Why do the US Sue over everything

sherer · 10-11-2005, 12:04

Just been reading this about copy protected CDs

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4424254.stm

and there is also this about the IPod nano

http://www.channelregister.co.uk/200..._nano_lawsuit/

now I can understand people wanting their money back etc.. but the cost of a CD or an I.Pod is Ã‚Â£15 or Ã‚Â£150 for the nano ( not sure exact price of the nano)

The lawyer isn't working for free and is likely to cost more than the price of a CD.. if this goes to a court then a judge etc will have to be appointed all of which will cost the tax payers money and be more expensive than the CD and the i.pod.. it's totally ridiculous and a waste of money

surely they should just have a consummer body that can deal with these sorts of thigs that won't cost the tax payer anything

littld · 10-11-2005, 13:04

Don't agree. On the topic of copy protected CDs, Sony are guilty of installing malware and spyware on thoudands of PCs.

They should throw the book at them for it.

Roy MM · 10-11-2005, 13:06

And whoever loses the case pays the costs, not the tax payer.

10-11-2005, 13:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by littld

Don't agree. On the topic of copy protected CDs, Sony are guilty of installing malware and spyware on thoudands of PCs.

Yup - they're very much in the wrong.

As for the iPod Nano - that's just people seeing what they can get by making waves. Like you said - a refund should be more than adequate compensation.

But you ask why do people sue over just about anyhting? Simple - greed. There's some easy money to be had from taking someone to court (not much better in the UK either, these days) and with a lot of law firms offering 'no win, no fee' it's always worth a go.

sherer · 10-11-2005, 14:10

certainly the copy protected CDs should be something that Sony should be addressing but I don't think it's anything to sue Sony over.. it should be taken up by some sort of consummer watchdog, OFT etc rather than sueing everyone left right and centre

same with the apple nano it will be replaced in any shop if it's scratched and as they are all under warranty there isn't much of a problem

didn't realise how the costing works for cases in the US.. so if the man sueing Sony loses the case he will pay for the lawyer, judge, etc himself ?

agree alot of these cases in the US are about greed.. not sure if the one about someone sueing McDonalds because they drunk some hot coffee and got scalded is true or not.. but everyone out there just seems to be out for a way to sue and make money rather than earn it

gazzae · 10-11-2005, 14:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by sherer

not sure if the one about someone sueing McDonalds because they drunk some hot coffee and got scalded is true or not..

That one is true, but its not as silly as people make out. IIRC the woman suffered third-degree burns and in court McDonalds themselves admitted to keeping coffee 20oC greater than the drinkable tempature so that they wouldn't have ti keep making new batches or something.

Chrysalis · 10-11-2005, 19:34

I dunno the us system is better, individuals get their own personal compensation and companies lose more if they mess up, here regulators are subject to curruption and often lack teeth.

10-11-2005, 20:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chrysalis

I dunno the us system is better, individuals get their own personal compensation and companies lose more if they mess up, here regulators are subject to curruption and often lack teeth.

Not sure if it's 'better', but it does lead to some staggeringly stupid product labelling.

e.g. Packet of peanuts with warning: "Warning, contains nuts." and McDonalds coffee cups that warn you that the contents is 'hot'.

Instead of expecting people to think for themselves, this whole kind of approach means people start expecting others to think for them. I don't think that's progress - soon the people we allow to do the thinking for us will be making the decisions for us too. They probably already are.

When people stop thinking for themselves, they become morons.

Tuftus · 10-11-2005, 20:59

Greed. Plain and simple.

Sarge · 11-11-2005, 00:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by sherer

agree alot of these cases in the US are about greed.. not sure if the one about someone sueing McDonalds because they drunk some hot coffee and got scalded is true or not.. but everyone out there just seems to be out for a way to sue and make money rather than earn it

this story is true about the coffee. the guy bought some coffee going through the drive through and had it between his legs, the coffee spilled and he scolded himself and was burned pretty bad. he was awarded around 1 million US dollars. McDonalds now has a warning that the contents of the cup could be hot and to be careful.

your right, everyone sues over everything but its all about greed. But you know the little peons out there are only taking part in what corporations have been doing for years and that is sueing everyone for every penny they can get. Now that more of the small folks out there are doing it, the government wants to pass a law that requires the loser of a court case to pay all the fees; however, that law hasn't passed yet.

Graham · 11-11-2005, 01:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sarge

Quote:

Originally Posted by sherer

agree alot of these cases in the US are about greed.. not sure if the one about someone sueing McDonalds because they drunk some hot coffee and got scalded is true or not.. but everyone out there just seems to be out for a way to sue and make money rather than earn it

this story is true about the coffee. the guy bought some coffee going through the drive through and had it between his legs, the coffee spilled and he scolded himself and was burned pretty bad. he was awarded around 1 million US dollars. McDonalds now has a warning that the contents of the cup could be hot and to be careful.

Ahem: http://caoc.com/CA/index.cfm?event=showPage&pg=facts

swoop101 · 11-11-2005, 06:05

The case against Sony is only just beginning, they have illegally and maliciously installed spyware/malware on peoples systems without permission that has caused instability and data loss to people.
When they were found out, they released a so called fix that caused even more problems to peoples computers by causing further crashes and instability.

The most serious issue is that they have enabled easy access to hackers and virus writers by allowing them to hide anything they want by just adding $sys$ to the file name. This will leave a computer wide open for data theft and possible identity theft, and will let the hackers use the computer as they will for DDos attacks.

This was done by Sony just for one purpose, GREED.

as for the ipod, that is just stupid as a refund is more than adequate.

just seen that it has started:
http://www.sophos.com/pressoffice/ne...11/stinxe.html

Anonymouse · 11-11-2005, 08:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by sherer

it's totally ridiculous and a waste of money

It most certainly is not. Sony BMG have broken the laws of several countries, including this one (specifically the Computer Misuse Act 1990), by implementing DRM in this high-handed and frankly irresponsible manner. In addition, if a CD has any copy protection on it, according to Philips (who still own the patent on CDs) it cannot be described as a CD. Thus Sony are also guilty of violating the Trade Descriptions Act by attempting to pass them off as CDs. At least Amazon had the decency to state they were copy-protected.

You should see some of the reviews on Amazon.com!

Wicked_and_Crazy · 12-11-2005, 10:44

Sony to stop making anti piracy CD's

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4430608.stm