Windows 10 Terms Of Service Takes Stance On Video Game Piracy

With a new OS comes new terms of service and one paragraph has some people with their knickers in a twist. In the new Windows 10 terms of service, Microsoft states: 

We may automatically check your version of the software and download software updates or configuration changes, including those that prevent you from accessing the services, playing counterfeit games, or using unauthorized hardware peripheral devices.

Upon reading this paragraph, you might think, “Whoa, Microsoft can just scan my PC?” Um, no. This paragraph most likely has to do with the EULA in place over the company’s services like Xbox Live, Office 365, Groove, Cortana and Skype. Microsoft has long been attempting to crack down a bit more severely on pirated games. For a while now, attempting to play a pirated PC game may result in not being able to play that game and the same goes for ripped XboxOne games like Far Cry 4. 

The simple truth is this; piracy is illegal. If you can afford a computer capable of running graphics-heavy games, then you can afford to pay for those games and the same goes for your Xbox. Video games, movies and music aren’t just pulled out of thin air; teams of people come together to produce the entertainment we take for granted every single day. And those people rely on the profits that entertainment generates to guarantee they have jobs tomorrow.

But if you still feel this is too much of an invasion of your privacy, you are free to build your own operating system, gaming system, video games, word processing software…and…see where I’m going with this?