Microsoft means business by banning modded consoles

Earlier this fall, Microsoft started banning people playing illegal copies of their Xbox 360 games from the online service Xbox Live. According to the ‘360’s user license agreement, console modders lose the warranty on their console and might access to Live be denied.

Live is the console’s community platform, where a player’s game statistics, achievements and friends are kept track of. Furthermore, and more importantly, it also serves as portal for all multiplayer activities and game store for online content. Games on demand, casual games, downloadable content, demos, etc: they’re accessible only through Xbox Live.

It seems that over the last month, Microsoft has really stepped up the pace of banning people who modded their ‘360 so it can play pirated games. While the number remains speculative, BBC estimates that perhaps a million users saw their Live accounts made void. Microsoft refuses to comment on specific numbers, instead reports it is a “small percentage” of the roughly 20 million users.

Industry reports suggest that piracy may cost game and console producers up to 750 million Euro per year.