Rockstar Games and their parent company Take-Two Interactive have stepped up their battle against GTA Online cheaters with a new lawsuit. This is the latest escalation in the war against cheaters in Los Santos.
Recent Events
In recent weeks and months, we’ve seen Rockstar and Take-Two adopt a more visible and active response to cheaters affecting GTA Online. Back in September, BattlEye anti-cheat was added to the game causing a significant reduction in cheaters across GTA Online. This also led to many mod menus having to shutter due to its effectiveness.
Some mod menu teams have persevered but the end is nigh for many. Last week, popular mod menu 2Take1 was shut down by Take-Two’s lawyers. We reported on how the developers behind this harmful cheating method were told to stop production and distribution or face legal action. They complied with Take-Two’s demands.
The New Lawsuit
First spotted by Polygon, Take-Two filed a lawsuit against a China-based modded account seller last week in California. The complaint covers trademark infringement, false designation of origin, tortious interference and various levels of copyright infringement.
PlayerAuctions is somewhat of a marketplace that lets anyone purchase accounts for various games complete with currency and items obtained illegitimately. However, Take-Two dispute they are selling GTA Online accounts filled with modded money, ranks and items which were not earned in-line with Rockstar’s Terms of Service. Rather the purchaser will give PlayerAuctions control of their account so they can hack and obtain lots of cash in-game then pass the account back. This is against Rockstar’s policy.
According to the lawsuit document, Take-Two’s other issue is that according to them PlayerAuctions earn millions of dollars every year using hacks and exploits to create GTA Online cash. This is not just a legal battle over ToS but rather infringement of Take-Two’s copyright and trademarks. Below is quote from Take-Two on how it harms not only themselves but also other GTA Online players.
“PlayerAuctions’ willful infringement not only damages Take-Two but also harms innocent GTA V players. At the scale of its Website, PlayerAuctions risks upending the GTA V player experience and interferes with the balance and fairness of the game. PlayerAuctions’ business also actively promotes behavior that risks creating a “race for the bottom” where innocent GTA V players feel pressured to buy unauthorized digital goods and service, or else resort to using hacks or cheating themselves, to “keep up” with PlayerAuctions’ customers.” – Take-Two Interactive
You can view the full complaint made by Take-Two here.
It is good to see Take-Two take more action against those disrupting GTA Online. Last month we reported on a conversation Mors Mutual had with a cheat maker. They revealed how they were going to continue to have the mod menu work but have lost interest nearly 10 years on. You can check out the article here.
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1 Comment
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