CCP Xhagen
C C P
C C P Alliance
343
   |
Posted - 2013.01.31 15:35:00 -
[1] - Quote
Thank you all for a lively discussion on this topic. While I appreciate that this is being discussed, CCP's stance on the matter hasn't changed.
Why you ask? Because the privacy matter is the strongest factor - characters are not running for the CSM, real people are where your character name gives you the EVE reputation (and you can run with whatever character you wish). IF CCP would not publish the RL names and country of residence, it would be implicitly stated that we would keep them a secret.
That we cannot promise.
In fact we would be opening up for potential liability - even though we would go the route of not actually confirming that we would keep that information secret, we would still be implicitly promising something we cannot keep as everyone would be interpret it that way. I'm no lawyer but a liability lawsuit of this nature could have dire consequences for CCP as a company and subsequently EVE (now I'm travelling down a slippery slope, but the consequences MUST be kept in mind).
That is why it was decided to go the much cleaner way of stating that we will disclose this information and leaving the participation in the CSM up to the person who wants to run - they can then make an informed decision. That also allows us to use the CSM, and pictures and names of those members, for PR purposes. Additionally RL laws and protection applies to the people on the CSM and CCP is not making any promises that it cannot keep.
Snow Axe wrote:Quote:CCP Xhagen: The answer to "why are we using real-life names" is "practical matters". We are playing on human nature, creating accountability, and we can't guarantee you will remain anonymous when you run for CSM, therefore it's just easier -- the simple solution to all this is, "we will just publish your real-life name". If that reduces the number of candidates, then we are willing to pay that price. It also means that if someone starts to threaten you, you have a certain safety-net with the authorities because they are threatening you as a real person, not as an EVE character. I'm going to ignore the logical stupidity of "we can't guarantee anonymity so we're removing it entirely" and focus on the real issue, which I've bolded. Creating accountability. Xhagen's amalgam of vigilante justice and just world fallacy rolled up into one purely psychotic idea. Willingly giving RL information to a playerbase that can, has, and most likely will go too far with it if they are so inclined as a method of policing behavior? For an unpaid consultant volunteering great amounts of their time to help you as a company succeed? There just aren't words for that level of disrespect. That any of you are lining up lockstep and saying "well, I personally haven't felt it's a problem" is just an extra layer of sad on top of all of it.
When talking about human nature (which is not the real issue, as you mistakenly conclude), the street goes both ways.
Not only does it deter people who are worried about their RL names being linked to their online behavior but it also deters people who would use that information to harass CSM candidates and members - both have potential RL consequences.
And this has nothing to do with 'vigilante justice' or 'just world fallacy' - most countries have laws that protect the citizens and police forces that can be contacted if a person believes that those same laws have been broken.
CCP Xhagen | Senior Researcher
CSM Project Manager
|