Editing Modding (section)

=== Legal issues ===
Modding may sometimes infringe the legal rights of the copyright owner. Some nations have laws prohibiting modding and accuse modders of attempting to overcome [[copy protection]] schemes. In the United States, the [[DMCA]] has set up stiff penalties for mods that violate the rights of intellectual property owners. In the [[European Union]], member states have agreed the [[Information Society Directive|EU Copyright Directive]] and are transposing it into national law. A 22-year-old man was convicted by [[Caerphilly]] Magistrates' Court in the [[United Kingdom]] in July 2005 for selling a modded [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]] with built in software and games.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4650225.stm|title=Man convicted for chipping Xbox|date=July 4, 2014|website=BBC}}</ref> However it is also worthy of note that some other European countries have not interpreted the legal issues in the same way. In Italy a judge threw out a [[Sony]] case saying it was up to owners of a console what they did with it.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://management.silicon.com/government/0,39024677,39117891,00.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060324123541/http://management.silicon.com/government/0%2C39024677%2C39117891%2C00.htm |archive-date=March 24, 2006 |title=Chipping PlayStations isn't illegal, says Italian court}}</ref> Similarly in Spain, mod chips have been ruled as legal despite the EU copyright legislation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theregister.com/2004/04/27/spanish_xbox_modding_ruling/|title=Spanish judge rules X-Box mods 'legal' Intellectual property loophole|date=27 Apr 2004|first=Lester|last=Haines}}</ref> Modding may be an unauthorized change made to a software or hardware to a platform in gaming. Case mods are modifications to a device with the altering of certain styles. For example, people who mod a [[Microsoft]] [[Xbox 360]] can alter the [[LED]] lights on the controller to glow different colors.

On August 5, 2009, Matthew Crippen, a 27-year-old student at [[California State University, Fullerton]], was arrested for modifying game consoles including the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii for profit.<ref>[https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=8244137]{{dead link|date=November 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2009/08/game-console-jailbreaking-arrest/|title=Student Arrested for Jailbreaking Game Consoles — Update|first=DAVID|last=KRAVETS|date=August 4, 2009|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]|access-date=December 31, 2014}}</ref> Crippen testified that it was so owners could play their backup discs of DRM-laden gaming software that they legally own.  However, the DMCA states that it is illegal to circumvent copyright protection software, even for non-infringing uses such as backing up legally owned games. In December 2010 the prosecutors dropped all charges<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2010/12/crippen-dismissed/|title=Prosecutors Dismiss Xbox-Modding Case Mid-Trial|first=David|last=Kravets|date=December 2, 2010|access-date=June 19, 2017|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]}}</ref> against Crippen because of inadmissible evidence obtained through an audio-less video recording deemed illegal by California law.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2010/11/xbox-trial-dustup/|title=Corporate Cop's Covert Video at Issue in Xbox Modding Case|first=DAVID|last=KRAVETS|date=November 8, 2010|access-date=December 31, 2014|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]}}</ref>