Blizzard entertainment Forum policy

[david83]

hi, recently i've been banned on blizzard's world of warcraft forum. reason for the ban is "spam/trolling which i didn't do. when i emailed blizzard's forum team i got a response for using a player's name which i didn't post i used a player's guild name and their 2nd reason was basicly dropped in the letter because i did post a constructive post based on info i acquired in game. here's a copy of the ban notice and i'll also include the info sent and received via email. i'm curious can i sue blizzard for banning on a wim without reading posts,info correctly and changing their claims? cause the grounds on which i was banned on on their code conduct (forum policy) has nothing to do with the ban i received.

link removed (blizzard's forum conduct code policy)


ban notice

rigination Forums / Comments
Ban Type: Spamming / Trolling
Expires: Wednesday, February 23, 2011 1:32:46 AM UTC (in 5 days, 4 hours)
Ban Reason: Suspended from the World of Warcraft forums for a 1 week period for trolling the forums. This is a final warning. Further violations of forum guidelines could result in a loss of posting privileges.

Do not post again until you have read the forum guidelines:
(link removed)

Thread Title nerf hunter damage 21k on a single target is

(Current) - Feb 15, 2011 4:41:04 PM------------

title says it all i saw a hunter in a random heroic do basicly 20k on every boss (heroic black rock caverns)there is no damage buffs in brc. this guy from guild "matt damon"dude told me oh thats nothing just wait till i pop cooldowns. i crap you not i saw his damage go from 18 to 24k then average out at 20-21k.i kindly told the guy from matt damon's guild to get the hell out of here!




emails send/received.



realize customer service department cannot assist with forum related problems i've already contacted them thats how i got the forum email that wasn't on the ban notice page.


(blizzard forum rep) The same policy is in place for a guild, group of players or a single player. The suspension will remain.

i read the entire code of conduct
(link removed)


There is nothing what so ever under the category i was banned for, nor is there any categories stating "hey you can't use guild names" and the fact you had to change your reply because you didn't even read the reason i was banned for and replied with " for using a player name" which isn't even in the report what so ever.







Spamming or Trolling
This category includes:
Excessively communicating the same phrase, similar phrases, or pure gibberish
Creating threads for the sole purpose of causing unrest on the forums
Causing disturbances in forum threads, such as picking fights, making off topic posts that ruin the thread, insulting other posters
Making non-constructive posts
Abusing the Reported Post feature by sending false alarms or nonsensical messages
Numbering a thread, IBTL, TLDR, or any other fad statements
















> From:
> To:
> CC:
> Subject: Re: RE:
> Date: Thu, 17 Feb 2011 11:16:14 -0800
>
> Hello,
>
> The Customer Service Departments cannot assist with forum related inquires. They can only assist with In-Game, Technical Support and Billing/Account issues not related to the forums. The same policy is in place for a guild, group of players or a single player. The suspension will remain.
>
> - The World of Warcraft Community Team
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
> To:
> Sent: 2/17/2011 6:59:10 AM
> Subject: RE:
>
> i didn't post a player name i posted a guild name not the player name didn't you read the post? i called for a change because i saw a class do over 20k on each boss in black rock caverns without a damage buff. no other classes that i've seen can do over 21k on a single target in a heroic. i have 3 level 85's 2 fully geared and 2 more im working on. i've ran a lot of heroics.
>
>
> the ban is unjustifiable and you know it. i'm calling customer service again to complain about this. there is no reason for this ban.
>
>
>
> > From:
> > To:
> > CC:
> > Subject: Re:
> > Date: Wed, 16 Feb 2011 15:08:12 -0800
> >
> > Hello,
> >
> > Creating posts or threads that target a player or name a specific player are not allowed. This includes threads that call for changes to a class without being constructive. The suspension will remain.
> >
> > -The World of Warcraft Community Team
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From:
> > To:
> > Sent: 2/16/2011 11:33:43 AM
> > Subject:
> >
> > hey i just got off the phone with a blizzard customer service rep. because when i went to post a suggestion regarding auction house "item enchant" option because when i was searching for an enchant script to use on my new epic pve gloves i won from BH raid. i had to flip through nearly every page to find out that there wasn't any 50% haste scripts available to purchase. my suggestion is to have like a drop down menu like there is for armor so Auction house menu would look something like
> >
> >
> > Item inchant
> > [head]
> > [shoulder]
> > [chest]
> > [gloves]
> > [pants]
> >
> > Ect. but when i went to the forums to post i got a msg
> >
> >
> > Ban Typ Spamming / Trolling
> > Expires: Wednesday, February 23, 2011 1:32:46 AM UTC (in 6 days, 6 hours)
> > Ban Reason: Suspended from the World of Warcraft forums for a 1 week period for trolling the forums. This is a final warning. Further violations of forum guidelines could result in a loss of posting privileges.
> > Do not post again until you have read the forum guidelines: (link removed)
> >
> >
> >
> > this is what got me banned i guesss. i don't know why i am not trolling i don't see how or why. I saw a hunter in a heroic black rock caverns group do 21k plus damage on bosses with no damage debuffs to increase damage on my shadow priest that night. my main is warlock i play affliction even before warlock nerf to ISF i couldn't do 20k on a single target. the reason i posted i think its ridiculous i suggested nerfing hunters. why did i get banned for this post? how am i trolling? and/or how is my post spam??????
> >
> >
> > btw i called customer service cause i don't see any option to appeal the ban for trolling when i wasn't trolling. i really saw a hunter from guild matt damon named killsomething i forget the hunter's exact name.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > title says it all i saw a hunter in a random heroic do basicly 20k on every boss (heroic black rock caverns)there is no damage buffs in brc. this guy from guild "matt damon"dude told me oh thats nothing just wait till i pop cooldowns. i crap you not i saw his damage go from 18 to 24k then average out at 20-21k.i kindly told the guy from matt damon's guild to get the hell out of here!

 

[CdwJava]

So ... what is your question?

The Blizzard forum admin can do what they please. You have no legal right to be allowed to post there and they can ban you if they choose. If there is a contractual issue and this cost you a subscription fee, then there may be some mechanism to recoup any fees after being pro-rated.

If you are asking what your legal options are, you really have none. Unless you can show that they discriminated against you solely as a result of your perceived inclusion in a protected class of individual, they can ban you for most any reason they wish.

 

[david83]

I was informed by the ban notice to read the code of conduct policy. i read the policy and under the ban type there is nothing in regards to the reason i was banned for. even when the info provided by the forum team, the reason has nothing to do with the action taken. my question is can i do anything about it? obviously there is rules and according to their policy i haven't broken any.


reason i came here is because i pay $15 dollars a month to access servers and forums. when i get banned from the forums for "trolling" which i wasn't and now i can't access the forum for 1 week, how is that service? i cannot access the forum. if i get actioned against 1 more time for basically anything even if its right or wrong action i won't be able to post for the rest of my life on my account.

i don't see how i can get charged for a service that isn't clear on their forum code of conduct policy page. there is nothing what so ever in regards to the ban notice or what the blizzard forum team said i violated.

 

[CdwJava]

Then you can request a refund. If they refuse, you can try to take them to small claims court for whatever portion of that fee you might be out for the time period.

But, if I understand it correctly, you are banned only from the forum and not from the game, correct? So you may have even less of a claim than your pro-rated $15 might imply. We're talking about a financial cost of, what, $4? If that?

About all you can do is take this up with Blizzard. There is no legal claim here unless you really want to sue them over what might be effectively four dollars.

 

[david83]

Then you can request a refund. If they refuse, you can try to take them to small claims court for whatever portion of that fee you might be out for the time period.

But, if I understand it correctly, you are banned only from the forum and not from the game, correct? So you may have even less of a claim than your pro-rated $15 might imply. We're talking about a financial cost of, what, $4? If that?

About all you can do is take this up with Blizzard. There is no legal claim here unless you really want to sue them over what might be effectively four dollars.

lol four dollar refund. good one try $15 dollars a month for the past 8 years thats how much I've spent + the main game $40 + 3x $40 (expansion packs). not being able to post on forums on class changes, game suggestions, customer service. i pay for customer service. customer service is part of the fee when i can't access customer service forums that means i don't have the service i pay for and have paid for which is a major problem.


so in short you're telling me there is no way to get service i pay for from blizzard entertainment because i posted on a topic blizzard obviously wanted to keep hush hush and i get slapped with a ban that has nothing to do with the ban type on their own world of Warcraft forum of conduct policy page.

great, another business gets away with a low level case of fraud. i should create a business like this when i fail to ban people according to my own policy i'll just pull a policy out of my ass and call it good. enjoy my product!

however, thanks you for the info. i appreciate it.

 

[CdwJava]

lol four dollar refund. good one try $15 dollars a month for the past 8 years thats how much I've spent + the main game $40 + 3x $40 (expansion packs). not being able to post on forums on class changes, game suggestions, customer service. i pay for customer service. customer service is part of the fee when i can't access customer service forums that means i don't have the service i pay for and have paid for which is a major problem.

You said your suspension is for one week. That's about 1/4 of your $15 monthly fee ... LESS than $4.

so in short you're telling me there is no way to get service i pay for from blizzard entertainment because i posted on a topic blizzard obviously wanted to keep hush hush and i get slapped with a ban that has nothing to do with the ban type on their own world of Warcraft forum of conduct policy page.

Short of a small claims action for breach of contract, no, not really. But, they have a battery of attorneys I am sure, and you would be doing this on your own. Is it worth it? Why not weather the one week and move on?

 

[mightymoose]

lol four dollar refund. good one try $15 dollars a month for the past 8 years thats how much I've spent + the main game $40 + 3x $40 (expansion packs).

How much you spent in the past means nothing. You are only missing a small portion of one month's service, which is a fraction of $15.

Whether you did something wrong or not- it seems your simplest solution here is to wait a few days for the suspension to be lifted, then you are back to normal.

 

[Proserpina]

I'd also suggest going outside and getting some fresh air.