Microsoft Gets Sued!
A man in Florida has filed a federal lawsuit against Microsoft, accusing the company of defective design with the Xbox 360. Rather than suing Microsoft over the dreaded Red Ring of Death, however, Jorge Brouwer is suing Microsoft over the long-forgotten issue of disc scratching, and is seeking over $5 Million in damages.
The lawsuit stems from the claim that, when used normally, the Xbox 360’s optical reader can leave what Brouwer describes as “destructive scratches” on discs.
Brouwer also claims that Microsoft has refused to reimburse him for his lost games.
It has been believed for a long while that disc scratching can occur if you move your console while it is turned on. Gamefly has even gone so far as to warn it’s customers that moving the machine from horizontal to vertical during play can leave permanent damage on the disc. When asked about this issue, Brouwer’s attorney, Jeffrey M. Ostrow, had this to say:
“[Microsoft doesn't] tell you not to move the tower
Considering that Microsoft has just extended the warranty for the Xbox 360 to three years, as well as stating that they have identified a number of issues that are hindering their consoles performance, this lawsuit could be dicey. They’re already in the hole $1.05 BILLION dollars because of their reimbursement to all the people who sent their consoles in for repair. If they are forced by the courts to replace all damaged discs for free, this could be a major blow to the manufacturer.
ON A PERSONAL NOTE:
If you’re dumb enough to try and lift ANY console while a game is running, then you deserve whatever the hell you get. Just because it doesn’t say word-for-word in the instruction manual (although it does warn you that it could void the warranty) NOT to do something, doesn’t mean you can just go about doing it. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t say anything about letting an elephant trample it. Would you do it? No. Because common sense would tell you that’s a bad idea. Just as it should tell you that trying to do juggling tricks while you have Gears of War in the machine is a bad idea.
So, instead of filing a lawsuit because of your stupidity, maybe you outta try to use your brain and turn the machine OFF before you move it, you fucking nitwit!
Microsoft, Xbox 360, Florida, Lawsuit, Scratched Discs, Warranty, Voided Warranty
July 19th, 2007 at 5:25 pm
[...] Gets Sued! The Sequel July 19th, 2007 by J.W. Last week we told you about the absurd lawsuit regarding the Florida man who sued Microsoft because, he claims, his Xbox 360 has been scratching [...]