MSN Chat IS Closing Down European Markets
A few days ago, users of MSN Chat began panicing when they discovered what appeared to be an official MSN announcement that the EN-GB chats were closing down. The users then discovered that that post was a hoax.
We have evidence now that disproves that statement. It was in fact true and MSN IS closing ALL 34 European markets. To quote Sysop_Echo:
[19:27] <.'Sysop_Echo> ziggy: As part of an overall effort by MSN and Microsoft to provide consumers with a safer, more secure and positive overall online experience, MSN has decided to no longer offer MSN Chat in European markets beginning October 14 2003. Other MSN services such as Messenger and MSN Groups will continue to be available for European users.
There also have been several news sites covering this. Apparently it made national news in New Zealand. Here are several quotes from various articles:
This accompanies a decision by Microsoft to close the majority of its chatrooms in most countries to protect children from harm.
Internet service provider XtraMSN said it will be closing all user-created chatrooms on October 14.
Company spokeswoman Anna Kermode says moderated chatrooms will be able to remain open - with their content monitored from a companion site, Nine MSN in Australia.
Chatroom fears were stirred up in June, after a 26-year-old Auckland truck driver was jailed for six months for underage sex with a 14-year-old Nelson girl whom he met on the internet.
Kermode says another reason is to reduce the quantity of unwanted cyber junk mail.
LONDON, Sept. 24 - Microsoft Corp. announced Wednesday it would shut down its Internet chat rooms in 28 countries, saying the forums had become a haven for peddlers of junk e-mail and sex predators. "The straightforward truth of the matter is free unmoderated chat isn't safe," said Geoff Sutton, European general manager of Microsoft MSN.
FROM OCTOBER 14, the software giant will shut down its MSN chat services in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and much of Latin America, forcing millions of message board users to find alternative online forums to discuss the topics of the day.
In those regions, said Microsoft, the chat was free and unsupervised, giving rise to a nefarious element that bombarded users with "spam" mail, much of which was pornographic and, in some cases, allowing pedophiles to prey on children.
And that's only part of the MSNBC one. Here's more links:
- The Age: Microsoft closes chatrooms over pedophile fears
- The Telegraph: Microsoft closes all chatrooms to stop paedophiles
- The Independent: Microsoft closes chatrooms to curb paedophile threat
- The Register: MSN torches chatrooms
- Reuters: Spammers, Pedophiles Force Microsoft to Quit Chat
- BBC: MSN shuts down its chatrooms
By the way, if you head to HelpDesk, they say they will announce more tomorrow. We will give you an update when they do. Also, apparently MSN US requires a credit card now (according to sources).