Oh they'll get their money. Even if the operator's kids and grandkids are still making payments, Blizzard will get every last cent they're owed. Their lawyers and the State of California will see to it

Blizzard not getting their money? Yeah right..

I don't see why the kids and grandkids would have to pay. It's not their debt, and last time i checked, they're not liable for a parent's debts. They won't get much of an inheritance though.

I'd also say the 88 million will come down on appeal. Unless Alyson Reeves, is extremely rich, this just seems like a token "infinity billion dollars" amount.

There's only one person who can clarify things now! *shines Lawbringer bat-signal into the night sky*

If I am reading the case correctly, she made millions. I used to play a crappy little 2D MMO called Odyssey Online, and someone ended up setting up a microtransaction market for it and lived off of it very comfortably.

There is no way blizzard will ever get that much money. They'll probably track down a fair chunk of the 3 million. And to the person who said that your debts do not get handed down, that is correct. Finally, in the United States, there are hundreds and possibly thousands of ways to get out of paying things. Many many many bankruptcy options, not to mention multiple other legal venues to avoid paying.

Plus, we in the United States do not have a "debtors prison." No one goes to jail for not paying debts. In more... seedier transactions, shall we say, you may get a broken arm or something.

The simplest way the goobermint gets money off of people is garnishing wages. Someone who was entrepreneurial enough to leech 3 million in a microtransaction market on a pirated server of significantly less quality than the real mccoy can probably figure out how to make money out of sight of prying eyes.

It doesnt matter if they get their money. They just gave anyone thinking about doing this 88 million reasons not to.

Generally companies are separate entity from you. Even if the company is foreclosed, everything sold off, and the debt can't be repaid, it doesn't affect you personally (aside from probably getting a really bad credit rating afterwards).

I think the fine is there more to make sure that no one will ever attempt something like this again. No one would expect to get that kind of money out of them.

The assessment of damages and amount to be paid are two different things. For instance, let's say you have an old car and get into a minor accident. You take the car to your insurance company's mechanic for evaluation. They assess the damages at, say, $4000, however, because the car is so old the value of the entire vehicle is judged to be $3000, so the insurance company views the car as 'totaled' and cuts you a check for $3000.

The private server company did ~$88 million worth of damages to Blizzard. That's like saying a bomb went off and caused $88 million in damage, it's just a way to assess the value of the damage done. That value is essentially the maximum that Blizzard would legally be allowed to squeeze out of those responsible. The damages paid will likely be far less, however I don't doubt that those responsible will be paying for most, if not all, of the rest of their lives.

Usually you have 20-25 years to pay off the amount owed. They can do anything from garnishing wages, selling your stuff, etc. I doubt blizzard will see $88 million, but they will get as much as they can

"Plus, we in the United States do not have a "debtors prison." No one goes to jail for not paying debts. "

This is wholly untrue. For example, skip out on paying your child support and you'll go to jail.

Granted, the jail is technically for contempt of court - but the contempt arises out of not paying a debt owed.

Lawbringer I have a question!

Does declaring bankruptcy absolve you from these copyright infringement penalties? (Or is it like punitive damages, that don't go away)?

There are some very stringent restrictions on where, how and when debts like this can be collected. Providing the private server company was a corporation, they also have some pretty hefty safeguards put into place regarding what can be collected.

IF the company is a corporation (or in some states a LLC), then the assets can be collected only from the corporation. Granted, the entire corporation can be dismantled and auctioned off - and many people don't realize that any assets that corporation claims on its tax returns can also be auctioned off, but personal property and monies of the owners of the corporation are, in most cases, protected.

If it is not a corporation, then any and all private assets of the individual can be auctioned off. Some of this can be alleviated with a bankruptcy - a certain monetary value in regards to personal property, real estate (primary residence only up to a certain monetary value), vehicle, etc. would usually be untouchable. Anything above and beyond this would be auctioned or sold, and the money would be distributed amongst the claimants of the bankruptcy depending on a strict schedule - usually secured creditors first (house, car, etc.), trickling all the way down to unsecured creditors, which Blizzard would be defined as. After the bankruptcy was complete (I'm assuming a chapter 7 here, btw, since it would be absurd in the extreme for them to try for a chapter 13), all remaining debt that was claimed in the bankruptcy would be discharged.

Even IF (big if) the private server person(s) chose not to follow any of these paths, the debt would be discharged upon his/her death - after any and all proceeds from his/her estate were auctioned and proceeds distributed to the creditors. No remaining liability would fall on the heirs of the estate - our laws are pretty clear on this, the heirs might not receive a single penny from the estate, but they would not be liable for any additional claims from creditors on the estate.

Oh they had money! I read on a post a while ago that the owner had made over 7 million dollars before it closed down. Sure that might not be 88 million, but I would still that it's quite a bit of money.