Speaking of boundaries and morality…
GamePolitics.com has word of a French lawsuit against Second Life, orchestrated by a “family values” watchdog group. It’s a good example of the way in which national boundaries and local laws and pressures may affect the operation of virtual worlds in different territories. As some commenters have already noted, it’s not a stretch to see this lawsuit in the context of the recent success of a conservative politician, Sarkozy, in the presidential elections there.
The specifics of the suit appear to be about restricting minors from Second Life — which is of course already policy on Linden’s part, and also extremely difficult to enforce. However, it seems that some ISPs have also been named in the suit.
From their press release:
Ainsi de véritables photos et vidéos pornographiques en libre accès placardent certaines régions. Les utilisateurs ont la possibilité de mimer des rapports sexuels, allant même jusqu’à des scènes de viol, de bondage, de zoophilie et de scatophilie. Des passerelles entre l’univers virtuel et des sites internet de pornographie permettent à l’utilisateur d’être redirigé rapidement.
Familles de France ne peut accepter que la publicité pour le tabac, l’alcool ou la drogue ne subisse aucune restriction légale, de même que l’utilisation des machines à sous virtuelles, des jeux de loto et de loterie.
Familles de France demande un contrôle sur les casinos virtuels puisque que de l’argent bien réel y est dépensé.
Ces dérives, si elles ne concernaient que des « adultes consentants » poseraient des problèmes limités à une simple question d’éthique, mais, étant donné que des mineurs peuvent avoir accès au site sans limite, la question devient plus importante.
Aussi, Familles de France réclame des mesures techniques efficaces de protection afin que des contrôles soient mis en place pour empêcher l’accès à ces dérives par les mineurs.
So, in short: they complain about real money gambling, rape, bondage, furries & bestiality, porn, drugs, alcohol, and the chance that underage people might see any and all of the above; and they demand that measures be taken, all summed up as “a simple question of ethics.” Something which no doubt would be disputed by these guys over here.
10 Responses to “Speaking of boundaries and morality…”
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Of course, the US has invited this with our foray into the destruction of national jurisdiction with the UIGEA (anti-Internet Gambling law). Basically, we now have the situation where a business (or person) anywhere can be prosecuted for the actions of others using their service or accessing their data outside of the jurisdiction where the business (or individual) operates.
The issue of clear jurisdiction is probably one of the most important issues for online businesses and service providers today.
There’s no way an international internet service Second Life can enforce such kinda of restriction to it’s services unless it uses some form of tracking system like for example the Korean Social Security Number (KSSN). Some Korean games are already using KSSN before being able to register to play an online game (One example is Ragnarok Online II). But for an international game this is just unthinkable.
Raph,
Just one comment. The French text mentions that “if only adults could access SL”, then access to all of the above mentioned content would be a “simple question of ethics”. However, because minors can get access, they consider the matter to go beyond that and to be worthy of a lawsuit.
Just thought I’d point out that distinction as your summary might have been confusing.
That being said, I am deeply troubled by LL’s “let’s make SL safe together” statement. In true Internet fashion, I’m tempted to say: This will not end well.
[…] posts a new entry which covers the French lawsuit and mentions this very thread on SC. https://www.raphkoster.com/2007/06/04…-and-morality/ […]
Also covered on Stratics Second Life
http://www.stratics.com/content/portals/sl/index.php#newsitem1180978824,38455,
Lewis Nerd
Stratics Second Life Portal Manager
Wendel, good catch — I have to admit I only skimmed it and didn’t read closely. 😛
I hope you’ll have the balance and good sense to follow up this non-story in 6 months and admit that it’s a small group with no popular backing that got nowhere with this lawsuit, and that Sarkozy’s election has nothing to do with it, and that if anything, not due to this little story, but more serious stories like the Germans arrest a pedophile, LL was moved to crackdown on some extremist activity they had hithero tolerated.
It’s not a non-story, any more than Jack Thompson’s rants against the game industry here are a non-story. The fact that there’s actually a lawsuit means that it has significance, to my mind. The overall story is actually the growing (not always justified) backlash and negative attention towards SL for a variety of reasons, and lawsuits are just signposts on the way.
I want to say I did comment on the Dutch and German actions back when they happened? I certainly have been commenting on the crackdowns.
[…] protect them from gambling and pornography. French politicians have expressed similar concerns with Second Life. If the industry continues to ignore or poo-poo these initiatives it is going to find itself […]
[…] protect them from gambling and pornography. French politicians have expressed similar concerns with Second Life. If the industry continues to ignore or poo-poo these initiatives it is going to find itself […]