Anyone who took advantage of free games in other regions is at risked for an account and/or console ban. It is unknown how far back Microsoft is checking (I have downloaded quite a few free mistakes in the past, but nothing recent), but this ban wave has apparently hit many people so far. Urgent Announcement for ANYONE who used alternate region accounts! - Xbox360Achievements.org
Great, i'm probably going to get banned for downloading Angry Birds. So far my console seems ok (fingers crossed), however that would suck... is it the end of the world a couple of games got made free in other regions?
Who would of thought, they count Marketplace Theft with something that says 'free.' There have been people that had over 200K gamerscore get banned. I think this is getting a little out of hand.
They knew people would download the other games because the us, uk and other regions are receiving free games with a value of less than $15 and 2-6 years old. I believe the injustice game and other newer ones were a trap for xbox users everywhere else than the specified region. This is the support message for people that receive a console ban.(found on xbox support forums)
Well, at the very least, they're doing a good job making everyone angry and making them want to get a PS4 instead of a One.
They're banning people for downloading what they gave away for free? That's insane and unreasonable. If it were users who hacked their console then they'd have a point but they didn't. I hope I don't get banned because I downloaded free content from over XBL Canada, USA, Japan and Spain, would be really unfair for legit customers.
The thing is the code of conduct does not mention any of that... search for "region" and it mentions nothing what so ever. If something is free how can it be a fraudulent transaction? I've had a USA account for years, back from when the US market place had loads of content and the UK had very little. Other regions have had great free games, were as the UK, US and other places have had old games from 6 years ago everyone owns. Great way to alienate probably some of the most loyal customers right before a new console launch...
Microsoft always finds a way to punish their customers whether genuine or pirate because that's what they do best. It's really disappointing because they used to be a great company for gaming and Xbox, but now they've completely lost my trust. I won't be spending money on Xbox ever again, unless it's from the used market.
This looks like a pretty shit development from Microsoft. I didn't download any foreign Marketplace content in the past, but it's only natural for people to take advantage of any offer they may get. No need to punish that.
During the course of a recent investigation, we have discovered users who illegitimately accessed Xbox Live Marketplace downloadable content. "Our investigation reveals that this access was intentional and not accidental, constituting a blatant violation of the Terms of Use for the service. We will not divulge additional information regarding individual suspensions for these offenses. "Please know that we are being very careful regarding these suspensions, and have clear evidence regarding each account issued a permanent suspension from the service," it added. "We apologise for any frustration or confusion resulting from our inability to share individual details, and thank you all for your cooperation in this matter."Found this on cvg from XBLPET as u know is axbl moderator for enforcement team
Source for that? as i've found the exact same text from 2011: MS issues bans for XBL Marketplace Theft News • News • Xbox 360 • Eurogamer.net
From kotaku While refusing to address this situation in particular, a Microsoft spokesperson did issue Kotaku with the following statement when asked for confirmation on the bans: Xbox 360 Owners Say They Were Banned For Downloading Free Games
Just an idea I'm guessing there using IP address geological data to ban people as when u sign in I'm sure or IP address serial act is exchanged to xbl servers as a counter I'd recommend using a VPN