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93 Comments
- NikoKun, on 10/12/2007, -9/+46"Lik-Sang broke the law."
HAH... do you work for Sony?
Lik-Sang broke no law... there is no law against buying a product and then reselling it. =P
And if there is a law like that, its a crazy law, and should be stricken down... - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+32TWO ALTERNATIVES FOR EVERYONE TO TRY (AND POSSIBLY LOVE):
http://www.play-asia.com
http://www.yesasia.com (Will even pay import tax on your behalf if you're in the UK or Germany)
And if you're only interested in importing North American games:
http://www.videogamesplus.ca (I got my PSP from here, very good service) - DoctorNo, on 10/12/2007, -4/+34Being that they didn't show up in court, no pay for what was awarded, I'm assuming this is all a stunt not to pay for the verdict that they've pulled before.
Lik-Sang did this a few years back when they lost a case to Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft over piracy issues, claiming they got shut down by the three companies, few months later they pop back up. Until then go to NCSX.com, Play-asia.com, yesasia.com, etc (Lik-Sang was always expensive compared to play-asia anyway, and Play-asia had better service)
Their Lik-Sang's previous history regarding being "shut-down":
Microsoft shuts down Lik-Sang
http://www.geek.com/news/geeknews/2002Oct/gam20021004016641.htm
http://news.com.com/2100-1040-960594.html
Like-Sang shuts down by game makers
http://archives.cnn.com/2002/TECH/fun.games/12/16/gamers.liksang/index.html - DeadlyCouncil, on 10/12/2007, -13/+42That's just sad... even their regional reps bought PSP's from that site, and now they shut it down and try and say its not their fault? There's nothing wrong with imports... c'mon Sony.
- Bara, on 10/12/2007, -5/+28Personally, I think that for once wasn't lying. I mean, the people WORK for Sony, if they wanted a PSP, it should have been as simple as a call to the HQ and requesting one. Unless, of course, Sony is really anal about giving away free products to top execs in different countries...
- NikoKun, on 10/12/2007, -6/+27Sony knew what they were doing... thats why they made Multiple lawsuits in different countries against Lik-Sang... They wanted to shut them down...
When in reality... All Sony had to do, and all they should have done... was just STOP shipping product to Lik-Sang!!! - _skin_, on 10/12/2007, -9/+28This is one of the worst things to happen to gamers since the 3DO!
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+19lik-sang has been plagued with lawsuits for years, this is not the first time theyve closed there doors, the first was when they sold premods
- agony, on 10/12/2007, -7/+21wow
lik-sang was in court for years because of there "lick my ass" position
nintendo, sega, sony, MS all sued lik-sang
It`s just a European law, eat it lik-sang. Play-asia was also warned long time ago not to sell PSPs to Europe and the stopped it... but not lik-sang
here is your bill - NikoKun, on 10/12/2007, -13/+26"Sony denies responsibility" pffft... they would...
- mgold1n, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11Sony attacked Lik-Sang's weak point for massive damage!
- Itazura, on 10/12/2007, -13/+23I wish people here would try and research things for a change, and hey try to read a book. Lik Sang broke the law, Sony sued them for it, they shut down their site because if they couldn't break the law anymore they would go out of buisness anyways. Sony didn't get any money from sueing them, Lik Sang didn't loose a cent, they didn't even show up to court so there are no lawyer fees.
No one here seems to understand that Lik Sang was buying all these things from stores people shop at and re-selling them online and abroad. So when some East Indian kid goes to find a psp, oh sad! none for you because the demand for imports from Lik Sang were too high this week.
So all you Nintendo fanboys, how would you like it if when you went to go pick up your reserved Wii the manager said sorry amazon.com bought them all and sold them to someone else. Sony did something very morally right here that actually hurt their profit in order to provide products all over, stop pretending to be self righteous ***** when you don't even know what you are argueing about. - WhereAmI, on 10/12/2007, -7/+15When you think about it, Sony just wanted them to stop selling Sony products.
Lik-Sang closed down because of the multiple lawsuits, however. - myheaditches, on 10/12/2007, -6/+13Sony's policy: Screw the consumers, they should be honored we grace them with our presence!
- Gunegune, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9@ DeadlyCouncil
Sony responded, "The purchasing of PSP consoles by SCE employees would be for investigatory purposes. We would also like to express our surprise at a company releasing personal information about its consumers, as this is contrary to data protection principles around the world."
I agree with the last part. A company should have no right to release information about it's consumers. - abohling, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10If you remove the companies in question and look at it objectively it seems like it went down like this:
Company A has a contract with Company B to sell Company B's product in a set market. Company A then turns around and sells to the global market so Company B sues them for breaking the contract and wins in court, in this case in London.
Company A loses the ability to sell to the global market which in turn creates a situation where they can't sell enough to stay in business plus pay any court and legal fees they may have accrued and thus decide to go out of business.
Does this seem like what happened? I'm truly trying to understand the situation - not trying to be a jerk or anything. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -8/+14I cant believe Lik-Sang has closed because of Sony.
I've used them so many times for import games and now it's all over, it's a sad day for import gamers. - se1zure, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6"
That wouldn't happen as Nintendo are not inept. There would be no need to import their consoles since there would be enough to go around."
last i checked, the wii isn't region free... sooo... yeahh, i would need to import one from japan to play japanese games that won't come out in america. - envy860, on 10/12/2007, -17/+22Sony, shut the ***** up.
I hope people who were going to import your console decide not to buy it at all. - glitch23, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6No they won't. Play-Asia already went through their legal woes with the video game company's and as such have abided by the rulings and stayed in business.
- tg16, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6I, for one, am looking forward to all game retailers to stop selling Sony products all together.
- Daniel591992, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5If you're clueless like me:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lik-sang - sakuraz, on 10/12/2007, -4/+8You use big words but divide the world in black and white...
tsk tsk tsk
Just because mixing tapes is so easy and feels right for you, doesn't mean the law is wrong in banning it. It's the same logic as copied games.
With your logic, it should be legal to put cracked F.E.A.R and Prey together in one torrent because the package you're uploading does not consist just of one product, but modified, and two games are presented as one.
I won't defend either sony or lik-sang because I don't see the point.
What's more important right now is that you're almost discrediting the whole legal system just because you disagree with few laws inside it.
That is a dumb thing to do. Don't try to defend it. - xenixninja, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Sony don't want people to import games, they rather have people download pirated games instead? Smart move.
- Daniel591992, on 10/12/2007, -6/+9This is what I think. They broke the law, so they deserve to get punished. Simple as that.
- aerogant, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lik-sang
"In 2002, the company was sued by major game console producers, such as Sony, Nintendo, Microsoft, etc., alleging copyright infringement due to mod chips, and other devices being used with their console; injunctions were granted preventing the sale of these devices.[2] After these suits, Lik Sang began expanding its area of expertise by reinventing itself (under a new owner) as a vendor of legitimate, but obscure, accessories, such as consumer electronics, games, merchandise, and t-shirts. Currently, they do not sell modchips, nor flash cartridges."
I don't think I ever bought anything from them, but I came across their site several times when looking for controller adapters and othe odd stuff not found normally, and also they were in the news a few times, for taking a look at the guts of electronic things. I do feel like they are a part of gaming, taking them away because sony wants to control imports of their game system is an insane nazi thing to do, does the WTO know about this crap?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WTO
There mission after all is about opening up trade. While Sony isn't a country, I would think the same principles can be applied to an international corporation. - MatttK, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4@DoctorNo: I checked your links.. they describe a long-lasting server outage. This time, Lik Sang appears to be claiming that they're actually out of business...
- akshay626, on 10/12/2007, -8/+11@dime
"Are you an idiot? I'm asking sincerely."
You realize PS3 don't grow on trees right? When they (Lik-Sang) buy a PS3 from japan and sell it in the UK they are denying a Asian boy his PS3.
"It's pure capitalism. If there is demand in my country but no supply, I have every right to buy from a market where the supply exists"
Name me a country that functions on pure capitalism. Here's a hint, the UK, US, Japan or China aren't one of them.
"Sony didn't lose any money."
Exactly this isn't about money. Sony probably lost money due to the legal costs. Lik-Sang lost no money since it didn't go to court therefor incurring no legal cost.
"They just wanted to throw their weight around to artificially control market forces. In the end, the only ones hurt are the consumers."
Hurt which consumers? European consumers? maybe. But they helped asian consumers, so in the end it balances out.
"And thankfully, consumers don't forget very easily."
Kind of like you've already forgotten that Nintendo and Microsoft have sued Lik-Sang in the past? - G-RaZoR, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Personally, If I was an executive at Lik Sang, I would contact Microsoft or Nintendo, explain the situation, and take a bribe. Sony is struggling and every penny they spend on legal fees is to Microsoft or Nintendo's benefit.
- bola, on 10/12/2007, -11/+14sour grapes my @ss
shame on Sony - afrazkhan, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2The legal system is not set in stone. If the law is broken then we generally fix it. The law in this case is broken.
Also, there are no simliarities between making a mix tape and putting a few games together in one torrent. One is for a friend to introduce them to new music, and the other consists of two or more complete products which everyone in the world can download. - charpster, on 10/12/2007, -17/+19whats up with sony lately? are they trying to find out how long it will take to drive themselves into the ground?
- LordofChaosIori, on 10/12/2007, -14/+15Bunch of liars! And that's a dirty blow on Sony's part!:
"...We would also like to express our surprise at a company releasing personal information about its consumers, as this is contrary to data protection principles around the world."
Yes, because THEY'VE been so good to their consumers lately! - stone2020, on 10/12/2007, -11/+12Sony will be eating sour grapes soon too!
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -5/+7I'm sad because I had a pre-order with them. However, it is true that there is no reason for them to close their doors. The ruling certainly would hurt their sales of PSP/PS3/Wii hardware to the UK (and Europe?), but they have so many more products, and are quite popular, they'd do just fine.
I bet we'll see them re-open for business after the dust settles.
How this makes Sony evil or warrants a boycott, I'll never understand... - Absinthminded64, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5They remind me of Tom Cruise. Won't be long before they're trying to have relations with Oprah's couch.
- glitch23, on 10/12/2007, -9/+11@DoctorNo
Sometimes I wish I could vote more than once, because with all the Sony bashing going on, someone needs to tell the truth. The uninformed masses only spread what little knowledge they know, and even when corrected they try to explain themselves and support their decision. Look at Slashdot a website that have archives of things like this, yet allow it to seem as if it something new.
Lik-Sang is a shady business with a shady history. But we all know truth doesn't matter anymore, and common sense just isnt that common. - rdtx2005, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Mad at Sony for selling you a 1500 machine.. or mad at your stupidity for pay such a cost?
- monomij, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3There actually IS such a law. Have you ever seen thing on the back of the game wher it sais specifically to NOT sell the item again! But, I will miss Lik-sang, Everybody go to ncsx from now on!
- howie, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2What lawsuits of the past? You mean when they were sued for seeling mod-chips? According to Wikipedia:
"After these suits, Lik Sang began expanding its area of expertise by reinventing itself (under a new owner) as a vendor of legitimate, but obscure, accessories, such as consumer electronics, games, merchandise, and t-shirts. Currently, they do not sell modchips, nor flash cartridges."
Why did Sony do the right thing? Why is the right thing to prevent people from one part of the world to buy something from another part of the world?
Sony messed up. Just like they did with their spyware CDs. There was no reason to sue Lik-Sang for doing a great service to people across the world. - Mullinator, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Err, things aren't supposed to fail 2-3 days after their warranty is up hansamurai. It's Sony's responsibility as a manufacturer of consumer goods to ensure that their goods meet the standards consumers demand. And that means making things that won't fail as soon as their warranty is up.
- overbyte, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@gunblade (from the states i take it)
and sony's rootkits, the (not-so-)stealthy setup of blue-ray as a movie format through a games console (and the resulting HUGE price-tag which is made to look smaller by keeping the cost of the stand-alone players artificially high until the launch of said console) and it's substandard (yet overpriced) computer equipment (including the amazing sizzling batteries™ - sound fx™ included!) are not shady?
fact is that sony has delayed the european launch (europe, by the way, is the psone and ps2 stronghold with much greater traction than in the US and japan markets) and now it has shut down one of the main import routes.
AND they have the sheer, bare-faced audacity to say that it's okay because europe is HAPPY to wait - looks like we're going to bloody HAVE to, doesn't it sony?
http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/10/06/1653216
http://www.joystiq.com/2006/09/07/europes-ps3-delay-in-quotes/
dicks - sakuraz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1get two tapes, put them together with crossfade or mixes
get two games, put them together with cracks or mods
Still no resemblence? - overbyte, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1if you're from europe then i would be massively dissappointed that you're prepared to take a crap service as the norm and would argue that you play into the hands of mr kutaragi when he says that it's okay to release in europe late because that's the way it's always been.
However, i suspect that you're from the US in which case your comments come across as crass and even arrogant and leave me utterly cold. Microsoft managed to release in europe and japan within days of the US launch and the US is it's main market. Europe is Sony's main stronghold and yet it isn't getting anything for over 4 months after the US launch.
The (only) reason for this is that Sony is using the ps3 to launch blue-ray and cannot produce the components in enough quantities. Not for the US launch and not for the Euro launch. Their arrogance has made them (in my eyes) go from a cool brand to a stupid joke.
This isn't about sony dumping on lik-sang. It's about Sony being unable to produce enough units for a global launch but unwilling to lose the HUGE premium that european gamers pay for their stuff. - hansamurai, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Yes, Sony forced you to buy a "home theater dream system."
- raindog469, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1No, it wasn't a contract dispute. Company A claimed Company B was violating their trademark by selling Product C before its release date in a different territory, and because the Product C's that Company B was getting weren't certified under that territory's equivalent of the FCC.
Though I'm not a lawyer in any jurisdiction, I think it's pretty likely that if Lik-sang could afford to defend themselves or mount an appeal, they would have won. I know my company would have trouble defending itself if someone in, say, Australia decided to sue us.
If Sony could sue companies for importing products before their release date, there would have been no need for DVD region encoding and they'd have sued Amazon, ebay et al. long ago. These lawsuits were purely a tool to hit Lik-sang in the wallet through the cost of the legal system, not through any legal remedy. - BBad, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Big ***** So one big company gets a smaller company closed down, what's news about this. Sure there were some cool hard to find items at Lik-Sang, but Lik-sang didn't play by the rule and now they are gone.
Sony has different division to market and sale their products in different regions. Sure the Internet makes it seem like we live in a global economy ....... but the market places around the world are still broken up into regions ....... everybody want their piece of the pie! - dime, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5"You realize PS3 don't grow on trees right? When they (Lik-Sang) buy a PS3 from japan and sell it in the UK they are denying a Asian boy his PS3."
So? As a consumer, I have the right to purchase as many PS3s as I choose to.
And girls play games too, you sexist swine ;p
"Name me a country that functions on pure capitalism. Here's a hint, the UK, US, Japan or China aren't one of them."
So? Just because countries have incorporated socialist policies does not mean those policies are any less retarded.
"Exactly this isn't about money. Sony probably lost money due to the legal costs. Lik-Sang lost no money since it didn't go to court therefor incurring no legal cost."
Except, of course, that Lik-Sang can no longer do business... thereby depriving them of untold future revenue (and the loss of employment for their employees).
"Hurt which consumers? European consumers? maybe. But they helped asian consumers, so in the end it balances out."
"Helping" Asian consumers is subjective and largely irrelevant. Since you asked, though, they hurt consumers worldwide, since now no consumers anywhere can purchase from them.
"Kind of like you've already forgotten that Nintendo and Microsoft have sued Lik-Sang in the past?"
They sued to prevent modchips and unauthorized peripherals from being sold - an altogther different beast. While I also think limiting consumers from modifying hardware they purchased is wrong, there is more of a case for maintaining console integrity than simply wanting to control worldwide market forces. - mandarin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Sony = Ass
- overbyte, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1too many sheep, mate
people buy sony bravia televisions at a massive premium, even tho it's fairly common knowledge that they have samsung panels in them. They will buy blue-ray because of a percieved level of build quality in spite of the bad reports and they will buy a ps3 at full price in spite of the fact that it won't begin to come into it's own for at least 2 years. -
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