have been great but it sucks. Rename the game to Bore and give it away for free.
DRM is there to ensure the customer stays safe? F*ck you idiots. DRM is there to try to coaxe us to use what you want us to use. Free up media from that shit and you will see sales rise.
Software pirates are scumbags. You all realize that behind every “evil empire” exec there’s a thousand blue collar employee’s just trying to eek out a living for themselves and their family’s, right? This is NOT like other industries, where you can have a relatively small group of individual’s ALL making large amounts of money. Game teams are massive 100+ person efforts that are extremely expensive to produce. Piracy is stealing, plain and simple. You download a game, you play it, IF you don’t buy it, you’ve stolen it. Period.
@27
Waaahh! Sounds like someone needs their diapers changed. :P
Oh, and it’s e-a-k and f-a-m-i-l-i-e-s, not eek and family’s.
Eek is what you probably say when Mommy comes down to the basement and catches you looking at those “special” websites.
you sending him to “special” websites? but my mommy said i should never go there! *giggles*
Hi
Some of the DRM protections fucking up my vista 64bits, they install hidden 32bits drivers that is unsigned after that I need do full reinstall of vista and other program
I will never buy a game or software cthat have DRM or other protections that install a hidden drv. Each program or games I am exaime the installer and decmpress it. then using own patch or 3d party to remove the crap if it need it. Never again a 3d party drm drv will be install in my vista 64bits
Regardless of the form it takes, DRM has proven time and time again to hurt the legitimate consumer. The pirates will -always- find a way to pirate it if it is worth their time and patience, no matter how good the DRM apparently is or should be. Even when the software medium itself is uncrackable because the security is in the hardware, pirates find a way to simply modify the hardware ala modded consoles.
Reducing the insanely inflated prices, especially in 2nd and 3rd hand countries; and delivering decent titles is the only way they will be able to curb the piracy on their games and other releases. And even then there will still be no end to the piracy..
@27
Piracy maybe stealing in your eyes, but it is copyright infringement under the UK, US and other countries laws… So i don’t like it being called stealing because the original copy still remains!
Yeah the companies play down or up to suit their every need!
i bought spore,
i shouldnt have its kinda very crap and repetative.
got to space age on release day, havent played it since/wont again its weak.
How many LEGIT programs do you have that install themselves silently and hide in the background using resources and eating your pc so that on the 1 occasion every 9 months you put a disk in the drive it has something to do.
If DRM has got nothing to hide, why does it?
I have absolutely no problem with buying a good entertainment product, be it music, a game, television show or movie. In fact I prefer it, particularly when it comes to software; I want to play, not troubleshoot. However, I will never ever support DRM of any kind under any circumstances. The only good it serves is to put money into the pockets of those who develop it. It’s clearly harmful to the companies that pay to use it in their product and is especially harmful to us, the law abiding consumers. If a business insists on using DRM in their product, it is then in a consumers best interest to spend their hard earned money somewhere else. It’s been proven time and time again, DRM does not work and never will. Plain and simple.
”
Q: Why are Maxis and EA implementing this new authentication process?
A: This solution serves to protect our software from piracy.”
LMAO @ that :D
“This solution serves to protect our software from piracy”
Duuude, laught my ass off.
Go fuck yourself EA…
I think its high time to boycott ANYTHING with EA on it!
Jiff
http://www.anonweb.eu.tc
EA can go F*CK them selves, and just so they know, more than just every download was a lost sale, but I know people who downloaded the game then made copies that they gave away to people that didn’t know how to pirate it.
@27
“BitTorrent download doesn’t represent a successful copy of a game, let alone a lost sale.”
Apparently, they’re not losing any money.
QQ else where.
@24
It isn’t fun. Don’t play it. Download it, burn it to your CD, and then burn it (i. e. set it on fire) in public. That will show them how crap it is.
@17
Seconded. Let’s see them attempt to upscale their imaginary losses with this statement out in the open.
Good show EA. Well played.
Too bad they went with DRM. This is a loss of money for them.
http://friendshares.org/8
every download doesn’t mean a lost sale indeed. I for one, never had any intention of buying the game. Me downloading it means instead of never playing it and telling my friends how fun it is, I get to do that.
The game is buggy, and it has nothing to do with downloads. If you bought it, you deserve a refund.
Anyways, they are downplaying it now, but when they sue, it’s every download costs us 5400$
come the fuck on.
it’s = it is
“as the debate heats up over it’s DRM”
it’s = it is
“its DRM” not “it’s DRM”.
I was very excited about SPORE before knowing about the DRM issue, I even reserved my copy (only paid $5 bucks).
After the news about DRM I never went to get the game… I downloaded it instead…
“..people need to recognize that every BitTorrent download doesn’t represent a successful copy of a game, let alone a lost sale.” Oh.. I´m sorry to tell you it does.
The great thing about this is that this subject is nothing new. The Sims 2 Community has been irate with EA over their use of DRM in later expansion packs. Some people have had their cd-roms disabled because of it. The fact that EA tries to act as if these complaints are unfounded further lets me know how much the actually care about their customers. I personally will never buy an EA game again, simply because I like the make my own decisions about my computer, which apparently EA thinks is a bad idea.
@12
You phail.
Hey EA that “incomplete, slow, buggy or unusable code. In one case, a file identified as Spore contained a virus” you speak of is a successful download. That is EXACTLY what Spore is, buggy unusable code with a nice little virus on top.
EA sucks. They dont get my money, so I download their games.
This developer/pulisher model sucks because good developers keep getting stuck dealing with these overbearing, brutish publishers.
I wouldnt have hesitated buying a “Maxis” game, but Electronic Arts? I’d rather download it.
I just love the comments “I wasn’t going to by it anyways so I just downloaded it”. Using your logic I could go into a store and just steal anything I want because I wasn’t going to buy it anyways.
“BitTorrent download doesn’t represent a successful copy of a game, let alone a lost sale.”
Finaly. Now if only that statement could be used as evidence in legal cases, none of the industries would have a leg to stand on unless they could prove that what you download was 1. complete, 2. usable and 3. resulted in a lost sale. Otherwise, GTFO.
I downloaded Spore a few days after it came out. Played for a few hours and decided that it indeed was a good game and i was ready to go to a store and purchase the game. That was the plan until i read online that Spore contained a DRM and restricted the number of installs.
Why should i go buy something broken when i could get a working version for free?
Save that quote. Next time someone cries that piracy is stealing their sales, whip out what the largest software publisher in the world has to say.
I’ve been gamming for over 10 yrs now, and I’ve got what I consider to be a nice collection of games going. I do buy many games, in fact, any game I deem worthy, I’ll buy. I’ll d/l a game if I’m unsure of it’s quality, but if it’s worth it, I’ll go out and buy it. But this is all to say, if I don’t deem a game worthy of $50, I WILL d/l it. If I couldn’t d/l it, then I wouldn’t play it, simple as that. To say it’s a lost sale isn’t exacly accurate. Now as far as spore or EA is concerned, I would NEVER buy such a game, not because I think it’ll be boring as hell *buncha mini-games*, but simply out of principles. Who the hell thinks it’s “right” to install a rootkit to someone’s machine - nevermind the 5 installs - I upgrade my machine at least once or twice a year!
EA will never step foot into my house again….
/rantoff
My reason for not buying the game isn’t the secrurom per say; it’s the fact that the game sucks.
Hell no… I downloaded spore to see if it was worth buying. The game was utter crap and boredom. All this time, and THIS was the best they could to?
It a damned art project with a game added to it (sort of). Ok.. a REALLY bad game added to it. If it had been good, I would have bought it… if there was no “install limit”.
I will NEVER buy a game that limits me to the # of installs. They’ll have to pry my CD’s from my cold dead arthritic hands.
The game is fine.. the DRM no…
#27
Go back to your RIAA websites asshole.. Why are you here exactly?
#52 - Anon
Why the hell are you here?.. Go back to your feel good interwebs and leave the pirating to the Adults..
#52
Yes I will just go in that store and steal something that I did not want to buy.. So now what is UP with your logic
I will never purchase another product from EA again.. I recommend you fire the idiot who came up with this plan
Why has nobody said or done anything about comment #:
10 Oct 02, 2008 at 00:10 by mwahahaha
no moderators? no nothing? WTF?
DRM isn’t ok, and neither was that comment.
gotta admit, in this case it will reflect badly on sales, i’ll download a game, if its great i’ll always buy it(yeah i know you hear it all the time) but this is one boring game, if i could’nt download it i would have rushed out and bought it based on the hype, now i won’t. more new games need to put out a demo on the net pre release, it does’nt seem to happen anymore, maybe most new games are’nt confident enough.
yeah, #56, you got that right.
My little brother bought and installed spore on my system! I had no idea they used secuRom as i never really play any games on this thing…
Can someone show me how to remove it? or leave me a link as to where i can go to get rid of it… i hate root kits =/
on the plus side, this could be cited as an admission by EA that the “one download = one sale” policy is broken as hell
its nice to hear a them admit their mistakes, even by accident
I agree, it is bullshit!!! EA wants to make a claim about piraticy, isn’t that what they just did with the shit that is now floating in those computers. Who in the fuck do they think they are to regulate anything besides there hours of operation.
I bought it and installed it before I learned about the DRM. I wouldn’t have learned about the DRM if the game had worked properly in the first place.
I was having technical issues related to image rendering (and yes, I have a computer that more than meets the requirements) and when I looked for help I discovered, much to my dismay, that there was a DRM scheme in my computer as well as a crappy game. Or as another poster suggests, a “gamelage,” (think collage with game).
So EA got my sale (Galactic Edition) this time but the company will never see another dollar from me for the rest of my life. I don’t care if they switch to life support equipment and I’m dying. I will not patronize their company again. I’m also doing what I can to participate in the lawsuit.
As I’ve stated on their forums, they made a crappy game, couched it in a terrifyingly invasive DRM scheme, and prevent me from selling it to someone else without divulging my personal information and I consider this no less an act of piracy than the hundreds of thousands of people stealing their software.
If the game were worth playing I might consider pirating it so I can at least play it without fearing my install limit will magically appear but the game is dull and buggy.
My advice to anyone wanting a decent gaming experience, look elsewhere.
I hate EA. Warhammer online… yeah that’s all i have to say. other than a 4 letter word that starts with a fu and ends with a ck.
Frustrated like me. Check out the campaign to get EA to unbundle DRM and SecuROM at http://www.thepoint.com/campaigns/ea-games-without-drm-and-secu-rom
Petitions are petitions, but at least it’s something.
Spore was shit.
I downloaded it (OMG A LOST SALE!!1111), played it 5 minutes and deleted it.
I had spores 2 weeks before its release thanks to a nice aussy, it works just fine, I felt bad at first and was going to buy it but poor EA tried to bend us all over with their sneaky crap 3 installs LMAO, what you think people would rebuy your game? But it was them who got to bite the pillow this time! SO bend over EA and take it like a champ. How many other titles have you done this to, in reference to installing crap on my pc with out me knowing? Anyways I think Ill download the Sims2 for the Mrs. now and yes all of the expansions too, just need the mansion stuff and it will be complete. I will never buy an EA game again, and a HUGE thanks to the uploader for saveing us the money and the jaw dropping expression when we would reinstall and see “your maximum installs has been reached”
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