Showing that at least a handful of news outlets are chasing the truth on Microsoft's new system that allows game publishers to shakedown consumers on used games, CVG, GameSpot and MCV have collectively contacted ten high profile third-party publishers to ask if they plan on using the new system including Bethesda, Activision, Capcom, Take-Two, Namco Bandai, Electronic Arts, Sega, Square Enix, and Konami.

The very first porn-related app for Google Glass has been banned by Google, along with any other applications that someone might think of in the future. The application created by software developer MiKandi called "Tits & Glass" allowed Google Glass users to record videos and take pictures of sexual partners and share them with other users of the app who could then rate them.

If rights holders had their way they would have the ability to install rootkits and deploy malware that would include Ransomeware (restricted access to your computer until you pay them a fee) on to the computer systems of hackers and illegal file downloaders in order to fight piracy and cyber attacks. This may sound a little too over-the-top, but these are just some of the crazy ideas presented in a new report by the Commission on the Theft of American Intellectual Property.

A New York Times article from earlier this week about the FBI's attempt to expand the scope of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) and the subsequent response to it from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) should raise alarm bells for anyone that does anything on the Internet.

In Episode 52, hosts Andrew Eisen and E. Zachary Knight talk about female presenters at Microsoft's Xbox reveal event this week, EA's continued abuse of the Wii U community, The new S.H.I.E.L.D TV series, Wreck-It Ralph, sushi, and other topics and tangents - mostly instigated by Andrew! Download Episode 52 now: SuperPAC Episode 52 (1 hour, 12 minutes) 66.7 MB.

While New Jersey Governor Chris Christie may not let his children play Call of Duty or any other mature rated games, and even though retailers like GameStop and the ESRB work hand-in-hand to make sure his children can't even buy those games without some sort of identification to prove their age, it hasn't stopped the governor from convening a task force and proposing new laws that would require that parents give permission to buy the games children can't get their hands on.

On this week's show, hosts Andrew Eisen and E. Zachary Knight discuss the first Tropes vs. Women video, "Bronies" and if rights holders should be a little kinder to fan projects, and the nightmarish launch of SimCity this week. Download Episode 44 now: SuperPAC Episode 44 (1 hour, 6 minutes) 60.4 MB.

Connecticut State Representative Debralee Hovey (R-112th District) isn't the only one that introduced a bill in the January session apparently. Connecticut State Senator Toni Nathaniel Harp (D-10th District) introduced S.B. No.

The UK tabloid The Sun is running a feature length story about a saucy calendar featuring gaming and scantily clad women that is apparently all the rage in Germany - right alongside David Hasselhoff... The article is titled "Nerd is the word," and highlights the fact that the "calendar featuring classic gaming consoles and sexy girls" is a "big hit.." We think it's a big miss personally because it objectifies women in the name of geek culture.

While Oklahoma lawmakers rightfully refused to introduce game regulation related legislation this year, the calls for such regulation from many uninformed people continue. We already wrote about one oped calling for an extra tax be levied on the entertainment industry. However, the larger issue of the public's opinion on violent gaming is something that will have to be addressed for many years to come.

Forbes is reporting that Electronic Arts has changed the language of the "End User License Agreement" (EULA) users have to agree to in order to play SimCity. Players, who are already peeved that the game requires an "always-on" connection in order play even single-player, took issue with some wording in EULA for the SimCity Beta.

This is sure to put analyst Michael Pachter on someone's naughty list: Recently he said that Activision needs to start charging a fee for the multiplayer portion of its Call of Duty games. Wedbush Securities industry analyst Michael Pachter made his comments during the Digital Game Monetization Summit in San Francisco, California (as reported by GamesIndustry International). During his presentation he said that Activision made a serious mistake when it didn't implement a subscription-based model for Call of Duty multiplayer.

Time Warner Cable announced that it will bring its metered broadband offer nationwide, leaving many consumers with an inkling of common sense to ask the question: "Why?" The Time Warner broadband plan, called "Internet Essentials," gives a meager $5 discount to subscribers willing to stay below a 5 GB data cap each month.

This week member countries of the United Nations' International Telecommunication Union (ITU) got together in Dubai to discuss revising the world's telecommunications regulations, much to the chagrin of Internet advocacy groups and companies that do business on the Internet. Advocacy groups are concerned that the group will propose new rules on the Internet that will limit privacy, anonymity, institute new fees for Internet-based business, and even charge tariffs or taxes.

In what has to be a record take-down of a questionable piece of marketing, Square Enix pulled a Facebook app promoting Hitman Absolution two hours after it was deployed after a scathing report from Rock, Paper, Shotgun. The company later apologized for the app. The trouble began after RPS wrote about how "Hire Hitman" app allowed users to target and assassinate their Facebook friends, complete with death threats to your intended target.

Earlier this year it was rumored that gaming and geek culture network G4 would be changing its format to support the "GQ" demographic, and that much of its most popular programming would either be reformatted or discontinued. Today we learn that it looks like its most popular programs will face the latter and not the former. Polygon is reporting that the network's two most popular shows have been cancelled.

Not exactly the press you want, a new article at Gamasutra features Team Ninja director Yohei Shimbori talking about how fans wanted female characters in Dead or Alive 5 to have bigger breasts.

The ghost of 38 Studios' unpaid loans and bankruptcy still haunt the state of Rhode Island, according to comments made by current Governor Lincoln Chafee (I). The governor said that the 38 Studios failure "remains an economic development crisis" for the state.

Rights groups are turning up the rhetoric on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), claiming that the new treaty being negotiated by the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and other countries in the Pacific Rim will bring back controversial copyright enforcement provisions pushed by some US policymakers in recent bills and treaties such as ACTA, SOPA and PIPA.

Variety reports that G4TV owners NBC Universal are going to revamp the popular tech and geek culture channel to be more "GQ," catering to the "modern male." Details on the revamp, set to happen in early 2013, have not been revealed, and many in the gaming, geek and technology culture of the internet are concerned that NBCU will dump the decent programming G4TV offers such as extensive event coverage. G4TV has always had a strong presence at events like Comic-Con, E3, and GDC.

In an editorial on Ars Technica internet advocacy group Free Press described the FCC's move to tax broadband as a way to fund broadband infrastructure growth in the U.S. as misguided. Free Press Research Director S. Derek Turner says that the proposed $1 - $5 tax on customers would ultimately be turned over to companies like AT&T who have been slowly pulling out of the broadband business anyway.

When the Obama Administration's Copyright Czar Victoria Espinel sent out a request for comments on future strategies related to copyright enforcement, it came as no shock when trade groups representing the interests of the movie and music industry asked that a major P2P site be taken down.

CBS Cleveland News is reporting that 15-year-old Tyler Rigby has been hospitalized after a 4-day gaming marathon left him severely dehydrated.  Reportedly, the Columbus teen locked himself in his room to play Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.  According to his mother, he emerged for the occasional potty and snack break.

If you live in Nashville, Tennessee then you probably use Comcast for most of your internet needs, but a new trial in the region that begins tomorrow will change the way you use your internet connection for gaming and entertainment. Starting Wednesday, August 1, Comcast will test a new usage-based broadband policy on its Nashville customers. The company will data cap its customers at 300 GB a month and anyone that goes over that threshold will be charged an additional $10 per 50 GB of additional data used.

Update: The BBC is reporting that Ubisoft has rushed to patch the exploit unearthed by a Google engineer in its Uplay DRM. The company also issued instructions for Uplay users:

"We recommend that all Uplay users update their Uplay PC application without a Web browser open," Ubisoft said. "This will allow the plug-in to update correctly. An updated version of the Uplay PC installer with the patch also is available from Uplay.com."

Microsoft has a new Xbox 360 bundle that costs $99, but consumers that buy it will have to commit to a two-year contract for an Xbox Live Gold membership. And that two year membership will cost you about $15 a month. While the idea might be to subsidize or finance the console as a trade-off for the low price point, the move also smacks of false advertising because the console will ultimately cost consumers $99, then 24 months of paying $15, for a grand total (not including sales tax) of $459 (24 months x $15 = $360, plus the price of the console at $99).

Responding to a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, Capcom says that there is no distinction between downloadable content and content hidden and locked on Street Fighter X Tekken retail game discs. The latest argument between Capcom and consumers began when it was revealed that over a dozen DLC characters were hidden on the game discs. Because consumers paid for the game at retail and the content was on the discs already, they feel like they are having to pay for something they already paid for.

Not so, says Capcom in its response to a BBB claim:

South Australia will introduce a new law that would ban anyone under the age of 18 from purchasing a game with a rating of MA15+, according to a report from Gamespot Australia. A spokesperson for South Australian Attorney-General John Rau told GameSpot that this move is "a more practical measure" than Rau's previously announced plan of removing the MA15+ category altogether.

With the Bully Project being released in theaters this Friday, it seems ironic that we would be reporting on people mocking another player who is "suicidal" and encouraging other people to do the same in the hope that the individual would "do it." This is the same kind of behavior highlighted in the aforementioned documentary. But instead of happening in a game it happened at school to an 11-year-old boy. He ended up listening to his school mates.

The Washington Times has an opinion piece that takes a shot at German Chancellor Angela Merkel's administration over what they are calling a proposed "Drudge Tax." The reference is to conservative Matt Drudge's popular web site The Drudge Report, which aggregates news from all over the web. While the flavor of The Drudge Report may not sit well with many, the concern with a new proposal being pushed by Merkel's administration is that it will levy taxes on web sites that aggregate content.