Sony versus George Hotz - Friede, Freude, Eierkuchen

George Hotz, der Hacker der die PlayStation 3 Sicherheitbrarrieren quasi im Alleingang durchbrach, die Informationen online im Netz postete und damit eine Flut an Homebrew und vor allem illegalen Raubkopien ermöglichte, wurde einige Zeit später von Sony vor Gericht gezerrt. Der Konzern warf ihm vor, mutwillig das Sicherheitssystem der PS3 geknackt zu haben, damit einhergehend diverse US Gesetzt gebrochen zu haben und halt Raubkopierern Tor und Tür zu öffnen. Hotz verneinte dies und lange Zeit sah es so aus, als ob sich dieses Gerichtsdrama bis in alle Ewigkeit hinziehen würde.

Doch plötzlich gibt es eine Einigung zwischen Sony und Hotz (datiert auf den 31. März 2011), bei der beide Parteien überglücklich über das Ende des Gerichtsstreits sind und Hotz eine einstweilige Unterlassung unterschrieb.

Hier das offizielle Statement der beiden Parteien, das heute gepostet wurde.

Joint Statement

Sony Computer Entertainment America (“SCEA”) and George Hotz (“Hotz”) today announced the settlement of the lawsuit filed by SCEA against Hotz in federal court in San Francisco, California. The parties reached an agreement in principle on March 31, 2011. As part of the settlement, Hotz consented to a permanent injunction.

Both parties expressed satisfaction that litigation had been quickly resolved. “Sony is glad to put this litigation behind us,” said Riley Russell, General Counsel for SCEA. “Our motivation for bringing this litigation was to protect our intellectual property and our consumers. We believe this settlement and the permanent injunction achieve this goal.”

“It was never my intention to cause any users trouble or to make piracy easier,” said Hotz, I’m happy to have the litigation behind me.” Hotz was not involved in the recent attacks on Sony’s internet services and websites.

In the action, SCEA accused Hotz of violating federal law by posting online information about the security system in the PlayStation 3 videogame console and software that SCEA claimed could be used to circumvent the security system in the console and allow the playing of pirated videogames. Hotz denies any wrongdoing on his part. Hotz’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction was still pending before the federal court in San Francisco but a preliminary injunction was issued requiring Hotz to take down the postings challenged by SCEA.

“We want our consumers to be able to enjoy our devices and products in a safe and fun environment and we want to protect the hard work of the talented engineers, artists, musicians and game designers who make PlayStation games and support the PlayStation Network,” added Russell. “We appreciate Mr. Hotz’s willingness to address the legal issues involved in this case and work with us to quickly bring this matter to an early resolution.”