Sony requests YouTube, Twitter user identities

After winning a restraining order against PS3 hacks in its court case, Sony is now taking the next step and threatening to sue anyone else posting or distributing the jailbreak code for its gaming console. The electronics giant is also requesting a judge to order Google to surrender IP addresses and other information of those who viewed or commented on the jailbreak video hosted on YouTube. A similar order is request for Twitter users tied to the hack.

Sony will use the information to send Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) notices to the users who share or use the jailbreak software or, if needed, seek court action against them. A hearing regarding Sony's requests is scheduled for Wednesday.

The original jailbreaker who was sued by Sony is George Hotz, better known as Geohot, who posted a jailbreak code for the PlayStation 3 that allows it to play pirated or homebrew games. Hotz recently removed the offending video from YouTube and his personal website, as ordered by the court. He argued however that he not only didn't intend to use it for piracy but designed it in such a way that it didn't explicitly streamline loading bootleg games. [via Wired]

By Electronista Staff