Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Why I Won't Be Buying Videos from SONY PSN Anymore

[UPDATE, Aug 11, 2011: Sony finally corrected their ToS:http://www.qriocity.com/us/en/legal-snei-tosua-redlines.html  Thanks SONY!]

Even though the new Terms of Service for Sony Network Entertainment America (SNEA), formerly a part of Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA), came out on April 1 I have confirmed that what sneaky back-handedness they wrote into it was not an April fools joke.

For those who own a PS3 (or other PSN/Qriocity capable video device) in Canada SONY apparently doesn't like you.

...or at least they don't care about your continued loyalty and continued business.

They have written the terms so that everyone who clicked the I Agree button to log into their PSN account has agreed that even if they are in Canada they will not watch the videos bought on the PSN Video store outside the United States.  That means that if you are in Canada and purchased a video from SONY's PSN video store and you then watch it in Canada you are violating the Terms of Service and SONY is free to do whatever they want to your account.

I sought first a change to fix what looked like an embarrassing mistake on SONY's part, but then when that did not seem to be coming I asked for an official statement that what they said is what they meant.

This is the final e-mail I got back from them:

Hello Rod,

We do apologize for this inconvenience or confusion regarding this issue,

This is an official document listed below.

Please refer to the Terms of Use, section 8.

Terms of Use and User Agreement
Article Link: http://playstation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1109

Regards,
Don K


For anyone interested, but not wanting to follow the link here is Section 8 of Terms of Service and User Agreement Version 9 (April 1, 2011)

I have highlighted in RED the part I'm talking about.


8. VIDEO CONTENT

You may use either your Qriocity account or PSN account to purchase video content. Subject to the terms of this Agreement and any additional terms and conditions for the particular item, SNEA licenses digitalized content, including television shows and movies ("Video Content") to you for your personal, private, non-commercial viewing in the United States only, using a limited number of activated PlayStation®3 computer entertainment systems, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) systems, personal computers ("PSN Devices") and VOD Devices (collectively, "Authorized Devices") during the authorized viewing period ("Authorized Term"). Video Content may be made available to you as a rental for a limited duration ("Rental Content") or purchase ("Sold Content"). Use of Video Content is subject to certain digital rights management rules and terms and conditions of this Agreement. Except for rights explicitly granted to you, all rights in the Video Content are reserved by SNEA and its licensors.

Only one copy of Rental Content may be viewable on an Authorized Device and each copy will have a rental time period ("Rental Period") during which you can begin playback for that copy. The Rental Period for each copy of Rental Content will be displayed to you prior to finalizing your rental payment. Once you begin playback of your Rental Content copy, that copy is viewable for up to 24 hours. After such time, you will not be able to view the Rental Content. Rental Content may not be reproduced.

You may select the Authorized Device on which you want to view your Rental Content. If you have a Qriocity account, you may view your content from any one of your activated VOD Devices only. If you have a PSN account, you may view your Rental Content purchased on PSN or Qriocity from any one of your activated Authorized Devices, except that if the Rental Content is in high definition format, it may be viewed on one (1) activated PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system or one (1) VOD Device. Rental Content may not be transferred between a PSN Device and a VOD Device. Once playback has started on a VOD Device, you may not view that content using any other Authorized Device without a separate payment. If you start Rental Content playback on a PSN Device, the account that purchased the Rental Content may, during the Authorized Term, transfer that content to a limited number of activated PSN Devices, as described below.

Rental Content in standard definition format downloaded onto a PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system or a personal computer may be transferred to up to three (3) PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) systems. Rental Content in standard definition format for use with a PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system may be transferred to up to one (1) PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and two (2) personal computers.

You may view Sold Content for an unlimited number of times on an activated PSN Device only. The account that purchased the Sold Content may copy that content to a limited number of PSN Devices, as described below.

Sold Content in standard definition format downloaded onto a PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system or a personal computer may be copied for use on up to three (3) PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) systems. Sold Content in standard definition format for use with a PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system may be copied for use on up to one (1) PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and two (2) personal computers. Sold Content in high definition format may be viewed on only one (1) activated PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system.

You may have the option to purchase Video Content in high definition and standard definition format. You acknowledge that delivery of content is dependent on variables not under SNEA's control, including but not limited to, the speed and availability of your broadband or network connection. You may experience delays or technical difficulties caused by or related to such variables. If you have purchased Video Content and view it using a VOD Device, you may not be able to view your content in the format that you've purchased due to such variables. To the extent permitted by applicable law, you will not receive a refund or credit for any content that you are not able to view or have difficulty viewing due to such variables. We strongly encourage you to purchase content suitable for your viewing capabilities. You bear all responsibility for ensuring that you have the viewing capabilities to view content in the appropriate format or at all.

Proper activation of an Authorized Device by the account that purchased the Video Content is required for all downloads, transfers, copies and viewings. Purchase of Video Content is connected to the purchasing account. An account can activate no more than the maximum number of Authorized Devices, regardless of the number of copies of Video Content purchased. Video Content may not be transferred from one account to another. You may not exceed the total number of accounts on any Authorized Device. Please refer to http://playstation.com/ and http://qriocity.com/ for more information on the total number of permitted Sony Online Services accounts. SNEA reserves the right to limit the number of times an Authorized Device may be activated or deactivated.

Downloading or streaming is not permitted outside the Authorized Term. In addition, once Video Content has been downloaded or accessed, you will not be able to download it again without purchase of another copy.

Some content such as movie trailers may not be representative of the actual feature presentation. Digitalized versions of some content may not be identical with the original formatted content or previously released versions of the same titled content.

Video output in certain formats may require additional equipment, sold separately.



So there you have it Canadian PS3 users, SONY wants you to only watch your PSN video content in the USA, if you watch it at home you've violated the terms of your contract with SONY.

What were the e-mails leading upto all this you ask?

Here is the whole conversation. In typical e-mail style, it's best to start at the bottom and work your way up:


Subject
Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Conten...

Discussion Thread
Response Via Email (Don K) 04/20/2011 08:40 AM
Hello Rod,

We do apologize for this inconvenience or confusion regarding this issue,

This is an official document listed below.

Please refer to the Terms of Use, section 8.

Terms of Use and User Agreement
Article Link: http://playstation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1109

Regards,
Don K
Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON) 04/19/2011 04:58 PM
I think you misunderstood me.
I am not asking for a refund of wallet moneys or to cancel my account.

I just want one of two things. Either a correction in the Terms of
Service so that it makes sense, or clarification from SONY that you (as
a company) really meant what you said and that it is no longer legal to
watch movies and TV shows I purchased in Canada on a Canadian PSN
account outside the USA.

As it stands, your Terms of Service say that I cannot watch videos from
PSN outside the USA. That means that if I watch my videos I am in breach
of this contract. I am holding off on accepting until I get either a
statement that that is indeed SONY's intent, or a new Terms of Service
appears with the mistake corrected.

If you do intend to make it a breach of contract for me to watch videos
that is fine, I will simply continue to use the PSN's other services and
no longer buy videos. .... although, if that is true, it'd be nice of
you to refund me for the videos you are stealing back, but I am not
going to force the issue. I'll just continue to play my games and watch
videos on other services.


Please let me know which it is. I want an official statement that the
terms of service are correct as they stand, or some indication of what
SONY's plan is to fix the error.



On 04/19/2011 11:29 AM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
>
>
> * Subject*
> Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
> Video Conten...
>
> * Discussion Thread*
> * Response Via Email (Don K)* 04/19/2011 08:29 AM
> Hello Rod,
>
> We do apologize for this inconvenience.
>
> Thank you for contacting us regarding your decision to decline our Terms
> of Service and User Agreement. If you are serious about not
> being in agreement with the Terms of Use, then in order to close your
> PlayStation®Network account and return the funds in the wallet
> associated with your account, we will need the following information:
>
> PSN Sign-In ID (email address used to create your PSN account)
> PSN Online ID
> First Name
> Last Name
> Complete Mailing Address (where you would like to receive your refund)
>
> You may reply to this email directly if you're already using your PSN
> Sign-In ID email address to read this email. Otherwise, if you have a
> different email address associated with your PSN Sign-In ID, you MUST
> use your PSN ID email address to send us the above information. You can
> send your email to:
>
> TOS_PSN@playstation.sony.com TOS_PSN@playstation.sony.com>
>
> The refund is only for the remaining funds in your PSN wallet. We will
> not refund any money for content that has already been purchased. Once
> the refund request has been processed, your PSN account will be
> terminated. You will lose access to any content that has been purchased
> with this PSN account, as well as any trophies awarded to the account.
> You will also not be able to use this email address to create a new PSN
> account. The termination of your account is final and cannot be reversed.
>
> If you wish to terminate more than one account, you must follow this
> process for each account (we will need to receive an email directly from
> each email address used to create the separate PSN accounts to validate
> that you are the owner of the email accounts).
>
> We value your input and appreciate you bringing this to our attention.
> Please rest assured that we will convey your feedback to Sony Computer
> Entertainment America, LLC's ("SCEA") appropriate management.
>
> Regards,
> Don K
> * Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/18/2011 05:43 PM
> Nothing against you guys personally, but as I am sure that you are not
> able to contractually bind SONY in any way, I cannot accept you saying
> "I am pretty sure you found an error...." and "Please keep using your
> account" as if it is a contract that supersedes the April 1 2011 Terms
> of Service/User Agreement.
>
> It has been 10 days since my initial contact with your department and I
> still have not received a satisfactory resolution to my concern.
> I will not click Accept, binding me to that agreement until it changes
> to resolve this or until I have in hand a contract from SONY legal dept
> that supersedes the April 1 Terms of Service.
>
> I am sure that this Terms of Service document was reviewed by at least a
> dozen people at SONY and it is an absolute embarrassment that it made it
> to being presented to your customers in it's current form.
>
> Please forward this to the Legal Department, I eagerly await their response.
>
> Sincerely,
> Rod MacPherson.
>
>
> On 12/04/2011 6:45 PM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
>>
>>
>> * Subject*
>> Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
>> Video Conten...
>>
>> * Discussion Thread*
>> * Response Via Email (James G)* 04/12/2011 03:45 PM
>> Hello Rod,
>>
>> I am pretty sure you found an error in the wording. I will report this
>> and say thank you.
>>
>> Once this is updated you can probably rest easy and not worry about
>> this since it was likely in error.
>>
>> Please keep using your account, as it would seem that is really your
>> intent.
>>
>> Regards,
>> James G
>>
>> Are you a member of the PlayStation®Network yet? Play games online,
>> chat with friends, access exclusive titles, downloadable games, PS
>> one®Classics, free demos, movies, TV shows and more! Highly connected
>> and endlessly entertaining.
>> Welcome to the PlayStation®Network. Join now
>>
> !
>>
>>
>> * Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/12/2011 03:14 PM
>> Can I have an update on this?
>> surely I'm not the only one who refused to agree to these terms based on
>> the limitation of only being allowed to view purchased content in a
>> country I don't live in.
>>
>> An update would be appreciated.
>> I'm a loyal Sony customer, having bought 3 PS2s, a PSP and 2 PS3's over
>> the years, but I cannot agree to terms that disallow me from watching
>> content I've purchased. ...even if I'll technically be able to I won't
>> agree to the contract the way it is.
>>
>>
>> On 04/09/2011 05:43 PM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
>> >
>> >
>> > * Subject*
>> > Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
>> > Video Conten...
>> >
>> > * Discussion Thread*
>> > * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
>> > Hello Rod,
>> >
>> > I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased from
>> > the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being viewable in
>> > the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation Store's Video
>> > Download Service is still available in both Canada and the United
>> > States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony Computer
>> > Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause so that it
>> > can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing this to our
>> > attention. Please let me know if you have any other questions or
>> > concerns in the future.
>> >
>> >
>> > Regards,
>> > Richard K.
>> > * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
>> > *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED AUTO
>> > RESPONSE. ***
>> >
>> > Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC
>> (SCEA).
>> >
>> > You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we received
>> > your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48 hours. For
>> > immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation Knowledge Center
>> > at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
>> >
>> > Thank you for your patience.
>> >
>> > SCEA Consumer Services
>> > * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
>> > Dear Sony,
>> > I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
>> > says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
>> > I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
>> > crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
>> > agreement please.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Rod MacPherson
>> rod@macphersonclan.com rod@macphersonclan.com>
> rod@macphersonclan.com rod@macphersonclan.com>>
>> * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
>> Hello Rod,
>>
>> I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased
>> from the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being
>> viewable in the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation
>> Store's Video Download Service is still available in both Canada and
>> the United States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony
>> Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause
>> so that it can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing
>> this to our attention. Please let me know if you have any other
>> questions or concerns in the future.
>>
>>
>> Regards,
>> Richard K.
>> * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
>> *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED
>> AUTO RESPONSE. ***
>>
>> Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC (SCEA).
>>
>> You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we
>> received your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48
>> hours. For immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation
>> Knowledge Center at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
>>
>> Thank you for your patience.
>>
>> SCEA Consumer Services
>> * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
>> Dear Sony,
>> I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
>> says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
>> I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
>> crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
>> agreement please.
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Rod MacPherson
> rod@macphersonclan.com rod@macphersonclan.com>
> * Response Via Email (James G)* 04/12/2011 03:45 PM
> Hello Rod,
>
> I am pretty sure you found an error in the wording. I will report this
> and say thank you.
>
> Once this is updated you can probably rest easy and not worry about this
> since it was likely in error.
>
> Please keep using your account, as it would seem that is really your intent.
>
> Regards,
> James G
>
> Are you a member of the PlayStation®Network yet? Play games online,
> chat with friends, access exclusive titles, downloadable games, PS
> one®Classics, free demos, movies, TV shows and more! Highly connected
> and endlessly entertaining.
> Welcome to the PlayStation®Network. Join now
> !
>
> * Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/12/2011 03:14 PM
> Can I have an update on this?
> surely I'm not the only one who refused to agree to these terms based on
> the limitation of only being allowed to view purchased content in a
> country I don't live in.
>
> An update would be appreciated.
> I'm a loyal Sony customer, having bought 3 PS2s, a PSP and 2 PS3's over
> the years, but I cannot agree to terms that disallow me from watching
> content I've purchased. ...even if I'll technically be able to I won't
> agree to the contract the way it is.
>
>
> On 04/09/2011 05:43 PM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
>>
>>
>> * Subject*
>> Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
>> Video Conten...
>>
>> * Discussion Thread*
>> * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
>> Hello Rod,
>>
>> I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased from
>> the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being viewable in
>> the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation Store's Video
>> Download Service is still available in both Canada and the United
>> States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony Computer
>> Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause so that it
>> can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing this to our
>> attention. Please let me know if you have any other questions or
>> concerns in the future.
>>
>>
>> Regards,
>> Richard K.
>> * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
>> *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED AUTO
>> RESPONSE. ***
>>
>> Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC (SCEA).
>>
>> You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we received
>> your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48 hours. For
>> immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation Knowledge Center
>> at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
>>
>> Thank you for your patience.
>>
>> SCEA Consumer Services
>> * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
>> Dear Sony,
>> I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
>> says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
>> I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
>> crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
>> agreement please.
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
>
> Rod MacPherson
> rod@macphersonclan.com rod@macphersonclan.com>
> * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
> Hello Rod,
>
> I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased from
> the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being viewable in
> the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation Store's Video
> Download Service is still available in both Canada and the United
> States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony Computer
> Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause so that it
> can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing this to our
> attention. Please let me know if you have any other questions or
> concerns in the future.
>
>
> Regards,
> Richard K.
> * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED AUTO
> RESPONSE. ***
>
> Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC (SCEA).
>
> You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we received
> your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48 hours. For
> immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation Knowledge Center
> at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
>
> Thank you for your patience.
>
> SCEA Consumer Services
> * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> Dear Sony,
> I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
> says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
> I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
> crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
> agreement please.
>
>
>


--

Rod MacPherson
rod@macphersonclan.com
Response Via Email (Don K) 04/19/2011 08:29 AM
Hello Rod,

We do apologize for this inconvenience.

Thank you for contacting us regarding your decision to decline our Terms of Service and User Agreement. If you are serious about not
being in agreement with the Terms of Use, then in order to close your PlayStation®Network account and return the funds in the wallet associated with your account, we will need the following information:

PSN Sign-In ID (email address used to create your PSN account)
PSN Online ID
First Name
Last Name
Complete Mailing Address (where you would like to receive your refund)

You may reply to this email directly if you're already using your PSN Sign-In ID email address to read this email. Otherwise, if you have a different email address associated with your PSN Sign-In ID, you MUST use your PSN ID email address to send us the above information. You can send your email to:

TOS_PSN@playstation.sony.com

The refund is only for the remaining funds in your PSN wallet. We will not refund any money for content that has already been purchased. Once the refund request has been processed, your PSN account will be terminated. You will lose access to any content that has been purchased with this PSN account, as well as any trophies awarded to the account. You will also not be able to use this email address to create a new PSN account. The termination of your account is final and cannot be reversed.

If you wish to terminate more than one account, you must follow this process for each account (we will need to receive an email directly from each email address used to create the separate PSN accounts to validate that you are the owner of the email accounts).

We value your input and appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Please rest assured that we will convey your feedback to Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC's ("SCEA") appropriate management.

Regards,
Don K
Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON) 04/18/2011 05:43 PM
Nothing against you guys personally, but as I am sure that you are not
able to contractually bind SONY in any way, I cannot accept you saying
"I am pretty sure you found an error...." and "Please keep using your
account" as if it is a contract that supersedes the April 1 2011 Terms
of Service/User Agreement.

It has been 10 days since my initial contact with your department and I
still have not received a satisfactory resolution to my concern.
I will not click Accept, binding me to that agreement until it changes
to resolve this or until I have in hand a contract from SONY legal dept
that supersedes the April 1 Terms of Service.

I am sure that this Terms of Service document was reviewed by at least a
dozen people at SONY and it is an absolute embarrassment that it made it
to being presented to your customers in it's current form.

Please forward this to the Legal Department, I eagerly await their response.

Sincerely,
Rod MacPherson.


On 12/04/2011 6:45 PM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
>
>
> * Subject*
> Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
> Video Conten...
>
> * Discussion Thread*
> * Response Via Email (James G)* 04/12/2011 03:45 PM
> Hello Rod,
>
> I am pretty sure you found an error in the wording. I will report this
> and say thank you.
>
> Once this is updated you can probably rest easy and not worry about
> this since it was likely in error.
>
> Please keep using your account, as it would seem that is really your
> intent.
>
> Regards,
> James G
>
> Are you a member of the PlayStation®Network yet? Play games online,
> chat with friends, access exclusive titles, downloadable games, PS
> one®Classics, free demos, movies, TV shows and more! Highly connected
> and endlessly entertaining.
> Welcome to the PlayStation®Network. Join now
> !
>
>
> * Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/12/2011 03:14 PM
> Can I have an update on this?
> surely I'm not the only one who refused to agree to these terms based on
> the limitation of only being allowed to view purchased content in a
> country I don't live in.
>
> An update would be appreciated.
> I'm a loyal Sony customer, having bought 3 PS2s, a PSP and 2 PS3's over
> the years, but I cannot agree to terms that disallow me from watching
> content I've purchased. ...even if I'll technically be able to I won't
> agree to the contract the way it is.
>
>
> On 04/09/2011 05:43 PM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
> >
> >
> > * Subject*
> > Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
> > Video Conten...
> >
> > * Discussion Thread*
> > * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
> > Hello Rod,
> >
> > I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased from
> > the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being viewable in
> > the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation Store's Video
> > Download Service is still available in both Canada and the United
> > States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony Computer
> > Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause so that it
> > can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing this to our
> > attention. Please let me know if you have any other questions or
> > concerns in the future.
> >
> >
> > Regards,
> > Richard K.
> > * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> > *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED AUTO
> > RESPONSE. ***
> >
> > Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC
> (SCEA).
> >
> > You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we received
> > your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48 hours. For
> > immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation Knowledge Center
> > at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
> >
> > Thank you for your patience.
> >
> > SCEA Consumer Services
> > * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> > Dear Sony,
> > I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
> > says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
> > I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
> > crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
> > agreement please.
> >
> >
> >
>
>
> --
>
> Rod MacPherson
> rod@macphersonclan.com rod@macphersonclan.com>
> * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
> Hello Rod,
>
> I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased
> from the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being
> viewable in the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation
> Store's Video Download Service is still available in both Canada and
> the United States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony
> Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause
> so that it can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing
> this to our attention. Please let me know if you have any other
> questions or concerns in the future.
>
>
> Regards,
> Richard K.
> * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED
> AUTO RESPONSE. ***
>
> Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC (SCEA).
>
> You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we
> received your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48
> hours. For immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation
> Knowledge Center at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
>
> Thank you for your patience.
>
> SCEA Consumer Services
> * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> Dear Sony,
> I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
> says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
> I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
> crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
> agreement please.
>
>
>


--
Rod MacPherson
rod@macphersonclan.com
Response Via Email (James G) 04/12/2011 03:45 PM
Hello Rod,

I am pretty sure you found an error in the wording. I will report this and say thank you.

Once this is updated you can probably rest easy and not worry about this since it was likely in error.

Please keep using your account, as it would seem that is really your intent.

Regards,
James G

Are you a member of the PlayStation®Network yet? Play games online, chat with friends, access exclusive titles, downloadable games, PS one®Classics, free demos, movies, TV shows and more! Highly connected and endlessly entertaining.
Welcome to the PlayStation®Network. Join now!
Customer By Email (ROD MACPHERSON) 04/12/2011 03:14 PM
Can I have an update on this?
surely I'm not the only one who refused to agree to these terms based on
the limitation of only being allowed to view purchased content in a
country I don't live in.

An update would be appreciated.
I'm a loyal Sony customer, having bought 3 PS2s, a PSP and 2 PS3's over
the years, but I cannot agree to terms that disallow me from watching
content I've purchased. ...even if I'll technically be able to I won't
agree to the contract the way it is.


On 04/09/2011 05:43 PM, PlayStation Consumer Services wrote:
>
>
> * Subject*
> Dear Sony, I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8
> Video Conten...
>
> * Discussion Thread*
> * Response Via Email (Richard K.)* 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
> Hello Rod,
>
> I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased from
> the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being viewable in
> the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation Store's Video
> Download Service is still available in both Canada and the United
> States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony Computer
> Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause so that it
> can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing this to our
> attention. Please let me know if you have any other questions or
> concerns in the future.
>
>
> Regards,
> Richard K.
> * Auto-Response* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> *** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED AUTO
> RESPONSE. ***
>
> Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC (SCEA).
>
> You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we received
> your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48 hours. For
> immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation Knowledge Center
> at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.
>
> Thank you for your patience.
>
> SCEA Consumer Services
> * Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON)* 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
> Dear Sony,
> I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content
> says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
> I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border
> crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the
> agreement please.
>
>
>


--

Rod MacPherson
rod@macphersonclan.com
Response Via Email (Richard K.) 04/09/2011 02:43 PM
Hello Rod,

I understand the concern caused by the mention of content purchased from the PlayStation®Store's Video Download Service only being viewable in the United States. I am glad to say the PlayStation Store's Video Download Service is still available in both Canada and the United States. I am having the appropriate department within Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) look into the mentioned clause so that it can be checked for inaccuracies. I appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns in the future.


Regards,
Richard K.
Auto-Response 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
*** PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE. THIS IS A SYSTEM-GENERATED AUTO RESPONSE. ***

Thank you for contacting Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC (SCEA).

You have received this auto-acknowledgement to confirm that we received your message. We will respond to your message within 24 - 48 hours. For immediate online support, please visit our PlayStation Knowledge Center at http://us.playstation.com/support 24 hours a day.

Thank you for your patience.

SCEA Consumer Services
Customer By Web Form (ROD MACPHERSON) 04/08/2011 07:10 PM
Dear Sony,
I cannot agree to your April 1 terms of service. Sect. 8 Video Content says "...viewing in the United States only" I'm in Canada.
I am not going to drive my Playstation3 4 hours to the nearest border crossing just to watch a video I PURCHASED from you. Update the agreement please.

[---001:021920:26014---]

3 comments:

Rod MacPherson said...

FYI, I did click the I agree button tonight so that I can still use the video game services of the Playstation Store... I hope I didn't miss something in there about video game content to only be played in the US.

Anyway, I did agree in the end that I will not watch PSN video content in Canada. Sorry to hear that SONY no longer wants to sell or rent videos to Canadians, but it doesn't come a a big surprise. When I bought my first PS3 in 2007 it was advertised to be able to run "Other OSes" (Linux) but Sony took that away from us too.

At the time I was sad to see it go, as it was something that they had promised us, but I have other Linux machines. Now They take away the video store. (not entirely, but if I rent/buy something from it since I'd watch it outside the United States I'd be up a creek without a paddle if Sony then decided to randomly close my account and take whatever money i had in the wallet balance.
Since I would be the one to break the terms of service they could do that with no worries.

You Suck SONY!

I like your game machines, and more importantly I like the games that they play, but I'll be seriously considering the competition when it comes time to buy the next generation console.

A consumer can only take so much, and sneakily putting this trap into the ToS is beyond anything I imagined, even from the company that tried to rootkit all the PCs in America with their CDs.

Rod MacPherson said...

...I wonder, would these SONY employees be so nonchalant about just signing the agreement if it was their employment contract with SONY that said their benefits are only valid in Japan?

Unknown said...

I agreed yesterday, didnt actually read it though... I only ever buy games... old psone games.. use a server and ps3media server to stream things.. so I'm not worried about video content.. but I agree.. that is pretty blunt and ridiculous. Technically you would be violating that statement of the contract, which of course in a pinch they'd exploit.

Good catch. I believe its probably just an error on their part and you ended up dealing with some silly rep.

I suggest you forward the email history and professionally worded email to some higher ups...

generally with half hour of googling a company you cna get some direct contacts for media and execs...

ive done this a few times with real estate companies and airlines.