Microsoft Dropping the Ban Hammer on Foul Mouthed Videos

If you mention Xbox Live to practically any gamer they have a story about having profanities shouted at them by squeaky pre-teen voices. So it comes as a surprise that over the weekend there were quite a few complaints from people who were banned for profanity on Xbox One.

The bans in particular were from the Upload Studio and Skype apps. While it’s not specifically spelled out in the Terms of Use, Upload Studio falls into the same rules as playing over Xbox Live… meaning if you swear in a voiceover you record for your video, you could be banned. One user was banned for just using the word “dick”. What’s even more troubling is at least one Twitter user says he was banned for swearing over Skype. 

If you swear in a private Skype call on the Xbox One you get this half-sentence: http://t.co/O5Ekhdy674 $500 console

— Connor (@getB3NT) November 25, 2013

The alleged Skype ban seems to be coming from only this one user, and judging from his Twitter responses he might not be entirely sure the ban originated from Skype. Microsoft has already released a response to the claim as well:

“To be clear, the Xbox Live Policy & Enforcement team does not monitor direct peer-to-peer communications like Skype chats and calls,” the representative wrote. “Also, we take Code of Conduct moderation via Upload Studio very seriously. We want a clean, safe and fun environment for all users. Excessive profanity as well as other Code of Conduct violations will be enforced upon and result in suspension of some or all privileges on Xbox Live. We remain committed to preserving and promoting a safe, secure and enjoyable experience for all of our Xbox Live members.”

In summary, they are watching all the videos you upload… but at least they’re not (admitting publicly to) listening in on your private Skype calls.

This brings up another question: many “M” rated games have profanity, so would uploading clips of that get you banned from Upload Studio? Seems like that would be an odd double standard if those clips are allowed. 

I should specify that the bans are only from the app, and not Xbox Live entirely, and they’ve been reported as lasting only 24 hours. 

With the launch of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the ability to share content is now in the hands of many people for the first time… so it’s only natural we’re going to see some abuse of that technology. For many people I think it’s a wakeup call that if you share something, remember everyone can see it.