I noticed they are working with ClassInd but are not clear how.
I really hope this won't open the door to censorship on Android, one of the reasons why I make mobile games is exactly to circunvent ClassInd (as the article calls it).
Here in Brazil, to release any entertainment product (even live Circus Shows are included on this), you must first ask the Ministry of Justice to give you a rating, the process, specially for things that aren't a Circus Show, is very long, slow and cumbersome (example: you need to do it again every time you make an official update of your software, and the process involves writing lots of paperwork, sending the physical papers to the Ministry, and waiting AT LEAST 30 days).
Although officially they claim it is NOT censorship, the process is mandatory for all entertainment, even if free, the law allow them to punish (with 2 years in prison and fines) anyone that are distributing, storing, selling, buying or creating things without ratings, and they can deny rating you (meaning that even if you ask, if they deny the rating, you are de-facto censored).
This does have an obvious effect here:
People here create fake US accounts to buy stuff on Xbox Live and PSN, because the local versions of XBL and PSN follow the law, and has much less content.
Steam don't have official Brazillian offices, although recently they stated to charge in BRL, and have portuguese translations, the charging part is handled by Brazillian companies and credit card processors, in a way that if Brazil government go ater Steam, Steam can just cut-off Brazil (and let the CC processors take the blame and the lawsuit).
Apple for a while, got in conflict with the government here, the Ministry of Justice threatened to sue Apple for 2000 BRL for each unrated app, back then 300.000 unrated apps already existed, Apple in response just set entire categories to be hidden from iTunes users with Brazillian IPs or accounts (leading to lots of fake accounts, sometimes using stolen CCs, and iTunes access using proxies).
Eventually, some merciful judge ruled that since Apple don't have offices here, they don't have to follow our law, opening access again.
Also, like I said, I make mobile apps to avoid that law, what I do is that I have a Brazil company, a Swiss company, and then I make the Swiss company, hire the Brazil company to create software for hire, then the Swiss company that "create" the completed entertainment software, and sells it (including to Brazillian users, that frequently pay with international CC, of course this leads to lots of inefficiency, since I have to pay taxes on exchanging CHF to BRL, after users already paid taxes on exchanging BRL to CHF, beside the exchange fees, the sale tax from Brazil to Switzerland, and the income taxes on both Brazil and Switzerland).
> also, like I said, I make mobile apps to avoid that law, what I do is that I have a Brazil company, a Swiss company, and then I make the Swiss company, hire the Brazil company to create software for hire, then the Swiss company that "create" the completed entertainment software, and sells it
Why do it in Switzerland, instead of say, US Delaware?
1) Some of the investing co-founders already lived in Switzerland
2) Some of the non-investing co-founders lived in Switzerland before, or would not mind living there in the future.
3) Switzerland, as bizarrely my phrase might sound, is more free than US, with laws regarding corporations easier to understand, and less crazy problems, for example no extremely stupid patent and copyright laws like US have.
So, in case US corporations get sue-happy against us (like they always do against each other), the best they can do is sue us in Switzerland, and there the law will be usually in our side (instead of siding with copyright/patent/whatever trolls)
Also we did check how much would cost us, including hiring the appropriate lawyers and accountants, to setup our stuff in Delaware vs Switzerland, and Switzerland was cheaper.
I really hope this won't open the door to censorship on Android, one of the reasons why I make mobile games is exactly to circunvent ClassInd (as the article calls it).
Here in Brazil, to release any entertainment product (even live Circus Shows are included on this), you must first ask the Ministry of Justice to give you a rating, the process, specially for things that aren't a Circus Show, is very long, slow and cumbersome (example: you need to do it again every time you make an official update of your software, and the process involves writing lots of paperwork, sending the physical papers to the Ministry, and waiting AT LEAST 30 days).
Although officially they claim it is NOT censorship, the process is mandatory for all entertainment, even if free, the law allow them to punish (with 2 years in prison and fines) anyone that are distributing, storing, selling, buying or creating things without ratings, and they can deny rating you (meaning that even if you ask, if they deny the rating, you are de-facto censored).
This does have an obvious effect here:
People here create fake US accounts to buy stuff on Xbox Live and PSN, because the local versions of XBL and PSN follow the law, and has much less content.
Steam don't have official Brazillian offices, although recently they stated to charge in BRL, and have portuguese translations, the charging part is handled by Brazillian companies and credit card processors, in a way that if Brazil government go ater Steam, Steam can just cut-off Brazil (and let the CC processors take the blame and the lawsuit).
Apple for a while, got in conflict with the government here, the Ministry of Justice threatened to sue Apple for 2000 BRL for each unrated app, back then 300.000 unrated apps already existed, Apple in response just set entire categories to be hidden from iTunes users with Brazillian IPs or accounts (leading to lots of fake accounts, sometimes using stolen CCs, and iTunes access using proxies).
Eventually, some merciful judge ruled that since Apple don't have offices here, they don't have to follow our law, opening access again.
Also, like I said, I make mobile apps to avoid that law, what I do is that I have a Brazil company, a Swiss company, and then I make the Swiss company, hire the Brazil company to create software for hire, then the Swiss company that "create" the completed entertainment software, and sells it (including to Brazillian users, that frequently pay with international CC, of course this leads to lots of inefficiency, since I have to pay taxes on exchanging CHF to BRL, after users already paid taxes on exchanging BRL to CHF, beside the exchange fees, the sale tax from Brazil to Switzerland, and the income taxes on both Brazil and Switzerland).