Dutch court: Stealing virtual items is a crime

Finally we are heading in the right direction. This judge seems to know what he's talking about (or has people around him that do). This is very good for all the virtual worlds.

I think the main factor behind the conviction was threath of physical harm and not the theft itself. Hopefully it is really about the theft though, that would mean MindArks EULA and others aint the final word

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It is the same, no matter if you steal a car or a virtual sword, its still theft and should be handled acordingly.

Making diferences is quit decadent.

Regards.
Ion

As long as the punishment fits the crime it's far from a "tragedy"

Actually, it's a great start!!

Most of the time the punishments in Holland are kinda soft if you ask me, but at least not like in the USA where you are fined 150.000.000 for downloading a few MP3's.

But in this case the punishment looks OK to me.

I am very happy to hear about this decision and hope that courts in other countries will soon follow suit. The punishment, of course, will depend on the circumstances of the theft, the background of the convicted person, the laws of the country, and the sound discretion of the sentencing judge.

Although the sentence in this case seems a bit severe, there were probably factors involved that warranted the punishment. I certainly hope the courts will find ways to require restitution to victims.

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Also, some items have value to the owner beyond any monetary worth.

I have some photos of my late parents... monetary worth about 3 pec, but it would be an inestimable loss to me if they were stolen or destroyed.

It has nothing to do with money but with the unwilling loss of possesion. If some steals a picture with only emotional value, its still a theft. (as admin and Shadowsong explained)

In that your right, but that has nothing to do with the law.
That is the justice deparment making good or wrong priority's.

Regards.
Ion

Fuck me thats a pretty harsh sentence..

Way more then I got for DOI and crashing a car while beeing a minor xD

All this means is that in Nederlands its a crime. How it would play out in other countries is another mater. I bet that the Swedish police would just look as stupid as they always do. If I went to them and told them that my virtual first aid pack worth more than a years salary was stolen by a virtual dude who I dont know shit about in RL, it would be more likely to lock me up rather than even bother investigating it as a real crime. They would say that I need to contact MA and that would be the end of it I think. Just for the hell of it im going to call a few cops and ask what they would do. Its not like they actually got anything better to do in between pumping steriods or beating the hell out of their wifes.
To put it mildly, the cops in Sweden couldnt find their own ass with both hands and a flashlight. F-ing

You never know, they might be busy harassing black kids in the suburbs.

Cops would say "contact MindArk and have them solve it" and MindArk would say "contact the cops and have them solve it and we will follow the decision" and the merry-go-round never reaches anywhere

Uh, is that paper a bit outdated or? I blogged about this case a year ago O_o

Yea I thought maybe it was an appeal, but I suppose they won twice then! Even better :) They seem to have gotten the same sentences though. Here's the newscase I blogged about: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27297979/

Either way, its good news imo! Even if in Runescape it doesnt actually cost anything its still theft, and Im happy to see it classified as such.