Dutch Supreme Court Sees Game Objects As Goods 136
thrill12 writes "The Dutch Supreme Court ruled on January 31st that the taking away of possessions in the game Runescape from a 13-year-old boy, who was threatened with a (real) knife, was in fact theft because the possessions could be seen as actual goods. The highest court explained this not by arguing it was software that was copied, but by stating that the game data were real goods acquired through 'effort and time investment,' and 'the principal had the actual and exclusive dominion of the goods' — up until the moment the other guy took them away, that is."
MOD PARENT DOWN... oops, it's the story (Score:5, Informative)
They left out an important fact in the summary... he didn't lose the things under the rules of the game, he lost them because the suspect threatened him with a knife. This puts it in the same category as "give me your password or else" threats. Maybe robbery might be the wrong charge to give him, but there's got to be something illegal about gaining game objects by real-world threats.
Re:MOD PARENT DOWN... oops, it's the story (Score:5, Informative)
Pft... knives are only like a D6 damage. Not much of a threat.
Thats a big knife! I think you're thinking of a short sword.
Re:MOD PARENT DOWN... oops, it's the story (Score:5, Informative)
Knives are a 1d4 roll my friend.
Re:This is a good judgment (Score:4, Informative)
Verdict (in Dutch, you will need to translate it): http://zoeken.rechtspraak.nl/detailpage.aspx?ljn=BQ9251 [rechtspraak.nl]
It's well-written and quite long. They went into all of the arguments in detail, including those you mention. It's a very interesting read.