Post: Sony response to geohot dismissal appeal
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01-24-2011, 08:21 PM
#1
Fletcher
Banned
Part1:
I. HOTZ HAS DONE “SOMETHING MORE” BY AFFIRMATIVELY DIRECTING HIS
ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES AT SCEA BASED IN FOSTER CITY, CALIFORNIA
Hotz attempts to analogize his conduct to a mere operator of a passive web site that
just so happens to be accessible in California. There is nothing, however, about Hotz’s
activities aimed at SCEA’s California business that can be described as “passive.” Hotz did
not merely make a few postings on a website, but rather he affirmatively induced and
encouraged PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system (“PS3 System”
consumers touse his illegal circumvention devices with the knowledge that this activity would directly harm
SCEA in this District. Hotz’s conduct was deliberately targeted and aimed at SCEA in
California, and it had the predictable effect of causing extreme harm to SCEA at its
headquarters in Foster City, California. Hotz is not permitted to avoid California jurisdiction
by aiming his malicious conduct at a California business from a New Jersey address.
In his supplemental brief, Hotz tries to refute this fact by characterizing his website as
“passive” and claiming that he “neither encourages nor facilitates illegal circumvention
devices to be downloaded on his website.” Supplemental Brief, pp. 12, 13. This is false.
Not only does Hotz publish the “Metldr Keys” on his website, he also provides links on his
website to his other circumvention devices, including the 3.55 Firmware JailBreak and
the Signing Tools, encouraging and enabling individuals to download these
circumvention devices, and thus facilitating video game piracy. See Declaration of
Ryan Bricker filed on January 11, 2011 (“Bricker Decl.”
, ¶¶22, 21, Exhs. U, T. And contraryto his after-the fact denials, Hotz deliberately aimed his conduct at SCEA in this District when
he published the “Metldr Keys” on his website and wrote to SCEA: “if you want your next console to be secure, get in touch with me.” Bricker Decl., ¶22, Exh. U.1 In addition,
Hotz has touted his illegal hacking exploits on his interactive “On the PlayStation 3” blog
(Second Supplemental Declaration of Ryan Bricker filed on January 13, 2011,¶4, Exh. C
(“Second Suppl. Bricker Decl.”
). On that blog, Hotz openly interacts with others regardinghis hacking of the PS3 System.2 Additionally, Hotz has used other interactive tools based in
this District, such as Twitter and YouTube, to report on his hacking of the PS3 System. Id. at
¶¶2-3, Exhs. A-B; Bricker Decl., ¶24, Exh. W.
As the above demonstrates, Hotz’s unlawful conduct – the unauthorized accessing
of the PS3 System, circumvention of its technological protection measures, and trafficking
in circumvention devices that enable the piracy of video games – is both intentionally aimed
at and had the effect of injuring SCEA in the Northern District of California where it has its
principal place of business.3 Hotz was well aware of the impact of his conduct on SCEA
and game publishers. Bricker Decl., ¶27, Exh. Z. Consequently, there can be no doubt
that Hotz’s unlawful conduct satisfies the Ninth Circuit’s test of “something more” indicating
that Hotz “purposefully (albeit electronically) directed his activity in a substantial way to the
forum state.” Cybersell, Inc. v. Cybersell, Inc., 130 F. 3d 414, 418 (9th Cir. 1997);
Panavision Int’l, L.P. v. Toeppen, 141 F.3d 1316, 1320 (9th Cir. 199
. To find otherwisewould allow a hacker to intentionally distribute circumvention devices in California with the
knowledge that a California business is being harmed, while preventing a California court.
Part2:
In his declaration, Hotz now summarily denies that he sought employment from SCEA.
Declaration of George Hotz (“Hotz Decl.”
, ¶15. It does not matter, however, how he nowretroactively characterizes his conduct – the fact remains that his statement conclusively
demonstrates that his conduct was expressly targeted at SCEA in California. Indeed, Hotz
even states that “t would be fun to be on the other side.” Bricker Decl., ¶22, Exh. U.
2 In attempting to avoid jurisdiction, Hotz disingenuously argues that since Google maintains
the site, Google is responsible for its interactivity and not Hotz. Yet it is Hotz who chose to
blog about his unlawful conduct and to have discussions with third parties regarding that
same conduct over the Internet.
3 Hotz’s conduct also has had the effect of harming other publishers of games for the
PlayStation 3, many of whom are based or located in this District, including, for example,
Electronic Arts (Redwood City).
from taking action to protect its residents who have been tortiously injured. See
Panavision, 141 F. 3d at 1324.
II. HOTZ FAILS TO UNEQUIVOCALLY DENY HOLDING A PLAYSTATION
NETWORK (“PSN”
ACCOUNTHotz again fails to unequivocally deny that he has, or has ever had, a PSN account.
In his supplemental declaration, Hotz merely – and carefully – denies that he has ever
accessed the PSN to install a firmware update. See Hotz Decl., ¶¶11-13.4 Hotz also claims
to have accessed the PS3 System firmware not through the proper channels of the SCEA
website, but instead “via direct download links available on the internet.” Hotz Decl., ¶11.
Though he disavows association with various email addresses in SCEA’s database, he
pointedly does not state that he has not now, nor has he ever, maintained a PSN account.
His failure to unequivocally deny that he has held a PSN account is telling.
Hotz’s attorney further submits a declaration attempting to show that the PSN does
not have to be accessed when updating firmware via the PlayStation website. See
Declaration of Yasha Heidari. However, even if the firmware was downloaded pursuant to
the PlayStation website as done by Hotz’s attorney, the user is still subject to the PlayStation
website’s terms and conditions at You must login or register to view this content..
These terms prohibit, among other things, “using, making or distributing unauthorized
software or hardware in conjunction with the Sites, or taking or using any data from the Sites
to design, develop or update unauthorized software or hardware.” The terms also include
a forum selection clause and consent to jurisdiction in San Mateo County, California.
They also incorporate by reference the terms of the PSN User Agreement. Therefore, a user
who downloads the firmware via the PlayStation website, instead of the PSN, nonetheless
consents to jurisdiction in California.
III. CONCLUSION
Hotz’s unlawful conduct is intentionally directed at SCEA in the Northern District of
California and is causing substantial harm to SCEA here, warranting this Court’s exercise of
personal jurisdiction. Hotz has failed to show otherwise. Accordingly, SCEA respectfully
requests that the Court grant its Ex Parte Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order.
Download of PDF: (easier to read)
https://www.mediafire.com/?gq2au9abcp2ocon
01-24-2011, 10:41 PM
#20
sSkylit
In Hopes of Serenity
Originally posted by mEdiivalXvirrus
You poor poor misinformed ding dong. *sigh*. can i ask you something? do you make as much as some of the Sony Employees? Probably not. Then ask yourself, wait a sec, hasnt Microsofts console been hacked since it like first came out, therefore accounting for years of piracy? I think so. Are they out of business? bankrupt because of it? No. Nintendo, same situation, and guess what? Their sales are skyrocketing like never before!! I have no sympathy for big corporations who cry the blues that piracy is the worst thing in the world and there company is going to go bankrupt or something because of it. Really? Your most likely multi million (or even billion dollar) company is going to go down the shitter due to some pirates? I HIGHLY doubt that. Piracy has been alive and well for years and big companys still exist. Sonys just a bunch of whiners that cant accept the fact that their like one of the most least liked or even preffered for that matter when it comes to consoles. GeoHot and the failoverflow did something that I could probably never do in my life, or for that matter, no one has been able to do in 7 years or whatever since the consoles release (which is kinda sad considering the amount of hackers and what not on the internet in general, but thats a whole seperate issue....) So to sum things up, Sonys not gonna die, they still got their overpriced TV's and shitty blu-rays players to keep 'em aflot, god forbid they lose a few sales :O Gimme a break...
This is like saying, "Oh, well, just because there are a few pirates out there doesn't mean Sony will eventually end up in bankruptcy."
Don't be so naive. If Sony doesn't acount for the problems it has now how will it ever continue as a corporation without hemorrhaging money? Besides, Sony LOST money on PS3 sales in an attempt to regain what they lost in the sales of games. You can't seriously be so ignorant as to look past the fact that if Sony doesn't defend its source of income it will go out of business.
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01-24-2011, 10:46 PM
#21
mEdiivalXvirrus
Brute
Originally posted by sSkylit
This is like saying, "Oh, well, just because there are a few pirates out there doesn't mean Sony will eventually end up in bankruptcy."
Don't be so naive. If Sony doesn't acount for the problems it has now how will it ever continue as a corporation without hemorrhaging money? Besides, Sony LOST money on PS3 sales in an attempt to regain what they lost in the sales of games. You can't seriously be so ignorant as to look past the fact that if Sony doesn't defend its source of income it will go out of business.
Don't be so naive. If Sony doesn't acount for the problems it has now how will it ever continue as a corporation without hemorrhaging money? Besides, Sony LOST money on PS3 sales in an attempt to regain what they lost in the sales of games. You can't seriously be so ignorant as to look past the fact that if Sony doesn't defend its source of income it will go out of business.
I never said that Sony shouldnt defend its source of income, did you not read my comment that they dont just sell video games and ps3's?? THERE A MULTI BILLION DOLLAR CORPORATION. They sell overpriced TV's, blu-ray shit, LAPTOPS for christs sake. I mean, if you honestly think that some pirates are going to be a problem, you need your head checked. Hemorrahging money? pff, you mean overpricing their stuff? Yeah you could say that -__-
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01-24-2011, 10:47 PM
#22
DentyneIce360
Gym leader
Originally posted by skylines4life
WTF are you talking about? Wouldn't you be mad if your console was hacked so you would lose money, and creep slowly into bankruptcy? You think Microsoft doesn't care about piracy?
You must login or register to view this content..You must login or register to view this content.. You must login or register to view this content. .You must login or register to view this content.
So Microsoft doesn't care about piracy? I found those links in a minute imagine how many cases of piracy there actually are. Sony's just trying to secure their console give us all a better gaming experience, but due to ignorance some can't see this.
You must login or register to view this content..You must login or register to view this content.. You must login or register to view this content. .You must login or register to view this content.
So Microsoft doesn't care about piracy? I found those links in a minute imagine how many cases of piracy there actually are. Sony's just trying to secure their console give us all a better gaming experience, but due to ignorance some can't see this.
Very well said.
01-24-2011, 10:57 PM
#23
Skylines
The Forgotten
Originally posted by mEdiivalXvirrus
You poor poor misinformed ding dong. *sigh*. can i ask you something? do you make as much as some of the Sony Employees? Probably not. Then ask yourself, wait a sec, hasnt Microsofts console been hacked since it like first came out, therefore accounting for years of piracy? I think so. Are they out of business? bankrupt because of it? No. Nintendo, same situation, and guess what? Their sales are skyrocketing like never before!! I have no sympathy for big corporations who cry the blues that piracy is the worst thing in the world and there company is going to go bankrupt or something because of it. Really? Your most likely multi million (or even billion dollar) company is going to go down the shitter due to some pirates? I HIGHLY doubt that. Piracy has been alive and well for years and big companys still exist. Sonys just a bunch of whiners that cant accept the fact that their like one of the most least liked or even preffered for that matter when it comes to consoles. GeoHot and the failoverflow did something that I could probably never do in my life, or for that matter, no one has been able to do in 7 years or whatever since the consoles release (which is kinda sad considering the amount of hackers and what not on the internet in general, but thats a whole seperate issue....) So to sum things up, Sonys not gonna die, they still got their overpriced TV's and shitty blu-rays players to keep 'em aflot, god forbid they lose a few sales :O Gimme a break...
Just because Sony has other means of getting money in, doesn't mean they won't go bankrupt eventually. Microsoft....Their OS is running on most of the computers in the world today right? Compared to the money Microsoft is making from Their OS for computers, the 360 sales are nothing. Plus piracy cannot be done on just any 360 out there (from what I know). Piracy can be enabled on every ps3 atm. So imagine if every 1 out of 5 ps3's out there had piracy enables on them? I think Sony being as big as they are would take a major loss.
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01-24-2011, 11:12 PM
#24
sSkylit
In Hopes of Serenity
Originally posted by mEdiivalXvirrus
I never said that Sony shouldnt defend its source of income, did you not read my comment that they dont just sell video games and ps3's?? THERE A MULTI BILLION DOLLAR CORPORATION. They sell overpriced TV's, blu-ray shit, LAPTOPS for christs sake. I mean, if you honestly think that some pirates are going to be a problem, you need your head checked. Hemorrahging money? pff, you mean overpricing their stuff? Yeah you could say that -__-
You must be trolling if you are that oblivious.
Granted, they have multiple sources of income but how could you expect ANYONE (not just Sony) to willingly let go of one source of income?
No, I meant hemorrhaging money. If you think the shit is overpriced now...keep up the pirating. See how expensive it gets when the demand drops for games and the amount of sales they make halves.
You can't defend pirating. It's unlawful because it's not fair nor is it right. It's one thing to do it (as I do) but it's another thing entirely to defend it by dodging unethical allusions and knocking on how successful the corporation is. How do you think they got to where they were..? Not by letting pirates get away with shit. I will tell you that much.
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01-25-2011, 12:23 AM
#25
mEdiivalXvirrus
Brute
Originally posted by sSkylit
You must be trolling if you are that oblivious.
Granted, they have multiple sources of income but how could you expect ANYONE (not just Sony) to willingly let go of one source of income?
No, I meant hemorrhaging money. If you think the shit is overpriced now...keep up the pirating. See how expensive it gets when the demand drops for games and the amount of sales they make halves.
You can't defend pirating. It's unlawful because it's not fair nor is it right. It's one thing to do it (as I do) but it's another thing entirely to defend it by dodging unethical allusions and knocking on how successful the corporation is. How do you think they got to where they were..? Not by letting pirates get away with shit. I will tell you that much.
Granted, they have multiple sources of income but how could you expect ANYONE (not just Sony) to willingly let go of one source of income?
No, I meant hemorrhaging money. If you think the shit is overpriced now...keep up the pirating. See how expensive it gets when the demand drops for games and the amount of sales they make halves.
You can't defend pirating. It's unlawful because it's not fair nor is it right. It's one thing to do it (as I do) but it's another thing entirely to defend it by dodging unethical allusions and knocking on how successful the corporation is. How do you think they got to where they were..? Not by letting pirates get away with shit. I will tell you that much.
Thats hypocritical. Why are you defending Sony? If you pirate then you obviously have not a care in the world for them. I will say this though so you dont think im trolling. Im an Xbox fanboy. Sony, well, watch this to let me give you a breakdown of what i think of its PlayStation, [ame=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmvcP71A-Wk]YouTube - It's a Wonderful Live: Episode 2 (Halo 3 Machinima)[/ame] a little outdated, but it gets my point across. And another thing, if Sony REALLY wanted to save their precious consoles, and sales -__-, they could just ban people like Microsoft, simple. No sense in going through all this with the sueing and the crying. Idiots...:catfight:
01-27-2011, 12:40 AM
#26
sSkylit
In Hopes of Serenity
Originally posted by mEdiivalXvirrus
Thats hypocritical. Why are you defending Sony? If you pirate then you obviously have not a care in the world for them. I will say this though so you dont think im trolling. Im an Xbox fanboy. Sony, well, watch this to let me give you a breakdown of what i think of its PlayStation, You must login or register to view this content. a little outdated, but it gets my point across. And another thing, if Sony REALLY wanted to save their precious consoles, and sales -__-, they could just ban people like Microsoft, simple. No sense in going through all this with the sueing and the crying. Idiots...:catfight:
I don't care what you want to call it. All I am saying is Sony has a right to take whatever action they deem necessary and we (consumers) have no right to object. The fact that you are an Xbox fan boy just makes me think you are trolling even more, lol.
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01-27-2011, 12:50 AM
#27
ISmokeyTheBear
Do a barrel roll!
Originally posted by mEdiivalXvirrus
what a bunch of jews....Sony needs to just shut up and let us play. honestly, do you see Microsoft up in arms about shit like piracy? Oh wait, Sony just sucks so they have to cry and complain about something. -__-
The PSP got "hacked" really badly with cheating online and downloadable games.
There is rarely new PSP online games.
Sony doesn't want to see that happen to the PS3 :mad:
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