Is it just a game mod, or is it “facilitating piracy”?

Last week, Rockstar banned a number of Grand Theft Auto V players associated with the "FiveM" mod, which offers players an online playspace separate from the game's official "Grand Theft Auto: Online" mode. Yesterday, a Rockstar representative told Ars the bans were made because the mod is "an unauthorized alternate multiplayer service that contains code designed to facilitate piracy."

That statement got us wondering: Is a mod that merely provides online gameplay on alternate servers really on the same level as simply making an unauthorized copy of a game? The answer, as it turns out, depends quite a bit on what you mean by one phrase "facilitating piracy."

“It does not behave like a crack”

"FiveM is not a crack for GTA V nor does it actively try to facilitate piracy," said Qais Patankar, who goes by qaisjp online. While Patankar didn't contribute code to the FiveM mod directly, he says he was caught up in Rockstar's bans for promoting the mod through online channels like Reddit.

Read 12 remaining paragraphs | Comments