SCEE Wins in Ruling Against Mod Chips
- July 21, 2004 15:02 PM PST
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Mod chips for PS2 illegal under a new European Union Copyright Directive.
Sony has scored a huge victory in the war against mod chips in Europe. A judge in the British High Court ruled the sale of mod chip devices for the PlayStation 2 to be illegal, under the implementation of the new European Union Copyright Directive.The case was brought to courts against David Ball, who sold approximately 1,500 Messiah 2 mod chips that allowed users to play imported and pirated PlayStation 2 games. The presiding judge ruled that Ball had acted unlawfully in selling the chips, and said that the use, possession, or advertisement of the chips was also illegal.
"This case, together with the recent successful criminal case against chippers in Belgium, confirms in the clearest possible terms that Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has the right to protect the illegal infringement of our intellectual property rights, and those of third party game developers," said SCEE president David Reeves. "We are sending a clear message to manufacturers and distributors of mod chips throughout the PAL territories that we will continue to pursue legal action against them."
While courts in Spain ruled that mod chips are legal, UK's ruling marks one of the most significant rulings against mod chipping consoles in Europe, possibly serving as a precedent for more stringent restrictions in other European nations.
