The cat and mouse game between console makers and modchippers has raged in earnest since the rise of the CD-based Playstation over a decade ago. Every console since has been modified, either in software or using an internal or external device, to allow users to play copies of games. Every effort to thwart such modifications has in turn been thwarted. The PlayStation 3 might be proving tougher than others, but it's only a matter of time. 

So what's the answer? Console makers are never going to throw in the towel and admit they can't stop modders, just as the movie industry is never going to admit it can't stop people pirating Blu-ray and HD DVD discs. They'll keep fighting, even though it's a war they must realise they can never win.

Is it time to unleash the lawyers? History proves that chasing modders and pirates through the courts achieves very little - it's like trying to stop the tide with a broom. It might put the fear of god into a few people who were thinking of buying a pirate movie or modchip down at the market, but it also inspires the hardcore few responsible for the bulk of the piracy. As the music industry has discovered, suing children and old ladies does little to help your image and just helps to turn public opinion against you.

What about the argument that lower prices would stamp out piracy? Once again it might win over a few people who were thinking of buying a pirate movie or modchip down at the market, but there's a segment of the community that would not pay for content at any price. For them piracy is more than a matter of money, it's a matter of principle. The multi-national media conglomerates will never win over such people.

They say if you grab people by the balls then their hearts and minds will follow, but so far efforts to put the squeeze on pirates has failed. Both sides know it's a war that can never be won. So Nintendo can keep pissing in the wind with mod-proof Wiis, as long as they realise it's only a drop in the ocean.{moscomment}

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Adam Turner  Games  Piracy  Wii