Sony bans PSP homebrew talk; violates license agreement

298w ago - SCEA has stated on the Official Playstation boards that discussion of PSP homebrew and hacking is BANNED. SCEA state that homebrew applications void the warranty of the PSP and an official area to discuss such features can not be provided. The following topics are banned - custom firmware themes, applications, custom animation/sounds and other materials made available only through the use of homebrew applications. Basically EVERYTHING related to PSP homebrew/hacking is banned, anyone that ignores their policy will be banned and considered for other 'disciplinary actions' as determined by their admins. The official Playstation boards were FULL of homebrew discussion incase you didn't know!

To quote: "Homebrew applications void the warranty of the PSP®(PlayStation®Portable) system, and an official area to discuss such activities cannot be provided by SCEA. Any postings that are clearly homebrew-related, such as those providing instructions on downgrading firmware updates, will be removed from this board. This also includes, but is not limited to, the following topics:

• custom firmware
• themes, applications, custom bootup animations/sounds, and other materials made available only with use of homebrew
• programs that may be used to aid or facilitate copyright violations (such as Eboots, ripping software, decryption software)
• debugging software
• programs designed to emulate firmware
• TIFF applications
• programs designed to provide for modification of the PSP® code or firmware, or that would allow for any exploitation of the PSP® system firmware flashing software
• applications designed to bypass PSP® system and game security features
• emulators, ROMs, CSO, ISOs, or any other unauthorized copies of copyrighted material
• software or hardware designed to aid or facilitate in cheating

Any posting found to be in violation of this policy is subject to an immediate deletion. Members who continue to violate this policy may be subject to an immediate ban from this community, or other disciplinary actions as determined by the community Administrators.

For additional information regarding the use of your PSP®(PlayStation®Portable) system, please refer to the System Software License Agreement. A few relevant pieces of this agreement are provided here for your reference:
"You may not (i) use any unauthorized, illegal, counterfeit, or modified hardware or software in connection with the System Software, including use of such tool to bypass, disable, or circumvent any encryption, security, or authentication mechanism for the PSP™ system; (ii) violate any laws, regulations or statutes, or rights of SCE or third parties in connection with your access to or use of the System Software, including the access, use, or distribution of any software or hardware that you know or should have known to be infringing or pirated; (iii) use any hardware or software to cause the System Software to accept or use unauthorized, illegal, or pirated software or hardware; (iv) obtain the System Software in any manner other than through SCE's authorized distribution methods; or (v) exploit the System Software in any manner other than to use it in your PSP™ system in accordance with the accompanying documentation and with authorized software or hardware, including use of the System Software to design, develop, update, or distribute unauthorized software or hardware for use in connection with the PSP™ system for any reason. Any violation of these restrictions may void the PSP™ system's warranty and affect your ability to obtain warranty services and repair services from SCE."