Ubisoft reportedly deleting customer accounts with purchased games if they have been inactive for too long

aswz@lemmy.world to Games@lemmy.world – 1057 points –
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Michael @LegacyKillaHD

This is just horrifying.

Ubisoft CONFIRMS they will delete your account & purchased games if you go inactive for too long!!!

Ubisoft.. WTF?! Another example of why I'm becoming more & more concerned with the death of physical games.

https://twitter.com/LegacyKillaHD/status/1682653876418224129

Ubisoft Support @UbisoftSupport

Hey there. We just wanted to chime in that you can avoid the account closure by logging into your account within the 30 days (since receiving the email pictured) and selecting the Cancel Account Closure link contained in the email. We certainly do not want you to lose access to your games or account so if you have any difficulties logging in then please create a support case with us. >> ubisoft.com/help

https://twitter.com/UbisoftSupport/status/1682046437834784768

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I really can't imagine that this complies with EU law.

Which makes it even more strange considering Ubisoft is based in the EU.

Something like this might have to be done to comply to GDPR. I'm not sure about the details, but I do know a company cannot keep personal information for longer than they need. At some point, I guess that would probably translate to removing old and unused accounts.

Doubtful. There is no basis for Ubisoft to claim the account is no longer needed just because you haven't played a game in some arbitrary period of time. Especially if they allow explicit account deletion by the user.

Sure, but that isn't how it works under GDPR. You don't need to prove the information should be deleted, you need to prove the information must be kept. To give an example, the company I work for deals with long-lived contracts (often 20 years or more), and once they end we are legally allowed to keep the information for about 5 more years. After that we need to remove it.

Are you allowed to unilaterally stop providing the service you 've been paid too?

GDPR is not the only law In EU nor does it automatically supercede any and all other obligations.

I really don't see why you say this, sadly. Our laws do not protect us against account closures.